Koutu Boulders

Great place for a walk. But there is no access to the boulders at an hour or so ether side of high tide

These boulders are great. Many different sizes across a good stretch of beach you can easily spend a couple of hours here. Best to go at low tide. I recommend some sort of shoes, as there are plenty of oyster shells.

Amazing geological feature and beautiful shoreline. Well worth the visit

Absolutely worth a visit if you are nearby. Just make a nice walk along the shore.

Similar to the Moeraki Boulders down on the South Island of New Zealand they are unusually large spherical boulders lying along a stretch of the beach they are best viewed at low tide and occur scattered either as isolated or clusters of boulders within a stretch of beach where they have been protected in the reserve. They are also affectionately known as “dragon eggs” and over time, some of them have become eroded or cracked and resemble a hatched egg.On my first visit I was told that they were created by the prehistoric looking creatures which look like slaters (the molluscus that live on rocks in the sea) because they are convex in shape and eat in that direction but as an adult I found out that they come from the hillsides and you look carefully at the shoreline where it meets hillside, you might be able to see a new emergence of a boulder happening. I would recommend that you check the tide times before you go and plan for low tide happening after your on the beach allowing for time to walk from the car park to the beach also pack sunscreen and water even on a cloudy day.

Dream away and let the magic of the boulders inspire you. 50 million year ago this was a sea bed, now we can stroll and enjoy the solitude. We discovered faces, animals and sculptural beauties fitting an art gallery. A beautiful little spot in the middle of nowhere. 5 stars for beauty but not well signposted once we were on the gravel road leading to the carpark so 1 star less.

4 years ago this one of the first places I visited on my first day of a month long trip. There was a cyclone in the area at the time.

Take Koutu Loop Rd and travel up to the carpark. Exit carpark on foot and turn right on the beach. It won't take long to start seeing the boulders scattered around the shore. Some are massive. Wonderful scenery of the harbour from all directions. Wear good footware as further up the beach it gets rocky and they can be slippy. Make sure you arrive as tide is going out to allow time to view boulders and access the top end. Allow approximately 2 hours

These are a little bit off the beaten track. Use google to find the car park location just on Waione Rd off Koutu Loop Rd (note it is a gravel road). Once in the park, walk to the beach and turn right (if winter or wet, take good walking boots). Best to view at low tide, which I was fortunate to have. These are similar to Moeraki Boulders, but not as many, and most are smaller in size, however there is still some around 5-6ft. As this is tidal, it is more of a mud flat, than sand, reason for good foot ware required.It was worth the trip to come and see these (not the best weather day, but still pleased I went).There is very little signage coming Opononi end, I only really found it because of Google - which some locals said is what they like, that it is nice and quiet - when I arrived, only 1 other car in the park, by the time I left there were 6, and this was midday.

Such a stunning beach with the volcanic round boulders as one of its beautiful features. A must visit if you're in Opononi.