024 – South Island (The Catlins), New Zealand – Thar She Blows

 The Catlins refers to the less travelled region along the southeast coast that consists of more spectacular coastal views, nature hikes, beautiful rolling grassy mountains and valleys…

…and winds akin to the wash from a jet engine.  

 So much so, that everything in the region grows on a 45-degree angle due to the constant gale force winds.

 The gusts pushed the sleek aerodynamic styling of our Backpacker Quattro RV to the limit.  No big deal, we were only blown into the ditch four times and into oncoming traffic twice.  Fortunately for us “oncoming traffic” in the Catlins is pretty light. Over the 209km I think we passed one pickup truck, two campervans and half a dozen tractors. Well... I suppose that’s a bit of an underestimate, as it doesn’t include the stampeding cattle herd that had us fearing for our lives…

Aside from the views, there are some big name tourist attractions as well.  We were lucky to find a caravan park in Owaka, just around the corner from two of them.

“Dolly World”…

 Complete with eerie old lady peering out the window from her rocker (not shown).

And right next door, the equally mind-blowing “Teapotland”.

 You just can’t make this shit up.

Of course, if you’re ever in the Catlins be sure to stop by the self-serve shop at the Invercargill Brewery.  It’s where locals just stroll in with whatever empty vessel they happen to have on hand (2-litre pop bottles, milk jugs, Dixie cups, etc.) and fill them up at the spigots.

 Be sure to pick up a loyalty card (“buy 10 get one free”) on your way out.

All things considered Ciel gives the up and coming Catlins her Qualmark tourism seal of approval.