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Published: February 22nd 2012
Greymouth
Shantytown main street2/20/12
Woke up to rain, we didn’t let the rain slow us down. We set out for Shanty Town, south of Greymouth. Shanty Town Museum is a re-creation of the growth of the logging industry in New Zealand dating back to the 1860’s. It’s a model town from the period and includes all the typical town buildings (bank, school, hospital, store, etc.) in addition to the re-creation of the logging process from felling trees to finishing the boards. At that time, it was largely thought that New Zealand had an unending supply of timber. Many native trees were logged to verge of extinction.
After Shanty Town, we made our way to the train station in Greymouth.
where we boarded the Trans Alpine Train for the Coast to Coast ride from Greymouth on the west coast to Christchurch on the east coast. The train first tracked undulating coal country close to Greymouth and Dobsonville. Our train then passed by the shores of Lake Brunner situated on which there is an idyllic retirement settlement, Moana (that is Maori for water). We passed by Poerua Lake, home of the NZ salmon farming industry. Onward we rolled
Greymouth
Trans Alpine Depot to higher elevations featuring dairy/sheep farms.
We moved on through the Otira Tunnel and climbed 1000 feet to enter Arthur’s Pass at 734 meters. This area is the Arthur’s Pass National Park, home of the Spotted Kiwi Bird. We had many spectacular vistas of the Southern Alps including the Waimakerire River with its wide riverbed of shale rock.
Continuing on through several tunnels and over many via ducts, we made our way through the tussock grassed mountains. As we descended, we entered the Canterbury Plains, home to the coveted New Zealand lamb and the country’s grain belt. After four scenic hours, our trip came to an end in Christchurch on the east coast.
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