Tomahawk Beach is the first on the Otago Peninsula. It is separated from St Kilda by Lawyers Head, and like St Kilda, is south-facing. You can drive to the top of this point for a view of Tomahawk and walk from there back along the cliff at the edge of the golf course. But it’s easier to drive around on Tomahawk Road to the small beach town of Ocean Grove.
From the car park, it’s either a short walk through the dunes or around the stream at the bottom fed by Tomahawk Lagoon. This surf beach is very attractive, with white sand. You can wander down the beach to the east to Smaills Beach. You may see sea lions on the beach.
The beach's name, apparently, has nothing to do with throwing axes and tomahawks. A likely explanation is that it’s a transliteration from the 1850s for the Māori phrase “toma haka”, meaning more or less “to dance beside the gravesite”. But this is only one possible explanation.
