Makarora

The Haast Pass was an important route for ancient Maori who called it Tioripatea (the way ahead is clear). The first European to reach the Pass was probably John Baker searching for grazing land in the Makarora Valley in 1861. The Pass was named, though, after the famous geologist Julius von Haast, who publicised his crossing from Makarora to the West Coast in January/February 1863. After making the Pass in just 2 days, he took 4 weeks to reach the coast.

Charles Cameron claimed to have reached the Pass before Haast and the powder flask, dated ‘Jany 1863’, which he left on a stone cairn west of the Pass, can be seen at the DOC Centre at Makarora.

The Shrimpton brothers who established the first sheep station at Makarora were followed by other runholders and small farmers. By 1885, there were a general store and hotel, and a school was opened in 1895.

The Central Otago goldrushes of the 1860s created a huge demand for timber. Logs were originally pitsawn and rafted down the lake to Pembroke (now Wanaka) or down the Clutha to Cromwell. By the 1900s, most of the useful timber had been taken. Flax which grew abundantly on the swampy flats was milled until the outbreak of the First World War.

It was shipped to Wanaka, then to Donaghy’s Rope and Twine Factory in Dunedin.

As early as the 1880s, Wanaka was advertised as a holiday destination because of the beauty of the lake and its setting. When red deer and brown trout were released in the region, hunters and fishers joined the growing numbers of tourists who made trips on the two steamboats that plied the lake. Today, Makarora is a gateway both to the magnificent scenery of the Haast Pass and to exciting tramps in the Mt Aspiring National Park.

Wilkin Valley

Tramping amidst the grandeur of the Wilkin Valley is for the experienced tramper only. Those wanting a taste of adventure can, however, still immerse themselves in the valley while experiencing the thrills of a jet boat ride up the Wilkin River.

The Siberia Experience

A four-hour adventure in the wilderness of Mount Aspiring National Park has been enthralling visitors for forty years. You fly for 30 minutes over rivers, glaciers and snow-capped mountains to the remote Siberia Valley where you land and start your 3 hour walk back through native forest. The last thrilling leg of the journey is by Jet Boat.

THE SIBERIA EXPERIENCE