We couldn't leave Dunedin without taking a peek at the World's Steepest Street - Baldwin Street. We parked the car in a relatively flat section, and set out on foot. As we approached the start of the steep section, we noted a group of girls first running up, and then sitting down in the middle of the road. As scooters and cars made their way down Baldwin Street, these intellectual heavyweights thought it prudent to lie outstretched and roll down the bitumen descent. We made our way (Jen with Joshua in tow) up the footpath - consisting of an unending series of stairs - finally reaching the top. I am guessing the local gardeners don't have to worry about drainage for their flowers.
Enjoying following the east coast, we stopped in briefly at Moeraki to investigate a large scattering of spherical boulders. The kids thoroughly enjoyed clambering all over the geological oddities, as well as straying into the path of carefully set-up photographs by other tourists.We had lunch at Oamaru (not to be confused with Timaru. I'd like to think there is some bitter rivalry between these neighbouring towns), and started heading into hill country again. Strangely, the temperature stayed at around 20 degrees for most of the trip - quite the heat-wave really.
As we approached the Mt Cook region, we got excited by seeing a couple of mountains with a few specks of snow on them. We soon crested a hill and saw Mt Cook proper - the thing was a white and ice-blue giant. The immensity continued to dawn on us as we approached the base of the mountains and located our accommodation. After night fell, the proximity to snowy peaks and glacial streams has become more apparent, with winds now howling outside.
