A NEW NORTH BEACH.

Timaru Herald, Volume LVIII, Issue 1832, 6 August 1895, Page 3

A NEW NORTH BEACH.

A curiosity m connection with the shingle movement now exists at Dashing Rocks. At an early stage m the alteration of the beach-lines to the northward, consequent upon the damming of the shingle stream by the breakwater, was the drifting landward of the Waimataitai spit, and following this was the disappearance of the shingle from the footof Dashing Rocks, all except a few boulders wedged into crevices m the rock being carried away northward. There has been no loose shingle along the foot of he rocks for years, yet now there is at considerable quantity, and during the late heavy sea weather, pebbles were thrown up by spray to the top of the cliff', An examination shows that the shingle contains some beach worn pebbles, but thejlarger part is not so worn, and is of a different sort of stone from the beach pebbles. The explanation of the reappearance of the shingle along the foot of the rocks is that the late seas were so heavy that they dug up some of the old river deposits which form the floor of the roadstead beneath a shallow sea deposit, and then drifted the stuff to the shore. We have previously recorded that this operation restored the Washdyke spit, after it had been almost carried away, and has maintained it since. The last storm extended the operation towards Caroline Bay, so far off the Dashing Rocks. The smaller proportion of beach-worn pebbles m the new supply may be accounted for by the probability that these pebblep, were left behind when, years and years ago, the coast line was cut back for some distance seaward, aud the late heavy seas have brought them forward. The shingle beach between Dashing Rocks and the outlet of the Washdyke Lagoon has also been considerably added to by the drifting up of the old river-shingle, and the Washdyke spit is now of good size, almost wholly composed of this old plain shingle.