During the time of the West Coast gold rush in the mid-1860s, a hotel was built along the coach road that is now State Highway 73; traces of Castle Hill Hotel can be found immediately opposite to Castle Hill Village. The coach traffic disappeared when the Midland Line was extended to Arthur's Pass just prior to World War I; this withdrew the financial basis for the hotel.[5]
After sub-dividing land from his high country Castle Hill Station in 1981,[5] John Reid started the village in 1982.[4] The first sections on sale for $10,000.[6] Reid later sold his remaining land holdings except for the land opposite the village for a 9-hole golf course.
Demographics
Castle Hill Village is described by Statistics New Zealand as a rural settlement, and covers 0.61km2 (0.24sqmi).[1] It had an estimated population of 50 as of June 2024,[2] with a population density of 82 people per km2. It is part of the statistical area of Craigieburn.[7]
Castle Hill had a population of 18 at the 2018 New Zealand census, a decrease of 27 people (−60.0%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 9 people (100.0%) since the 2006 census. There were 9 households, comprising 12 males and 6 females, giving a sex ratio of 2.0 males per female. The median age was 66.7 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally).[8]
Today
Castle Hill Village in June 2012
In 2022, there were over 150 houses in the village.[9] Most are holiday homes but some have permanent residents, including Reid who still lives there. A daily school bus service runs to Springfield, just over 30 kilometres (19mi) from Castle Hill Village.[5] There are no public facilities other than a public toilet at the village hall and a children's playground.
Selwyn District has set separate design rules in its district plan for buildings in Castle Hill Village so that the alpine character of the location is reflected.[10] In 2020, a resource consent allowing up to 111 new plots was granted.[11]
Mountain biking is popular around Castle Hill Village with the Hogsback track connecting Castle Hill Village with Texas Flat on the Mount Cheeseman Ski Field Road. The majority of the track construction was carried out in a series of community work parties over the 2010/2011 summer.[12]
Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park is a national park located in the central-west of the South Island of New Zealand. It was established in October 1953 and takes its name from the highest mountain in New Zealand, Aoraki / Mount Cook. The area of the park is 707 km2 (273 sq mi), and it shares a border with Westland Tai Poutini National Park along the Main Divide of the Southern Alps. The national park consists of reserves that were established as early as 1885 to protect the area's significant landscape and vegetation. Glaciers cover 40% of the park, including the county's largest glacier, Haupapa / Tasman Glacier. In 1990, the park was included in the area designated as the Te Wāhipounamu World Heritage Site. The park is managed by the Department of Conservation (DOC) alongside Ngāi Tahu, the iwi who are mana whenua in the region.
Mount Hutt rises to the west of the Canterbury Plains in the South Island of New Zealand, above the braided upper reaches of the Rakaia River, and 80 kilometres west of Christchurch. Its summit is 2190 metres above sea level.
The Mackenzie Basin, popularly and traditionally known as the Mackenzie Country, is an elliptical intermontane basin located in the Mackenzie and Waitaki Districts, near the centre of the South Island of New Zealand. It is the largest such basin in New Zealand. Historically famous mainly for sheep farming, the sparsely populated area is now also a popular tourism destination.
Hanmer Springs is a small town in the Canterbury region of the South Island of New Zealand. The Māori name for Hanmer Springs is Te Whakatakanga o te Ngārahu o te ahi a Tamatea, which means “where the ashes of Tamate’s (sic) fire lay”, referring to Tamatea, the captain of the canoe Tākitimu.
Arthur's Pass National Park is located in the South Island of New Zealand and covers 1,185 km2 of mostly mountainous terrain. Adjacent to it lies Craigieburn Forest Park. The park is administered by the Department of Conservation.
Arthur's Pass is a mountain pass in the Southern Alps of the South Island of New Zealand. The pass sits 920 metres or 3,020 feet above sea level and marks part of the boundary between the West Coast and Canterbury regions. Located 140 km from Christchurch and 95 km from Greymouth, the pass comprises part of a saddle between the valleys of the Ōtira River and of the Bealey River. Arthur's Pass lies on the border of the Selwyn and Westland districts.
