Curio Bay Petrified Forest
Curio Bay
A rock platform with fossilised Jurassic forest, where stumps and fallen trunks about 180 million years old are exposed at low tide, and yellow-eyed penguins come ashore at dusk.
The sea-eroded rock platform at Curio Bay preserves Jurassic petrified tree stumps and fallen trunks, among the most complete fossil forests of their kind in the world. They are clearest at low tide. At dusk, endangered yellow-eyed penguins return from the sea and cross the reef platform to their nests. Visitors must wait in designated areas and keep at least 10 metres away. Flash photography and blocking the penguins' path are strictly prohibited. Next door, the Tumu Toka visitor centre showcases the fossils and penguin conservation.
Opening hours
All day
Nearby sights
- Porpoise Bay
- Slope Point
- Waipapa Point Lighthouse
- McLean Falls
- Cathedral Caves (Waipati)
- Lake Wilkie
- Florence Hill Lookout
- The Lost Gypsy Gallery