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Information about Arthur's Pass

Arthur's Pass

Arthur's Pass Location Map
Elevation920 m.
Location New Zealand
RangeSouthern Alps
Coordinates


Enlarge picture
Arthur's Pass


Arthur's Pass (el. 920 m.) is a mountain pass in the Southern Alps of the South Island of New Zealand. It marks part of the boundary between Westland and Canterbury, 140 km from Christchurch and 95 km from Greymouth. The pass lies in a saddle between the valleys of the Otira River, a tributary of the Taramakau in the west and the Bealey River in the east.

A hamlet of the same name (Arthur's Pass) is located about 5 km south of the mountain pass.

History

The pass is named after Sir Arthur Dudley Dobson (1841-1934), who led the first party of Europeans across the pass in 1864. He had been informed of the presence of a pass which had been used occasionally by Māori hunting parties by a West Coast Māori Chief, Tarapuhi. It is also believed that writer and explorer Samuel Butler had seen the pass several years earlier, but was unable to explore it at that time. The timing was perfect, as the West Coast was soon to be hit by a goldrush, and easy access to the Tasman's coast became imperative.

Road Link

State Highway 73 passes over Arthur's Pass and is the highest of only three roads crossing the Southern Alps, the other crossings being the Haast Pass and the Lewis Pass.

Previously prone to be blocked by landslides or avalanches, the road on the western side of the pass has seen extensive civil engineering work in the late 1990s. Most notably, the impressive Otira Viaduct, near the settlement of Otira and spanning 440 metres of unstable terrain, was completed in 1999.

Rail Link

The Midland Line, connecting Christchurch and the West Coast, crosses the Main Divide by means of the Otira Tunnel, between Arthur's Pass township and Otira. When opened in 1923, the tunnel was the longest in the British Empire.

Arthur's Pass Township

Arthur's Pass
Coordinates:
Country New Zealand
Region Canterbury
Founded 1906 (originally named Bealey Flat)
Area
 - Township 0.6 km  (0 sq mi)
Elevation 739 m (0 ft)
Population
 - Township 54
Website: www.apinfo.co.nz


Enlarge picture
Arthur's Pass Village


This tiny hamlet is a popular base for exploring Arthur's Pass National Park.

Facilities

  • Accommodation
  • General Store
  • Cafe / Restaurant
  • DOC Office
  • Camp Ground
  • Train Station
  •  • [ e] The TranzAlpine passenger train stops: (Midland line)
Christchurch | Rolleston | Darfield | Springfield |Cass | Arthur's Pass | Otira | Jacksons | Moana | Brunner | Greymouth


Arthur's Pass township, a hamlet about 5 km south of the pass, is a popular base for exploring Arthur's Pass National Park.

References

  • Reed, A. W. (2002). The Reed Dictionary of New Zealand Place Names. Auckland: Reed Books. ISBN 0-7900-0761-4. 
  • Edward Dobson

External links

summit is a point on a surface which is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. Mathematically speaking, a summit is a local maximum in elevation.
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Anthem
"God Defend New Zealand"
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Capital Wellington

Largest city Auckland
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A mountain range is a chain of mountains bordered by lowlands or separated from other mountain ranges by passes or rivers.
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Southern Alps is a mountain range which runs along the western side of the South Island of New Zealand. It forms a natural dividing range along the entire length of the South Island.
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geographic coordinate system enables every location on the earth to be specified by the three coordinates of a spherical coordinate system aligned with the spin axis of the Earth.
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pass (also gap, notch, col, saddle, bwlch or bealach) is a lower point that allows easier access through a range. On the route through the range, it is locally the highest point on the route.
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Southern Alps is a mountain range which runs along the western side of the South Island of New Zealand. It forms a natural dividing range along the entire length of the South Island.
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Satellite view of South Island

Geography
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Location New Zealand <nowiki /> <nowiki /> <nowiki /> <nowiki />
Area
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Anthem
"God Defend New Zealand"
"God Save the Queen" 1


