Punakaiki Pancake Rocks and Blowholes
Your Nature Guide
Marios Gavalas
Author And Researcher
Nau mai, haere mai
Nau mai, haere mai
I'm Marios, delivering the best of Aotearoa's nature walks to your device.
I've personally walked hundreds of New Zealand's tracks and spent months in libraries uncovering interesting information on New Zealand/Aotearoa. And you'll find a slice of that research on this page - enjoy!
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Information
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks and Blowholes
1.1 km return | 20 minutes return
Imagine a pile of pancakes piled up on top of eachother, then turned to stone. Place the formation in the path of persistent swells on a wild coastline and leave for millennia. The result is one of the most bizarre places in NZ. Impressive always, but especially so when a big tide is running and the waves are thundering into the blowholes.
Walking Track
Timing
The blowholes are most impressive at high tide with a big swell. For that National Geographic shot, make sure you are here for a West Coast sunset and an exploding blowhole.
Access
Well signposted and unmissable in Punakaiki.
Several parking areas are signposted. Campervans make sure you use the one to the south, otherwise the place ends up like Calcutta central station at rush hour.
Be careful crossing the road. A hotspot for oblivious drivers.
Track
The sealed track passes several lookouts, which become ever-more impressive. Admire the handy-work of the track builders on the bridges and platforms, which give the best vantage over the blowholes. Some are given names like the Chimney Pot, Surge Pool and Putai.
The angular limestone blocks have been placed into dry stone walls alongside the track and steps weave a sinuous path through the convoluted landscape/seascape. Wheelchair access ends at the steps.
As the track weaves around, more viewpoints of the bizarre formations open up until you rejoin the tar seal through the flax and nikau back to the road.
Geology
Pancake Rocks are still contentious among geomorphologists. No single theory is agreed upon for their formation.
The most likely scenario starts around 30 million years ago when the base rocks were laid down in shallow warm seas. Inter-bedded layers of calcareous marine creatures and softer mud and sand layers were built up, compressed and cooked. The fancy term is ‘stylobedding’ Later tectonic uplift brought these lasagne-like layers to the surface.
Wind, rain, salt and wave then combined in a weathering and erosion frenzy to preferentially erode the weaker mud and sand layers, leaving the more resistant limestone layers intact. Given the exposed nature of this coastline and prevalence of westerly winds and swells, the patterns of nature now etched onto the rock have created such a sight that they are on the must-do list of New Zealand visitors.
When arches collapse, they form blow holes and surge pools, exploited by the waves and constantly enlarged and re-modelled. Dolomite Point is one of the rawest places you can easily get to in NZ.
Feature
When the BBC filmed ‘Walking with Dinosaurs’, they chose this location for one of the habitats.
Details
| Feature | Value | Info |
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Organisation |
DOC West CoastCentral government organisation |
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Location |
South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Punakaiki |
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Directions To Coordinates |
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Coordinates |
Walking
Nearby
Reviews
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5.0/5
24April24.
Always a good spot to visit. This time we had brilliant sunshine! Last time pouring rain.
As in the more information, high tide best. We missed it by a short while but still impressive.
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4.5/5
Pretty amazing formations and really interesting information on theories along the short walk.
Apparently best to go during high tide but not possible for us.
Also you can see seals further back down the coast at the seal colony which was really cool.
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5.0/5
17Oct18.
What is there to say that has not already been said. Came here in 2006 and 2014 and will do again.
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5.0/5
Not to be missed.
Hardly anyone there, arrived on high tide. What an experience. Great facilities provided by DOC.
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3.5/5
The walk is easy, with good viewpoints over fantastic geology.
We shared the experience with a crowd of people with differing ideas about personal space and acceptable behaviour. Go early morning to avoid the tourist hordes and both the walk and your photos will rate 9-10/10. It's still worth a brief stop even when it is crowded.
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5.0/5
Make sure you stop here.
Although there were several tours and busses, do not let that stop you. Free/amazing rock formations, great walkway.
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5.0/5
24April24.
Always a good spot to visit. This time we had brilliant sunshine! Last time pouring rain.
As in the more information, high tide best. We missed it by a short while but still impressive.
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4.5/5
Pretty amazing formations and really interesting information on theories along the short walk.
Apparently best to go during high tide but not possible for us.
Also you can see seals further back down the coast at the seal colony which was really cool.
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5.0/5
17Oct18.
What is there to say that has not already been said. Came here in 2006 and 2014 and will do again.
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5.0/5
Not to be missed.
Hardly anyone there, arrived on high tide. What an experience. Great facilities provided by DOC.
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3.5/5
The walk is easy, with good viewpoints over fantastic geology.
We shared the experience with a crowd of people with differing ideas about personal space and acceptable behaviour. Go early morning to avoid the tourist hordes and both the walk and your photos will rate 9-10/10. It's still worth a brief stop even when it is crowded.
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5.0/5
Make sure you stop here.
Although there were several tours and busses, do not let that stop you. Free/amazing rock formations, great walkway.
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5.0/5
The way to the Pancake Rocks was very beautiful.
There are lots of rocks to see and they are all different. It is a short walk, about 20 minutes with many lookouts.
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4.0/5
Very well maintained, good views of the rocks, nice and clear information about the creation of the rocks and the wildlife there.
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4.5/5
The Pancake Rocks are awesome!!
I doubted sometimes that this could be made by nature. It is overwhelming.
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3.5/5
Undoubtedly spectacular, but slightly marred by over interference in the natural landscape.
Well worth a look for their weird beauty, but expect to share the experience with many others, and to look from a removed distance.
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5.0/5
At first we did not think much when entering the first part but after, wow, views, beautiful, every corner a different experience.
Being low tide we missed out on the water bursts.
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3.5/5
Very helpful lady at the visitor centre.
Nice place to visit but the weather did not help the experience.
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4.5/5
Beautiful, easy and short walk in a very well defined path to get to these very special rock formations with nice sunset view.
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5.0/5
My advice: arrive there before sunset!
You can enjoy these wonderful sky colours! And the big holes blowing the sea water up to the sky!
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4.0/5
Classic rugged New Zealand coastline.
Beautiful rock formations. Only a quick 20 minute loop track around but just breathtaking prehistoric scenery surrounding you.
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