Sutton Salt Lake
Suzanne Middleton, Wild Dunedin – Jan 24, 2024
You’ll find Sutton Salt Lake, New Zealand’s only inland salt water lake, an hour’s drive from Dunedin, five minutes before Middlemarch. In a landscape dominated by schist rock, the lake is enclosed in a 143-hectare scenic reserve where water birds, native and exotic plants and photogenic rock tors provide a fascinating environment for nature lovers.
The salt in the lake comes from schist runoff, and the lake dries out completely in summer then fills up again in winter. Runners, walkers and families will enjoy the easy undulating 3.5km round trip around the lake. Whichever way you do the circuit, it’s 20 minutes walking before you see the lake, 20 minutes walking beside the lake, then another 20 minutes with no view of the lake.
The lake is only about 30cm deep. Image by: Suzanne MIddleton
Black swans, skylarks, welcome swallows, Australasian harriers, pied stilts, oystercatchers, white-faced herons, paradise ducks and other duck species are common here. Spaniard, matagouri, bracken, tussock and clover plus many other native and introduced plants are thriving now that the land is no longer grazed. It’s a place to look at the little things – butterflies, insects, lichen, lizards, patterns in the mud at the lake edge, and native flowers in summer. Children will love climbing on the spectacular lichen-covered rocks.
SUMMARY:
An easy walk in the north east of the city, in the Otago hinterland. Dunedin is Aotearoa's largest city by area (3,314 sq km).
To get there: Turn off State Highway 87 onto Kidds Rd which is unsealed. Get directions.
