Moeraki Boulders - Rock Pearls as I Call Them

On our way north from Dunedin, the main road follows the coast and 40km south of Oamaru are the large grey, almost perfectly spherical Moeraki Boulders. Some of the boulders are 2m in diameter. The boulders are originally formed around a central core of carbonate of lime crystals which attracted minerals from their surroundings – a process that started 60 million years ago. The boulders lay deep in the mudstone cliffs behind the beach and as the sea has eroded the cliffs, the boulders have been exposed. I find this all rather fascinating and impressive – so much so I just had to get my photo taken standing on top of one!