Baldwin Street, Dunedin — A Rather Unusual Tourist Attraction

Baldwin Street in Dunedin, New Zealand is the steepest residential street in the world. It is a straight street and just 350 metres long, but rises 1 metre for every 2.86 metres horizontally.

Residents of this street not only have to be very fit and have good cars to get to their houses, they also have to deal with a lot of tourists walking up and down their street and taking lots and lots of pictures. That’s mostly because if taken at an angle the pictures show a pretty interesting optical illusion. The houses look as if they were sinking into the ground.

Baldwin Street is also known for its annual Cadbury Jaffa Race, where 30.000 Giant Jaffas (hard orange candies with a chocolate centre) are rolled down the street to raise money for charity. Each of the Jaffas has a number. At the bottom of the street they are funnelled into a finishing chute to find the winner. One ticket for the race costs 1$ and the proceeds this year went to Make-A-Wish, Surf Life Saving New Zealand and the Parent Centre New Zealand.

Another event is the Baldwin Street Gutbuster. On this day several races take place on the street. They start at the bottom, the participants run up the street and then down again. There are different categories in which several hundred people, locals and visitors from other countries, compete every year. There is one race is for serious runners and another one in which anyone can start, for example skaters, runners or even pram pushers. There is also one just for children. The current record is 1 minute and 56 seconds, was set in 1994 and has not been beaten since.

Not so competitive visitors can of course walk up the street normally, which will take about 10 minutes. There is even a water fountain at the top to rehydrate thirsty “street climbers”.