East End

During the past few days of our travels south, we have noticed restaurants advertising Bluff Oysters on their menus. Bluff Oysters? Well, as we were in Bluff, we decided to find a restaurant serving these giant oysters.

Bluff oysters are reputed to be the best in the world and apparently New Zealand’s national treasure. These shellfish are dredged along the coastlines of Southland between March and August every year, so we are here just in time to get freshly harvested ones.

I read that the oysters originate in the pristine, cool waters of the Foveaux Strait, one of the few natural oyster beds in the world. They are known for their “unique flavour that is loved around the globe”. Oh goody.

Very close to the end of the road signpost in Bluff, there is a restaurant that has 180 degree views of the Foveaux Strait where oysters have been harvested for over 100 years. We went in and other customers recommended the Batter Fried Bluff Oyster lunch. We shared 6 giant oysters, french fries and a salad. So delicious!!! A last supper to remember - our trip memories, the view and the dinner. Wow!

We left, but before that, we noticed several cyclists coming in and waiting people cheering and clapping. The cyclists had just completed riding 3000 km in 27 days from the top of NZ to the bottom. Pictures were taken at the signpost and champagne was being popped. What an accomplishment!

We left the proud and healthy group and decided to drive to the top of the Bluff to see the views it offered. There are several trails in this area and we were disappointed that our time was running out so we couldn’t walk them. They looked beautiful.

We drove up the steep hill and walked the rest of the way to a area with gorgeous 360 degree views. There was a circular relief “map” showing all the sights - Stewart island, Dog Island, the other islands, Oreti and Omaui beaches, mountains and the Catlins, as well as educational and very interesting signs. We could see the bottom of Fjordland right through to Invercargill. We could see why Bluff Hill had the role as the Southland’s main coastal defence during World War II.

Okay, now we felt that our wonderful trip was over. We drove back into Invercargill and filled up the car with ‘cheap’ $1.99/l gas.

We went into a hardware store to get a few postcards and guess what? We had another find.

“Welcome to E Hayes and Sons Hardware Store - New Zealand's largest independent Hammer Hardware and TradeZone Industrial hardware and homeware store and home of Burt Munro's Authentic, Original and Legendary 'World's Fastest Indian' motorcycle. We’ve built a reputation for PUTTING PEOPLE FIRST serving the Invercargill and Southland region with an unmatched selection of quality goods, services and advice since 1932.”

What a store it is and interspersed with hardware and things, the entire store was home to a unique Motorworks Collection! The owner has one of the finest private collections of 100 ‘FREE TO VIEW’ classic motorcycles, automobiles and engines in New Zealand. Now, what a great idea to entice people into his store. It even included the World’S Fastest Indian Welcome to E Hayes
E Hayes and Sons, Invercargill - New Zealand's largest independent Hammer Hardware and TradeZone Industrial hardware and homeware store and home of Burt Munro's Authentic, Original and Legendary 'World's Fastest Indian' motorcycle. We’ve built a reputation for PUTTING PEOPLE FIRST serving the Invercargill and Southland region with an unmatched selection of quality goods, services and advice since 1932.

At the same time, our entire store is home to the unique E Hayes Motorworks Collection representing one of the finest private collections of FREE TO VIEW classic motorcycles, automobiles and engines in New Zealand. The most famous machine was The World’s Fastest Indian (remember the movie?) that went 184.087 mph with unofficial top speed of 205.67 mph—when Munro raced his heavily modified 1920 Indian Scout Streamliner across the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, U.S.A. We saw the real deal! Impressive. We will have to watch the movie again. Burt Munro was from Invercargill.

We went home and spent a nice evening with Jenny and Ian and their birds, in their little piece of paradise before leaving to head into a quickly changing world.Read more