Welcome to
Oamaru
Oamaru is North Otago's central city, New Zealand's South Island, and the principal city of the Waitaki District. It is located on the Pacific coast, 80 kilometres (50 miles) south of Timaru and 120 kilometres (75 miles) north of Dunedin; State Highway 1 and the railway Main South Line connect it to both cities. Oamaru is the third-largest city in Otago after Dunedin and Queenstown, with a population of 13,700. Waitaki District, which includes the nearby towns of Kurow, Weston, Palmerston, and Hampden, has 23,200 people. Friendly Bay is a popular recreational location on the outskirts of Oamaru Harbour, south of the city centre. In Pukeuri, just north of Oamaru, the massive Alliance Abattoir sits at a crucial intersection with State Highway 83, the primary road into the Waitaki Valley. This route crosses the Lindis Pass to link the towns of Kurow, Omarama, Otematata, and Queenstown and Wanaka. The Waitaki Valley connects Oamaru to the Mackenzie Basin on the east.
Oamaru was built between rolling limestone hills and a small length of flat terrain to the sea. This limestone rock is used to construct native Oamaru stone structures, also known as Whitestone buildings.Oamaru is well-protected by the shelter of Cape Wanbrow. Otago's provincial surveyor John Turnbull Thomson set up the town in 1858, naming the early streets after British rivers, particularly those in the northwest and southeast.The name Oamaru is derived from the Mori and means the place of Maru (cf. Timaru).The identity of Maru is still a mystery.
Around Oamaru, there are various significant archaeological sites. Both those near the Waitaki River mouth and Awamoa were from the Archaic (Moa-hunter) period of Mori culture when New Zealand's human population was concentrated along the southeast coast beginning around AD 1100. There were at least 1,200 furnaces at the Waitaki River mouth. W.B.D. Mantell excavated in Awamoa for the first time in New Zealand at Christmas 1847 and again in 1852. Smaller Archaic sites can be found in central Oamaru at Cape Wanbrow and Beach Road. The great Archaic art of the Waitaki Valley rock shelters dates from this period, which the site's residents created.Tamahaerewhenua, Tekorotuaheka, Te Punamaru, Papakaio, and Kakanui are also Classic and Protohistoric sites dating from after roughly AD 1500.
Mori legend has it that the ancient people Kahui Tipua built a canoe, Arai Te Uru, that travelled from southern New Zealand to the ancestral Polynesian country, Hawaiki, in search of kumara. On its way back, it became waterlogged near the entrance of the Waitaki River, lost food baskets at Moeraki Beach, and was wrecked at Matakaea (Shag Point), where it formed Danger Reef. After the crash, a crew member, Pahihiwitahi, searched for water and discovered the Waitaki River. Still, when he returned south and failed to reach the wreck before sunrise, he was transformed into a hill in the Shag Valley.
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Essential Tips and Top Highlights for Exploring Oamaru
According to modern researchers, this story is a symbolic explanation for why kumara would not grow south of the Banks Peninsula. On February 20, 1770, James Cook and the crew of the Endeavour sailed from England in the Endeavour and arrived approximately 3 miles [5 km] off the shore of Waitaki..He stated that the land, The country here is shallow and flat, and it continues to be so until you reach the outskirts of the hills, which are at least 4 or 5 miles [6–8 km] in length. The entire landscape appears lonely, and no indications of life can be found. He stayed on this stretch of coast for four days. The expedition's artist, Sydney Parkinson, described what appears to be Cape Wanbrow in Oamaru.On February 20, he wrote, ...we were close to the land, which provided a lovely view to the naked eye. The hills were of middling height, with flats that extended for a great distance from them, and were surrounded by a vertical rocky cliff next to the sea. Mori lived nearby, and sealers frequented the coast around 1814. The Creed text, discovered in 2003, contains the following information: Some of the [locals] had gone on a feasting trip to meet a large company from Taumutu, Akaroa, and Orawenua [Arowhenua]. They were coming back. The [sealers'] boat continued to the Bluff, 8 miles [13 kilometres] north of Moeraki, where they landed, positioned their craft, and slept in it. Pukuheke, Te More's father, went to the boat at night, found them asleep, and returned to the other Natives south of the Bluff. They went with 100 [men] and slaughtered and ate 5 Europeans. Two of the seven escaped through the night after two days and nights on the trip and made it as far as Goodwood, Bobby's Head, before being apprehended.
