Omarama, not Banarama

The time had come to leave Wanaka and slowly start heading back towards CHC. We spent a couple of days in small town Omarama, a good “hub” to explore the region. Fortunately, Omarama has a good choice of motels, we like NZ motels! Yes, we really do!

We kicked things off with a lovely day hike, the wonderful Greta Track – Ben Ohau Loop. It was cloudy when we set out in the morning but once we had ascended through the cloud, the views were fantastic. And just a few minutes later the sun had burned away the clouds which meant breathtaking views of sparkling blue Lake Ohau and the snow capped mountains in the background. It’s an easy track, gentle ascent and descent, no dangerous sections.

Omarama Clay Cliffs

Next day, we combined three things which we love: crazy rock formations, wetlands, and ice cream! 🙂 The Omarama Clay Cliffs are fascinating. Not really much walking to do around the area, but very steep for sure. The Otematata Wetlands are not that huge either, but a really quiet area for walking around and birdspotting. There’s a lovely cart on the highway, just after entering Otematata from direction of Omarama – delicious real fruit ice cream! And a somewhat hidden berry orchard a couple of klicks off the highway selling berries and real fruit ice cream. Which makes for a perfect summer day!

Otematata Wetlands