Dunedin to Catlins to Bluff

About 3 km east of Owaka is Tunnel Hill, which is a historic reserve featuring the 246-m-long tunnel, once the most southerly railway tunnel in New Zealand. Completed in 1893 it was the most prominent feature on the Catlins branch railway line that ran between Balclutha and Tahakopa serving the southernmost parts of the South Island. Timber reserves dwindled after the 1950s and the railway declined along with the sawmilling industry until it closed in 1971. We grabbed our headlamps and did the short walk from the car park through the tunnel and back along the river bank. Select the photo below to see the other end of the tunnel as we emerged again. We have found the headlamps really useful in the South Island as we have come across a number of caves and abandoned tunnels worth exploring.