According to the 2018 New Zealand census, Oamaru's population grew by 804 persons (6.5 per cent) since the previous census in 2013 and by 9.0 per cent from the last census in 2006. Men outnumbered women by a ratio of 0.92, with 6,267 men and 6,840 women in attendance. The population was divided as follows:Two thousand three hundred twenty-five people were under the age of 15. Two thousand twenty-two people were 15 to 29 years old.Five thousand four hundred thirty-six people were in the 30 to 64 age bracket.Three thousand three hundred twenty-four people were 65 years old or over.The ethnic composition of the population was 86.9 per cent European/Pkeh, 8.1 per cent Mori, 6.0 per cent Pacific peoples, 4.8 per cent Asian, and 1.7 per cent other ethnicities (totals add to more than 100 per cent since people could identify with multiple races).
Discover the Best Attractions and Activities in Oamaru
The yellow-eyed penguins at Bushy Beach are not the only penguins in Oamaru. The award-winning Oamaru Blue Penguin Colony provides a unique opportunity to witness Blue Penguins, the world's tiniest penguins. This excellent conservation site features a magnificent grandstand that overlooks their nesting boxes, situated in front of the rockface. There will be no better view than watching penguins waddle onto the sand than from that vantage point. The Blue Penguins, which stand barely 30cm tall, are lovely and appealing, and you won't want to miss them. The Blue Penguin Colony is Oamaru's most famous sight and is worth the drive alone. Or why not visit Oamaru's Victorian Precinct and discover what this architecturally spectacular and one-of-a-kind location has to offer. Explore and enjoy a variety of fantastic attractions and activities, such as galleries, craft, antique, and book stores, as well as restaurants and pubs providing delicious food, superb wine, craft beer, and world-class whisky.
When visiting Oamaru, a trip to the Moeraki Boulders is a must. Moeraki Rocks are incredibly vast and spherical boulders that lie along a section of Koekohe Beach on New Zealand's wave-cut Otago coast between Moeraki and Hampden. They can be found scattered as individual boulders or in bunches along a stretch of coastline that has been designated as a scientific reserve. The erosion of mudstone by wave action, including local bedrock and landslides, usually exposes embedded solitary boulders. These boulders are grey-coloured septarian concretions extracted from the mudstone that surrounds them and concentrated on the beach due to coastal erosion. Walter Mantell sketched the beach and its stones in 1848 when they were more numerous than they are now. The painting is now on display at Wellington's Alexander Turnbull Library. The boulders were reported in colonial papers from 1850 and countless popular pieces since then. They have recently become a famous tourist destination.
The Alps 2 Ocean Cycle Trail spans 316 kilometres, connecting the Southern Alps to the Pacific Ocean. The nine segment Trail is an easy to intermediate graded ride, offering a nice mix of on and off-road routes. In all its magnificence and majesty, this is New Zealand - from the highest mountain, past great lakes and rivers, to the beach. Amidst the splendour of braided rivers, glacier-carved valleys, turquoise hydro-lakes, tussock hills, and rural plains, there are a plethora of enticing off-the-bike activities such as wine-tasting, penguin-spotting, or simply calmly soaking in alfresco hot tubs. Astonishing views, large open spaces, and expansive landscapes have drawn tourists from all over the world to the Trail. The Alps 2 Ocean Cycle Trail is a well-known worldwide route that provides an excellent opportunity to explore the diversity of the South Island. The Trail is not only for bikes but also for walkers and runners.Totara Estate is claimed to be significant to the history of New Zealand, which was founded on the backs of sheep. The historic farm, located south of Oamaru, was the birthplace of New Zealand's billion-dollar frozen beef business. Please take a tour of this historic landmark and learn about the central concept that catapulted New Zealand farming onto the global stage and permanently transformed its destiny. Explore the renovated farm buildings made of local limestone, including stables, a cookhouse, tack rooms, a bunkhouse, and a butcher shed, where the stage is set for the estate's demanding labour. Meet and feed our heritage sheep, who are full of personality and love to be scratched on the back. Walk up to the Brydone monument for a better glimpse of the stunning Waitaki farmland. After that, unwind with a cup of billy tea and scones in the cookhouse.