The Catlins comprises an area in the southeastern corner of the South Island of New Zealand. The area lies between Balclutha and Invercargill, straddling the boundary between the Otago and Southland regions. It includes the South Island's southernmost point, Slope Point.
The Tapanui Branch was a railway line located near the border of the regions of Southland and Otago, New Zealand. Although the name suggests that it terminated in Tapanui, its furthest terminus was actually in Edievale. Construction of the line began in 1878 with the first section opened in 1880, and it operated until 1978, when it was destroyed by flooding from the Pomahaka River.
The Tokanui Branch, also known as the Seaward Bush Branch, was a branch line railway located in Southland, New Zealand. It diverged from the Bluff Branch south of the main railway station in Invercargill and ran for 54 kilometres in a southeasterly direction. Construction began in 1883 and it operated until 1966.
The Mount Somers Branch, sometimes known as the Springburn Branch, was a branch line railway in the region of Canterbury, New Zealand. The line was built in stages from 1878, reaching Mount Somers in 1885. A further section to Springburn was added in 1889; this closed in 1957, followed by the rest of the line in 1968. A portion has been preserved as the Plains Vintage Railway.
Owaka is a small town in the Clutha District of South Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand. It is the largest community in the rugged, forested Catlins area, close to the border with Southland, some 35 km (22 mi) south of Balclutha on the Southern Scenic Route.
The Mossburn Branch was a branch line railway in New Zealand from Lumsden on the Kingston Branch to the town of Mossburn in northern Southland. Construction began in 1879, Mossburn was reached in 1887, and the line closed in 1982. It was operated by the New Zealand Railways Department.
The Tuatapere Branch, including the Orawia Branch, was a branch line railway in Southland, New Zealand. Although the Tuatapere and Orawia Branches look like a single line, operationally they were considered separate lines. The first section opened to Riverton in 1879 and reached Tuatapere three decades later. The extension from Tuatapere to Orawia operated from 1925 until 1970. In 1976 the Tuatapere Branch was truncated to Riverton, and was known as the Riverton Branch until 1978, when it closed beyond Thornbury. The remaining portion of the line is now part of the Wairio Branch.
The Donnellys Crossing Section, also known as the Kaihu Valley Railway or Kaihu Branch, was a railway line in Northland, New Zealand. Initially an isolated line of 35.91 kilometres (22.31 mi), it became a branch line when the Dargaville Branch was opened and connected it with the North Auckland Line and the rest of the national rail network in 1943. The branch was closed in 1959.
Romahapa is a locality in the Catlins region of Otago in New Zealand's South Island. It is located between the towns of Balclutha and Owaka. The last shop closed in 1977.
The Ōwaka River, until 2019 officially the Owaka River, flows southeastward through The Catlins, an area of the southern South Island of New Zealand. Its total length is 30 kilometres (19 mi), and it shares the estuary of the Catlins River, flowing into the Pacific Ocean at Pounawea, 28 kilometres (17 mi) south of Balclutha. Its source is on the slopes of Mount Rosebery, 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) south of Clinton. The Ōwaka River is located within the Clutha District.
Glenomaru is a small settlement in The Catlins, an area of the southern South Island of New Zealand. It is located 10 kilometres north of Owaka on the main road to Balclutha. On 7 July 1891, a branch line railway from the Main South Line in Balclutha was opened to Glenomaru, and the village remained the terminus of the line until it was extended to Tahora on 16 December 1895. This line ultimately terminated in Tahakopa and was known as the Catlins River Branch. It closed on 27 February 1971 and a sawmill now exists on the site of Glenomaru station, though some of the railway's old formation can be seen in the surrounding area and the Hunts Road tunnel is in the vicinity and can be walked.
The Kurow Branch was part of New Zealand's national rail network. In the North Otago region of the South Island, it was built in the 1870s to open up the land behind Oamaru for development, and closed in 1983.
The Ross Branch, officially known as the Hokitika Line since 2011, and previously as the Hokitika Industrial Line, is a branch line railway that forms part of New Zealand's national rail network. It is located in the Westland District of the South Island's West Coast region and opened to Hokitika in 1893. A further extension to Ross operated from 1909 until 1980.
The Seddonville Branch, later truncated as the Ngākawau Branch, is a branch line railway in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island. Construction began in 1874 and it reached its terminus at the Mokihinui Mine just beyond Seddonville in 1895. In 1981 it was closed past Ngākawau and effectively became an extension of the Stillwater–Westport Line, since formalised as the Stillwater–Ngākawau Line.
Tahora, later also known as Parae, is a locality in the Otago region of New Zealand's South Island, about one kilometre north of Owaka located at the Ōwaka River. Previously on a railway line, Tahora was a request stop. Today, there is little trace of the settlement and only parts of the railway formation remains visible.
Te Peka is a locality in the Southland region of New Zealand's South Island. It is situated on the western edge of the Catlins region, with Waimahaka to the west, Fortrose to the southwest, and Pukewao and Tokanui to the southeast.
Finegand is a locality in the South Otago region of New Zealand's South Island.
Otanomomo is a locality in the South Otago region of New Zealand's South Island. It is on the banks of the Koau Branch of the Clutha River, roughly six kilometres south of Balclutha. Nearby settlements include Finegand to the north, Paretai, Puerua, and Romahapa to the south, and Waitepeka to the west.
The small settlement of Caberfeidh is located in The Catlins, in the Otago region of New Zealand's South Island. The site of a former railway station on the Catlins Branch Line, it is sited close to a tributary of the Maclennan River, 5 kilometres north of the coast at Tahakopa Bay and 12 kilometres southwest of Owaka.
