Mount Cavendish

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Mount Cavendish
Summit Road, Mount Cavendish 01.jpg
Mount Cavendish with the gondola on its peak
Highest point
Elevation 448 m (1,470 ft)
Coordinates 43°35′22″S172°42′57″E / 43.5894°S 172.7159°E / -43.5894; 172.7159
Geography
Location Christchurch
Parent range Port Hills

Mount Cavendish is located in the Port Hills, with views over Christchurch, New Zealand and Lyttelton. It is part of the crater wall of the extinct volcano that formed Lyttelton Harbour. The Mount Cavendish Reserve displays some of the best examples of lava flow to be seen on the Port Hills.[ citation needed ]

Contents

History

Christchurch Gondola terminal on Mount Cavendish Christchurch gondola 02.jpg
Christchurch Gondola terminal on Mount Cavendish

Mount Cavendish was first transferred to the Crown for a Scenic Reserve in 1910, by the Morten Brothers. The mountain was first named Hill Morten in 1912 by Harry Ell, in recognition of the Morten family's gifts of land for the Summit Road and scenic reserves.

The name Mount Cavendish was first given to nearby Mount Pleasant (after which a suburb is now named) in 1848, but did not stick and the peak of Hill Morten was named Mount Cavendish after the Hon. Richard Cavendish of the Canterbury Association. [1]

Description

It is 448 metres (1,470 feet) high and falls within the Mount Cavendish Scenic Reserve, which sits at the top of the Heathcote Valley, close to the northern entrance to the Lyttelton Road Tunnel.

Mount Cavendish is located approximately 10 km from Dyers Pass, and 4.7 km from Evans Pass via the Summit Road. On foot, it can be accessed via the Crater Rim Walkway or the Bridle Path (which connects Heathcote Valley and Lyttelton). Access is also via the Christchurch Gondola, which has its lower terminal located on Bridle Path Road, in Heathcote Valley. [2] The gondola opened on 24 November 1992.

It was closed following the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, not reopening until March 2013. [3] [4]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christchurch Gondola</span> Gondola in Christchurch, New Zealand

The Christchurch Gondola is a tourist attraction service offered by Christchurch Attractions in Christchurch, New Zealand. The gondola base is located in Heathcote Valley, and it traverses the slopes of Mount Cavendish in the Port Hills. Also known as a cable car, the Christchurch Gondola's course is 1,000 metres (1,100 yd) in length, and from the summit it is possible to see across the city of Christchurch and the Canterbury Plains to the Southern Alps in the north and west, and down into Lyttelton Harbour and Banks Peninsula in the south and east. Sometimes used as a transport method for visitors who use the walking tracks on Mt Cavendish, the gondola is ranked as one of the top tourist attractions in Christchurch by TripAdvisor. The summit is 445 metres (1,460 ft) above sea level.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canterbury Pioneer Women's Memorial</span> New Zealand memorial

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kennedy's Bush Scenic Reserve</span> Conservation reserve in the Port Hills south of Christchurch, New Zealand

Kennedy's Bush Scenic Reserve is a public conservation reserve in the Port Hills south of Christchurch, New Zealand. It sits above the suburb of Kennedys Bush on the northern side of the hills, just north of Ōrongomai / Cass Peak. The reserve is covered in dense native bush, and at 130 hectares it is the largest remaining patch of native bush on the Port Hills.

Te Tihi-o-Kahukura / Castle Rock is a prominent rock outcrop in the Port Hills above Christchurch, New Zealand. It is a short distance north of Te Moenga-o-Wheke / The Tors, on the northern side of Summit Road. It sits directly to the west of the Bridle Path and the Lyttelton road tunnel. The rocky outcrop itself is 167 metres (548 ft) long, 83 metres (272 ft) wide and up to 24 metres (79 ft) high.

References

  1. Harper, Margaret. "Christchurch Place Names A-M" (PDF). Christchurch City Libraries. p. 130. Retrieved 14 October 2012.
  2. http://www.wonderwalkers.co.nz/default,1519,mount-cavendish-scenic-reserve.sm Description of access
  3. "Christchurch's gondola re-opens". 3 News NZ. 25 March 2013.
  4. "Christchurch gondola to officially reopen". NZ Herald. 25 March 2013.