Hokitika is a town in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island, 40 kilometres (25 mi) south of Greymouth, and close to the mouth of the Hokitika River. It is the seat and largest town in the Westland District. The town's estimated population is 2,860 as of June 2022.
The Taramakau River is a river of the West Coast Region of the South Island of New Zealand. It rises in the Southern Alps / Kā Tiritiri o te Moana near Harper Pass, 80 kilometres (50 mi) due east of Hokitika, and runs westward for 75 kilometres (47 mi) into the Tasman Sea 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) south of Greymouth.
Ross is a small town located in the Westland District on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island, 27 kilometres (17 mi) south-west of Hokitika and 46 kilometres (29 mi) north-east of Hari Hari by road.
Westland District is a territorial authority district on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island. It is administered by the Westland District Council. The district's population is 8,820.
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.
The Catlins River Branch was a branch line railway that formed part of New Zealand's national rail network. It ran through the Catlins region in southwestern Otago and was built in sections between 1879 and 1915. It closed in 1971 except for the first four kilometres, which remain open as the Finegand Branch. Along the line was the Hunts Road tunnel, the southernmost tunnel in New Zealand.
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 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.
The NZR RM class Midland railcar was the first successful railcar, and first diesel-powered vehicle, to enter revenue service in New Zealand. Two were built, RM 20 and RM 21, and they ran for five years from 1936 to 1941 before being replaced by larger Vulcan railcars. They operated primarily on the Midland Line and the Greymouth-Hokitika portion of the Ross Branch
The Midland line is a 212 km section of railway between Rolleston and Greymouth in the South Island of New Zealand. The line features five major bridges, five viaducts and 17 tunnels, the longest of which is the Otira tunnel. It is the route of the popular TranzAlpine passenger train.
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 Rapahoe Branch is a branch line railway that forms part of New Zealand's national rail network and is located on the West Coast of the South Island. It has been operational since 1923 and was named the Rapahoe Industrial Line until 2011.
The Stillwater Ngākawau Line (SNL), formerly the Stillwater–Westport Line (SWL) and the Ngakawau Branch, is a secondary main line, part of New Zealand's national rail network. It runs between Stillwater and Ngakawau via Westport on the West Coast of the South Island. It was one of the longest construction projects in New Zealand's history, with its first section opened in 1889 and the full line completed 1942.
The NZR RM class Vulcan railcars were operated by the New Zealand Government Railways (NZR) in the South Island of New Zealand. All New Zealand railcars are classified as RM , and this class derived their nomenclature from the name of the manufacturer, the Vulcan Foundry of Britain.
Ruatapu is a small town in the Westland District in the West Coast region of the South Island of New Zealand. The town's name stems from Ruatapu, a figure in Māori mythology. The town is located on a narrow strip of land between the Tasman Sea and Lake Mahinapua, a shallow lake that was originally a coastal lagoon. State Highway 6 runs through Ruatapu, connecting it to the nearby towns of Hokitika and Ross. The town's economy is based upon agriculture, as well as a large sawmill, operated by Westco Lagan, which mills Radiata Pine for further processing in Christchurch.
Lake Mahinapua is a shallow lake on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island. Once a lagoon at the mouth of the Hokitika River, it became a lake when the river shifted its course. Lake Māhinapua was the site of a significant battle between Ngāi Tahu and Ngāti Wairangi Māori, and is regarded by them as a sacred site where swimming and fishing are prohibited. In European times it was part of an inland waterway that carried timber and settlers between Hokitika and Ross until the building of the railway. Today it is protected as a scenic reserve for boating, camping, and hiking.
The Rewanui Branch, sometimes referred to as the Rewanui Incline and known as the Point Elizabeth Branch in its early years, was a branch line railway located in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island. It branched from the Midland Line near its western terminus in Greymouth and ran up to Rewanui in the Paparoa Ranges. The branch closed in 1985 but the first six kilometres to Runanga remain in operation as part of the Rapahoe Branch.
State Highway 73 is a major east-west South Island state highway in New Zealand connecting Christchurch on the east coast with Cass/Hokitika via the Southern Alps. It is mostly two lane, with some single-lane bridges north of Springfield but is mostly dual carriageway in Christchurch. The fourth and fifth-highest points of New Zealand's state highway network are on this road at Porters Pass and Arthur's Pass respectively.
Westland County, also known as County of Westland, was a local government area on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island. It existed from 1868 to 1873, and then from 1876 until 1989. In its first incarnation it constituted the government for the area that was split from the Canterbury Province, with the West Coast Gold Rush having given the impetus for that split. It had the same administrative powers as a provincial council, but the legislative power rested with Parliament in Wellington. The first Westland County was the predecessor to Westland Province.
The West Coast Wilderness Trail has been funded as one of the projects of the New Zealand Cycle Trail. Once complete, the 139 kilometres (86 mi) track will connect Greymouth in the north with Ross in the south. Currently, the section from Greymouth to Hokitika is open.
