We were going to be spending the day, pretty much the whole day, in the car. Because this trip is about Linda's jewelry business, she had taken the time to research several rockhounding spots on the South Island; most places are too far away to drive, so we visited some rock shops in Arrowtown. One rock shop gave us a map to Gemstone Beach, it is going to be a drive, but I am excited to see the ocean from a beach in New Zealand.

I think here in the states we take for granted the travel time, mileage, and gas expense of a 2-3 hour trip. We had already filled up the gas tank, and I about fell over with the 60 dollar price tag. On this long drive, I started to notice that not very many cars were on the road, and those I saw appeared to be rental cars like our own. Most of the traffic was business trucks or tourist vehicles of one kind or another.

The drive was stunning, and we stopped at a small town here and there for snacks and gas when needed. We were trying to time our arrival to be near low tide with perhaps an hour on either side. The ladies at the rock shop indicated that this was the best time to walk out to sea and gather wave-worn smooth rocks that were further out and unavailable during regular tidal times.

Turning onto another highway, we found the turnoff for Gemstone Beach and followed the dirt road to a tiny parking lot. The lot only held a few cars, and there were already several parked helter-skelters in the sand and weeds. Wary of how easy it is to get stuck in soft sand, we picked what we hoped would be a sold parking spot, grabbed our rock buckets, and headed down the beach.

Linda finding the perfect specimen for her growing collection.

Gemstone beach is a beautiful beach. A small stream enters the ocean and becomes the source of rocks swept into the sea during rainy periods. The wave action, along with the sand, shapes the stones into beautiful oval and round shapes polished smooth by the sea. We walked out near the waves and marveled at how many beautiful stones lay at our feet. Instead of picking up larger stones (there were many), we tried to focus on the ready-made size and shape that Linda could turn into jewelry only by rapping the existing stone. It certainly didn't appear to me that any additional shaping or tumbling was needed.

Expecting to spend a couple of hours on the beach, we had a large selection of stones within an hour. Feeling like we had enough, we made our way back to the car and left the beach without getting stuck. Also on the list, today is a trip to Te Anau and possibly a visit to the Glow Worm Caves.

The stones from Gemstone Beach did not polish up as much as Linda hoped. But the rocks make stunning desktop cairns.