The Wild West

Continuing our exploration of the west coast of the south isaland, we spent 2 nights near the Paparoa National Park's picturesque coast.

The park is also home to the Pancake Rocks and Blowholes, bizarre formations representing more than 30 million years of geological history.

This area has a colorful history owing to its gold and coal mining elements. This is rugged, isolated and harsh terrain with remote settlements tucked into the hillsides.

The West Coast Gold Rush from 1864-1867
populated the area which, up till then, had been visited by few Europeans.  At the peak of the rush in 1867, there were probably about 29,000 people in the area---around 12% of New Zealand's European population at the time. One in five of the European men in New Zealand were on the "roaring" coast.

The town of Reefton is dedicated to preserving the gold rush era.  We stopped there to have coffee with local "miners" and get a lesson in panning for gold.   We also got a guided tour of the town's museum and met The Guiness title holder for New Zealand's Most Traveled Man in the World, John Bougen. (191 countries in a 151-day journey)

Tim, our tour leader, (left) and John Bougen

Coal production and its hazards both to miners and the environment are "hot botton" topics in New Zealand politically.
An explosion in 2010 that killed 29 miners brought the issue to the forefront again.