Moeraki

Moeraki is a small fishing village on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It was once the location of a whaling station. In the 1870s, local interests believed it could become the main port for the north Otago area and a railway line, the Moeraki Branch, was built to the settlement and opened in 1877. However, the port could not compete with Oamaru and the lack of traffic as well as stability problems caused by difficult terrain led to the closure of the railway in 1879 after only two years of operation. The village is best known for the nearby Moeraki Boulders. 'Moeraki' is usually translated as 'sleepy sky'. There are other places with the same name or versions of it, all along the path from the Polynesian homeland,...