Daily Photo – Matanaka Farm in Waikouaiti 

A short drive north from Waitati of around 40 kilometres (25 miles) brings you to the community of Waikouaiti. It is a semi-rural township, with pockets of built-up housing that give way to farmland which almost entirely surrounds the town. To the east is a broad, sweeping bay with a long white sandy beach that stretches far to the south, while to the north the coastline becomes more rugged, with sharp cliffs and rolling hills.

Like so many towns around New Zealand, State Highway 1 rolls straight through it, first slowing to 70 km/h, then 50 km/h as you approach the heart of town. There is the usual collection of essentials: a dairy, pub, town hall, school, race course, museum, bakery, school and hardware store. Its origins trace back to early European arrivals, drawn by sealing and whaling before setting down more permanent roots, while the history of the local Ngāi Tahu iwi stretches back centuries before that.

And then, just like that, you are rolling out of town again into open farmland as the speed limit increases, first to 70 km/h and then to 100 km/h, past a scenic lookout and onto a winding ribbon of chip seal that carries you towards the next small town.