Puysegur Point has been said to be the windiest place in New Zealand, with gales recorded on an average of 48 days a year.[2] A large earthquake[3] in this region on 15 July 2009 pushed Puysegur Point closer to Australia by 30 centimetres (12 in).[4]
A lighthouse on the point was first illuminated on 1 March 1879. The original wooden lighthouse was destroyed in an arson attack in 1942.[6] The lighthouse was operated by permanent lighthouse keepers from its establishment in 1879 until it was temporarily shutdown in 1980, with a further period of staffed operation from 1987 until it was fully automated and destaffed in 1989.[7]
The landing
Landing shed at Otago Retreat
The main access to Puysegur Point and the lighthouse is via a track from a beach landing point at Otago Retreat - a narrow waterway between the mainland and Coal Island in Preservation Inlet to the north west of the point.[8] The name Otago Retreat originates from the passage of the schooner Otago that found shelter in this narrow passage during a voyage accompanying the survey ship HMS Acheron on a survey of the South Island around 1850-51.[9][10][11] There are buildings remaining at the landing that formerly served the lighthouse. One of the buildings is a Department of Conservation shelter, known as the Landing Shed.[12]
Climate
Climate data for Puysegur Point (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1978–present)