A torrentially rainy start at 7.30am at St Clair – and some welcome emergency shelter at Starfish Café - set the scene for our first Coastal Processes field-trip.

We still managed to exercise our school value of Positivity as we walked under a tarpaulin to view the sand sausages. We also nostalgically reminisced about the cross-country track we ran from St Clair in Year 9 that has now fallen victim to coastal erosion and no longer exists, proof of the dramatic changes and forces affecting the Southern Dunedin coastal area.

Trip #2 took us to a much finer St Kilda Beach as the sun rose early on a perfect day and we were able to start our beach fieldwork and measurements in earnest. The girls worked in groups collecting data on sand sorting and shifting, longshore drift, beach profiles, vegetation and wave intensity and energy. We were also able to view the series of notches along the dunes below John Wilson Drive which have been developed by Tom Simons-Smith, Coastal Specialist at the DCC and Professor Mike Hilton from the University of Otago Geography Department, aimed at retaining sand and enhancing sand dune development behind the foredunes.

Trip #3 saw us at Tomahawk Beach at high tide and some people did get their feet wet unintentionally! We repeated the fieldwork and collected further data. Finally Trip #4 took us to Tunnel Beach on a gorgeous afternoon with spectacular and dramatic afternoon views. Well done to all the girls for their fabulous work and impressive reports. We are so fortunate to be able to work on the fabulous and dynamic environment that is the Otago Coast. Thanks to Ms Munro and Ms Hokianga for accompanying us on these trips.