Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
SOUTH CANTERBURY
After crossing the Rangitata River into South Canterbury, SH1 and the Inland Scenic Route
(SH72) narrow to within 8km of each other at the quaint town of Geraldine. Here you can
choose to take the busy coastal highway through the port city of Timaru (and on to Oamaru
and Dunedin), or continue inland on SH79 into the Mackenzie Country, the expansive high
ground from which NZ's tallest peaks rise above powder blue lakes. Most travellers pick
the latter.
The Mackenzie Basin is a wild, tussock-strewn bowl at the foot of the Southern Alps,
carved out by ancient glaciers. It takes its name from the legendary James 'Jock' McKen-
zie, who ran his stolen flocks in this then-uninhabited region in the 1840s. When he was fi-
nally caught, other settlers realised the potential for grazing in this seemingly inhospitable
land and followed in his footsteps.
Director Sir Peter Jackson made the most of this rugged and untamed landscape while
filming the
Lord of the Rings
films.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Peel Forest
Tucked away between the foothills of the Southern Alps and the Rangitata River (well
signposted from SH72), the Peel Forest is among NZ's most important remnants of indi-
genous podocarp (conifer) forest. Many of the totara, kahikatea and matai trees here are
hundreds of years old and are home to an abundance of bird life including riflemen, kereru
(wood pigeons), bellbirds, fantails and grey warblers. One example of totara on the Big
Tree Walk (30 minutes return) is 31m tall, has a circumference of 9m and is over 1000
years old. There are also trails to Emily Falls (1½ hours return), Rata Falls (two hours re-
turn) and Acland Falls (one hour return); pick up the
Peel Forest Park
brochure ($2) from
Peel Forest Store.
A road from nearby Mt Peel sheep station leads to Mesopotamia, the run of English
writer Samuel Butler in the 1860s. His experiences here partly inspired his famous satire
Erewhon
('nowhere' backwards, almost).
