Geraldine Visitor Information Centre

Geraldine (pop 2300) sits on the Downs at the edge of the Canterbury Plains. It has always been a farming service centre, founded shortly after the formation of the large Raukapuka sheep run in 1853. The centre of the town is marked with a tall Totara on Talbot street, planted by the town's first settler, surveyor Samuel Hewlings and the Maori wife he brought from the North Island. It has always been a resting place for travellers on what is now SH 79 to or from Mount Cook and the McKenzie Country. Tearooms and hotels, later cafes and pubs service the passing trade who can enjoy great views of the Southern Alps and the plains.

Geraldine is the home of Barkers family who make wine and many other delicious products from fruit. They have a retail store behind the Information Centre. Also close to the information centre is an interesting museum devoted to local history. The early settlers took advantage of its setting and planted beautiful gardens and many exotic trees.

Talbot Forestwhich is a reserve of unspoilt native bush is nearby, as is a massive colonial garden of English botanical specimens at Kakahu. Peel Forest with its walking tracks, and native trees and birdlife is 19km to the north.

Few small New Zealand towns can boast such a picturesque setting as Geraldine in South Canterbury. North-west of Timaru and reached by either State Highway 79 or 72, the town has long been a favourite with travellers. Its parks and walkways give easy access to the Waihi River. Geraldine sits on the edge of the Canterbury Plains and some of the town is built on gently undulating land, the start of the Geraldine Downs. Drive or walk up onto the Downs for breathtaking views of the Southern Alps, the plains and Banks Peninsula. The walking track takes you through Talbot Forest, a carefully preserved remnant of native trees. The early settlers left the town a living legacy through their planting of hundreds of trees. Today these provide a shady backdrop to one of New Zealand’s most attractive motor camps, just a few steps away from the main village.

Geraldine is home to many artists and craftspeople who have galleries in the town or close by. The area’s rich agricultural and horticultural heritage has also seen the growth of many boutique food industries, including fruit preserves and juices, cheeses and chocolate. Try to attend a screening at the independent cinema. This is no multi- complex but an old-fashioned picture theatre, where those in the know arrive early to claim the best seats among the collection of sofas, com- plete with cushions! The town’s museum, housed in an old bluestone cottage in Cox Street, presents the pioneering history of a settlement established in 1854. The Geraldine Vintage Car and Machinery Museum in Talbot Street is home to over 100 vintage tractors, many vintage cars and a rare Spartan biplane.

The whole area has much of geological and historical interest, including rare fossils and evidence of pre-European Maori settlement. Head out along State Highway 79 towards Fairlie until you reach Hall Road. A further 2-km along this road will bring you to Kakahu Bush, a small area of protected forest, and alongside this the Kakahu Lime Kiln. This magnificent kiln is one of the area’s oldest industrial relics. It was built in or about 1881 with limestone from a nearby quarry delivered by using a bush tramway.