Sarah WallockWelcome to Mars
For some reason, I never had any huge desire to explore the Omarama Clay Cliffs. Over the past few months, I had seen photos and heard about them. I couldn’t really picture the alien-looking Mars-like cliffs and surrounding area in my head. Yet I’m glad I waited to go, because I feel like it was the perfect way to experience them.
Approx 2 hours north from Queenstown, we turned left for a 30 minute detour. Nick and I were on our way to a friend’s birthday weekend of camping, friends and fun in Mount Cook. We were super relaxed and we were looking forward to enjoying ourselves. It would be our last trip before heading back to work after the holidays.
We drove along the private property of a stunning farm in Canterbury and finally saw the sign for the cliffs. A family of 5 on bikes casually waved us down to hitchhike. We pulled to the side of the road. My first thought was that the family was injured or that their bikes had broken down. Not so much…
Finding Good Company
We picked up the Dad and his two 7-year old kids, while the Mom and little girl waited for another friendly driver to pull over. Turns out, this family from Te Anau was taking 9 months off from life to bike the whole of New Zealand. Yes, you read that correctly. A family with 3 kids under the age of 7 was renting their house, sleeping in tents, eating backcountry food for every meal, living out of backpacks and biking monstrous distances everyday. It doesn’t get more kiwi than that.
Meeting this family was easily the highlight of our trip to the cliffs. I was so inspired by just meeting them. Simultaneously, I was brainstorming ways that my life could replicate their free-spiritedness and prowess for adventure. As if moving to New Zealand wasn’t enough…
After an excited and inquisitive interrogation of the Dad, we arrived at the cliffs. We said our goodbyes as they sat and waited for the rest of their family to arrive. Nick and I headed up the short stroll to the walls of gravel. On one side we had sweeping views of the area and the other, Mars. At the cliffs there were a number of tourists enjoying the summer holidays. The hike was still very quiet compared with non-Covid times.
Weaving Between Cliffs
We followed a snaking path up a not-so-steep hill. Finally, we stood under the massive clay cliffs just staring upwards. Acccording to 100% Pure New Zealand, the national tourism website: “The Clay Cliffs are a stark sight – tall pinnacles separated by narrow ravines. These otherworldly formations are made up of layers of gravel and silt, originally formed by the flow from ancient glaciers over a million years ago.”
We had loads of fun exploring the different viewpoints. Some advice: the cliffs are much smaller than you would imagine and it is an activity that is fun to do once. I can’t see myself rushing to get back here soon, but I am so thankful we went, saw the gravel pinnacles and met such a sick family.
