Riversdale
Riversdale is a small town in the Southland region of New Zealand. The population of Riversdale in the 2006 Census was 393, an increase of 30 people, or 8.3%, since the 2001 Census. [1]
Riversdale is a small town in the Southland region of New Zealand. The population of Riversdale in the 2006 Census was 393, an increase of 30 people, or 8.3%, since the 2001 Census. [1]
Riversdale is located between the Hokonui Hills and the Mataura River in the heart of the Waimea Plains, and is roughly equidistant between Gore and Lumsden on State Highway 94, the main road linking Gore with the tourist destination of Milford Sound.
In terms of climate, Riversdale has a temperate oceanic climate grading onto a continental climate more commonly found in Central Otago, with cold, wet winters and warm summers. The Riversdale region is one of the few areas in Southland prone to drought during the summer months.
In 1880, the Waimea Plains Railway was opened; it linked Gore on the Main South Line with Lumsden on the Kingston Branch and passed through Riversdale. The line was an important economic link for many years, and the original Kingston Flyers that gave their name to today's Kingston Flyer tourist train in Kingston passed through Riversdale on their way to Gore or Dunedin from the 1890s through to Easter 1957.
With the improvement of road transportation and changes in government regulations, the railway lost its profitability, and in 1971, most of the line was closed, including the section through Riversdale. [2]
Gore is a town and district in the Southland region of the South Island of New Zealand.
Winton is a rural town in Southland, New Zealand. It is located close to the east bank of the Oreti River, 30 kilometres north of Invercargill and 50 kilometres south of Lumsden. The town is named after Thomas Winton, a local stockman who lived and farmed in the area in the 1850s. Winton has a population of 2,211 as of the 2013 Census. The district thrived with the development of sheep and fat-lamb farms in the early 1900s. Later, dairy farming became the staple economy, although the town has also seen sawmills, and flax and linen-flax industries.
Lumsden is a town in Southland, New Zealand. Lying in a gap in the surrounding hills, Lumsden is the location of a major junction on state highway six. Lumsden is 81 kilometres north of Invercargill, 106 kilometres south of Queenstown, 59 kilometres west of Gore and 77 kilometres east of Te Anau. The town had a population of 405 at the 2013 census.
The Southland Plains is a general name given to several areas of low-lying land in the South Island of New Zealand, separated by the rise of the Hokonui Hills in the north. It forms a sizeable area of Southland region and encompasses its two principal settlements the city of Invercargill and the town of Gore. The Southland Plains include some of New Zealand's most fertile farmland.
The Hokonui Hills, also known as The Hokonui Mountains or simply The Hokonui, are a range of hills in central Southland, New Zealand. They rise to 600 metres above the surrounding Southland Plains, of which the hills mark a northern extremity.
The Kingston Flyer is a vintage steam train in the South Island of New Zealand at the southern end of Lake Wakatipu. It used 14 kilometres of preserved track that once formed a part of the Kingston Branch. Originally, Kingston Flyer was a passenger express train between Kingston, Gore, Invercargill, and less frequently, Dunedin. It was operated by the New Zealand Railways (NZR) from the 1890s to 1957. In 1971, NZR revitalised the service as a tourist venture, later leasing the locomotives and rolling stock in 1982 to a private company. Since then, the Kingston Flyer has been through a number of owners, most recently being owned by the Kingston Flyer Ltd. A group of volunteers has restored the railway, rolling stock and locomotives to service. In July 2021 the Kingston Flyer received resource consent to operate, initially for tour groups.
Dipton is a small town in the Southland region of New Zealand. It is located 20 kilometres south of Lumsden and 60 kilometres north of Invercargill. From 20 October 1875 until its closure on 13 December 1982, Dipton was situated on the Kingston Branch railway.
The NZR K class of 1877 was the first example of American-built locomotives to be used on New Zealand's rail network. Their success coloured locomotive development in New Zealand until the end of steam.
The Kingston Branch was a major railway line in Southland, New Zealand. It formed part of New Zealand's national rail network for over a century: construction began in 1864, Kingston was reached in 1878, and it closed in 1979. For much of its life, it was considered a secondary main line rather than a branch line, and in its earlier years, it was sometimes known as the "Great Northern Railway". Today, the southern portion now forms a part of the Wairio Branch and the northernmost 14 kilometres was used by the Kingston Flyer.
The Waimea Plains Railway was a secondary railway line that linked the towns of Lumsden and Gore in northern Southland, New Zealand. It skirted the Hokonui Hills, and operated as a through route between 31 July 1880 and 1 April 1971, with the short section from Lumsden to Balfour continuing as the Balfour Branch until 15 January 1978.
The Waikaia Branch, also known as the Switzers Branch, was a branch line railway in Southland, New Zealand. Proposed as early as the 1870s, it was not opened until 1909 and was operated by the New Zealand Railways Department for half a century until its closure in 1959.
Balfour is a small town located in the Southland region of New Zealand. According to the 2001 New Zealand census, it has a usually resident population of 135, unchanged from the previous census in 1996.
Athol is a small town in Southland, New Zealand. It is located on State Highway 6, 55 km south of Queenstown, halfway between Lumsden and Kingston on the Southern Scenic Route. Farming has always been very important in the district, though in earlier times gold mining, centred on nearby Nokomai, was also significant. In recent decades tourist numbers have grown. The Mataura River is well known for the quality of its brown trout fishing, and the Around the Mountains Cycle Trail, opened in November 2014, has further boosted visitor figures.
State Highway 94 is a New Zealand state highway connecting the large Southland town of Gore with one of New Zealand's most popular destinations, Milford Sound. It also passes the significant townships of Lumsden and Te Anau as well going through the Homer Tunnel. The road also goes through Fiordland and crosses the Main Divide of the Southern Alps.
The Around the Mountains Cycle Trail is a cycle trail set in the remote wilderness of southern New Zealand. 186km in length, it can be ridden in either direction, starting at Kingston or Walter Peak and taking three to five days at a relaxed pace to complete. The Around the Mountains Cycle Trail is recognised as one of New Zealand's 22 Great Rides.
Waikaia, formerly known as Switzers, is a town in the Southland region of New Zealand's South Island. From 1909 until 1959, it was the terminus of the Waikaia Branch railway. The population in the 2013 census was 99, unchanged from the previous census in 2006.
The Waimea Plains is an area of pastoral land extending from Gore toward Lumsden. The land is chiefly used for sheep and deer farming, and is part of the Southland Plains.
Southland is New Zealand's southernmost region. It consists mainly of the southwestern portion of the South Island and Stewart Island/Rakiura. It includes Southland District, Gore District and the city of Invercargill. The region covers over 3.1 million hectares and spans over 3,400 km of coast.
Garston is a small settlement in northern Southland, in the South Island of New Zealand, located close to the region's boundary with Otago. It is the most inland settlement in New Zealand. It is situated south of Lake Wakatipu and close to the upper reaches of the Mataura River, between Kingston and Lumsden. Garston is connected to both Kingston and Lumsden by SH 6.
Eyre Creek is a locality in Southland, New Zealand, situated to the north-east of the Five Rivers Plain. It lies on State Highway 6, 18 km north of Lumsden. On its northern side is the Jollies Hill Pass, commonly known as the Jollies, which skirts the western flank of the Mid Dome.