March 18, 2021
After a hard day on the trail, we decided to spend the next day relaxing in the small historic town of Clyde. Clyde was formed at the time of the Central Otago gold rush of the 1860s. This was New Zealand’s biggest gold strike and led to a rapid influx of miners, many of whom were veterans of the Californian and Australian strikes of a few years earlier. Certainly, it has the look of a town in a Hollywood Western.
We wandered around the neighboring streets and came across some wonderful old cottages.
Clyde is in the driest part of New Zealand so it is unusual to see such lush grass as in front of this home.
Clyde is in the center of one of New Zealand’s primary fruit growing region and many of the homes had fruit trees in their yards. Pears and apples are in season.
The town sits on the banks of the Clutha river.
We also passed by the Clyde District War Memorial building housing the library and Plunket rooms.
If you ever find yourself in Clyde, we highly recommend staying at Oliver’s. It is a beautiful old inn with wonderful gardens and the proprietors could not be more accommodating. Ask to stay in the Coach Room.
Mal and Lauren 