8 Oct 2011
Instead of going to Lake Tekapo through Timaru, we used the other route which took us to Waitaki Valley.
First, we stopped by at Duntroon, one of the stop point of Vanished World Trail. There were fossils including shells and remains of penguins, whales and dolphins. Yellow-white limestone near Duntroon formed in the deep sea, while sarsen stones are made of cemented white river sand. Dark red-brown basalt crystallised from molten rock. Gold-bearing schist formed when rocks were heated, squeezed and deformed.
We continued our journey and we passed by Kurow. We saw three big columns of straw, with colorful painting on them. They were just located at the junction, decorated for the 2011 Rugby Cup.
Waitaki Power Station was the first of eight power stations built on Waitaki River. Aviemore Dam is a dam of the Waitaki River. It was built from earth and concrete in 1962 (commissioned in 1968) to dam Lake Aviemore.
Benmore Dam is the largest dam within the Waitaki power scheme. There are eight other power stations in the valley. With a generating capacity of 540 MV, it is the second largest hydro station in New Zealand.
Clay Cliff is a private land and each car is charged 5 dollars. But this place is definitely worth being visited with no regret.
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