Capital Wellington

Largest city Auckland
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The West Coast is one of the administrative regions of New Zealand, located on the west coast of the South Island, and is one of the more remote and most sparsely populated areas of the country. It is made up of three districts: Buller, Grey and Westland.
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The New Zealand region of Canterbury (Māori: Waitaha) is mainly composed of the Canterbury Plains and the surrounding mountains.
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Christchurch (Māori: Ōtautahi) is the regional capital of Canterbury, New Zealand. The largest city in the South Island, it is also the second largest city and third largest urban area of New Zealand.
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Greymouth is the largest town in the West Coast region on the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. Its population of 13,221 accounts for 42% of the West Coast's inhabitants. The town is expected to grow by 1.5% per year for the coming decade.
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The Otira River is located in the central South Island of New Zealand. It rises on the slopes of Mount Rolleston in the Southern Alps, and flows north for 20 km, passing through the town of Otira before joining the Taramakau River.
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The Taramakau River is in the northwest of the South Island of New Zealand. It rises in the Southern Alps, 80 kilometres due west of Hokitika, and immediately below the saddle of the Harper's Pass, and runs westward for 75 kilometres into the Tasman Sea 15 kilometres south of
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Bealey River is a small river located in the Southern Alps of New Zealand. It is a tributary of the Waimakariri River. Its valley forms the eastern approach to Arthur's Pass.
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Arthur's Pass (el. 920 m.) is a mountain pass in the Southern Alps of the South Island of New Zealand. It marks part of the boundary between Westland and Canterbury, 140 km from Christchurch and 95 km from Greymouth.
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18th century - 19th century - 20th century
1830s  1840s  1850s  - 1860s -  1870s  1880s  1890s
1861 1862 1863 - 1864 - 1865 1866 1867

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Subjects:     Archaeology - Architecture -
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Samuel Butler

Born: November 4 1835(1835--)
Langar Rectory, England (near Bingham, Nottinghamshire)
Died: May 18 1902 (aged 68)

Occupation: Novelist, Writer
Nationality: English


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gold rush is a period of feverish migration of workers into the area of a dramatic discovery of commercial quantities of gold. Several gold rushes took place throughout the 19th century in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, New Zealand, South Africa, and the United States.
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Tasman Sea is the large body of water between Australia and New Zealand, some 2000 kilometres (1250 miles) across. It is a south-western segment of the South Pacific Ocean.
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New Zealand State Highway network consists of just under 100 roads in both the North and South Islands, administered by Transit New Zealand. The open-road speed limit is generally 100 km/h, with reductions in built-up areas and for safety reasons.
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Haast Pass is a mountain pass in the Southern Alps of the South Island of New Zealand.

It is named for Julius von Haast, a 19th century explorer who was also geologist for the Provincial government of Canterbury.
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Lewis Pass (el. 864 m.) is a mountain pass in the South Island of New Zealand.

The northernmost of the three main passes across the Southern Alps, it is higher than the Haast Pass, but slightly lower than Arthur's Pass.
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Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design and construction of the physical and natural built environment, including works such as bridges, roads, canals, dams and buildings.
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Centuries: 19th century - 20th century - 21st century

1960s 1970s 1980s - 1990s - 2000s 2010s 2020s
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994
1995 1996 1997 1998 1999

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For the band, see .

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Otira is a small township seven kilometres north of Arthur's Pass in the central South Island of New Zealand. It is on the western approach to the pass, a saddle between the Otira and Bealey Rivers high in the Southern Alps.
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20th century - 21st century
1960s  1970s  1980s  - 1990s -  2000s  2010s  2020s
1996 1997 1998 - 1999 - 2000 2001 2002

Year 1999 (MCMXCIX
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Midland line is a famous 212 km section of railway between Christchurch (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.
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The Otira Tunnel is a railway tunnel on the Midland Line in the South Island of New Zealand between Otira and Arthur's Pass. It runs under the Southern Alps from Arthur's Pass to Otira - a length of a little over 8500 metres.
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