Southern Arch

Created by violent volcanic forces thousands of years ago, the topography of Poor Knights is beyond dramatic. With towering rocky cliffs, gigantic arches (like Southern Arch shown here) and the world’s largest sea cave, Riko Riko Cave, the islands’ scenery blew me away. I was utterly compelled to swim ashore, climb high and cliff jump my way to adrenaline-filled happiness, but unfortunately the entire archipelago is strictly off limits to visitors. Once home to a thriving indigenous Maori settlement that suffered an all-out massacre in 1820, it now holds great spiritual significance to the locals and archeological wealth to scientists.