Central Otago

 Gail and I recently had a short break down in Central Otago staying in Cromwell and Lawrence. The main purpose twas to catch the autumn colours which had been on my bucket list for some time. It was interesting in that we had spent a day last year around this time and were about 2 weeks too late after a dry summer.

This year we had had more rain and in places the colours were coming into their own but that depended on the tree species as well. Further down towards Lawrence the trees had just started to turn. The following photos will show the variations of stages of the autumn changes in colours.

First good colours were on the hill behind the spillway at the Benmore Dam.

A back water below the Benmore Dam.

Arrowtown: 

A colourful group on a street 2 blocks from the main street.

I don't like too many people in my photos but try to minimise their presence where possible.  One often waits until selfie takers move out of the way. With this shot I waited until someone walking backwards with their phone on video and jabbering way with a running commentary.

Bannockburn:

Alexandra:

Moving down SH 8 it was noticeable that the trees were at the beginning of the autumn changes so the emphasis was on other subjects.

Near Millers Flat we went to the Horseshoe Bend bridge.

More of the history of access across the river here.

On the way back to Millers Flat we stopped at this stone cottage. Nothing about its history though.

From here we went on to Lawrence and Gabriels Gully. Not much to see here now although there is are plenty of information panels to see on there interpretation walk. 

The only physical remains nearby is the gold safe at the site of the Gold Office.

Clarks Mill

I recently visited Clarks Mill at Maheno in North Otago s follow n visit after an earlier one which resulted in failure of the main belt when the mill was started.

Clarks Mill in the Maheno valley, near Ōamaru, was built around 1865. By the 2000s it was owned by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust and was the only surviving water-powered flour mill in New Zealand.

The mill today

Originally powered by a water wheel, the mill is now powered by two electric motors, 60hp and 20hp. It is periodically started up and is in good running condition although no grain is milled now.

However the main belt failed last year just before a heritage weekend in Oamaru, Totara Estate and the mill. Fortunately a spare was available.

The broken main belt

Opened in 1867, the first loads of grain were transported to the mill by bullock wagons. When the railway arrived the bullock wagons were made redundant. 

There is a photo in the mill of a WW2 Bren Carrier used to shunt the wagons like this one.

This shaft drives the big counterbalance below.

Rotating this off centre weight shakes the sifting boxes below.