Methven is a small town in the Canterbury region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is located near the western edge of the Canterbury Plains, 35 km (22 mi) north of Ashburton and 95 km (59 mi) west of Christchurch, and at an elevation of 320 m (1,050 ft). The town is a service centre for agriculture in the surrounding area, and is a base for skiing at the nearby Mount Hutt skifield. The town slogan is "Amazing Space".
Craigieburn is the name of a settlement and several geographic features in northwest Canterbury, in New Zealand's South Island.
Selwyn District is a predominantly rural district in central Canterbury, on the east coast of New Zealand's South Island. It is named after the Selwyn River / Waikirikiri, which is in turn named after Bishop George Selwyn, the first Anglican bishop of New Zealand who, in 1843 and 1844, travelled the length of the country by horse, foot, boat and canoe, leaving in his wake a sprinkling of locations that now bear his name.
Springfield, called Kowai Pass until 1880, is a small town in the Selwyn District of Canterbury, in the South Island, of New Zealand. Springfield is situated in the foothills of the Southern Alps as the most westerly town of the Canterbury Plains. Springfield is 65 kilometres (40 mi) west of Christchurch on State Highway 73, 9.7 kilometres (6.0 mi) northwest of Sheffield and 22.7 kilometres (14.1 mi) from Darfield. It is located close to Porters Ski Area, Mount Cheeseman, Broken River, Temple Basin and Craigieburn ski fields. Springfield has a long association with the Midland railway line.
Castle Hill is a location and a high country station in New Zealand's South Island. It is located at an altitude of 700 metres, close to State Highway 73 between Springfield and Arthur's Pass. It is private property and located within the Kura Tawhiti Conservation Area.
Rolleston is the seat and largest town in the Selwyn District, in the Canterbury region of New Zealand's South Island. It is located on the Canterbury Plains 22 kilometres (14 mi) south-west of Christchurch, and is part of the wider Christchurch metropolitan area.
Sheffield is a small village located in the Selwyn District of the Canterbury region of New Zealand's South Island, near the Waimakariri Gorge.
Cass is a small locality in inland Canterbury on New Zealand's South Island, near Arthur's Pass. It is known for its small railway station which was the subject of the 1936 painting Cass by Rita Angus, voted in 2006 New Zealand's favourite work of art. It is also the location of a University of Canterbury field station established in 1914. Cass currently has a single permanent resident.
Porters, is a commercial ski resort just over an hour's drive (98 km) west from Christchurch, in the South Island of New Zealand. Originally functioning as a club skifield, it has one beginner magic carpet, one platter tow, one chairlift and three t-bars. The difficulty of the slopes is distributed as 15% beginner, 35% intermediate and 50% advanced. Modern grooming equipment is used, and snowmaking facilities operate along the main pistes along the chairlift.
Craigieburn Forest Park is a protected area in the South Island of New Zealand, adjacent to Arthur's Pass National Park to the north.
Maoricrambus is a genus of moths of the family Crambidae. It contains only one species, Maoricrambus oncobolus, which is endemic to New Zealand. This species is classified as Nationally Endangered by the Department of Conservation.
Arthur's Pass, previously called Camping Flat then Bealey Flats, and for some time officially Arthurs Pass, is a township in the Southern Alps of the South Island of New Zealand, located in the Selwyn district. It is a popular base for exploring Arthur's Pass National Park.
Bouldergaine is a sport that combines bouldering and rogaining.
The South Island, with an area of 150,437 km2 (58,084 sq mi), is the largest landmass of New Zealand; it contains about one-quarter of the New Zealand population and is the world's 12th-largest island. It is divided along its length by the Southern Alps, the highest peak of which is Aoraki / Mount Cook at 3,724 metres (12,218 ft), making it 9th-highest island, with the high Kaikōura Ranges to the northeast. There are eighteen peaks of more than 3,000 metres (9,800 ft) in the South Island. The east side of the island is home to the Canterbury Plains while the West Coast is famous for its rough coastlines such as Fiordland, a very high proportion of native bush, and Fox and Franz Josef Glaciers. The dramatic landscape of the South Island has made it a popular location for the production of several films, including The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. It lies at similar latitudes to Tasmania, and parts of Patagonia in South America.
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