Castle Hill, New Zealand
Encyclopedia
Station (New Zealand agriculture)
A station, in the context of New Zealand agriculture, is a large farm dedicated to the grazing of sheep and cattle. The use of the word for the farm or farm buildings date back to the mid-nineteenth century....
in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
's South Island
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
. It is located at an altitude of 700 metres, close to State Highway 73
New Zealand State Highway 73
State Highway 73 is a major east-west South Island State Highway in New Zealand connecting Christchurch on the east coast with Greymouth/Hokitika on the west coast via the Southern Alps...
between Darfield
Darfield, New Zealand
Darfield is a town in the Selwyn District of the South Island of New Zealand. It is located 35 kilometres west from the outskirts of Christchurch, New Zealand on State Highway 73 and the town is on the Midland railway line, route of the famous TranzAlpine train service...
and Arthur's Pass
Arthur's Pass
Arthur's Pass is a mountain pass in the Southern Alps of the South Island of New Zealand. It marks part of the boundary between the West Coast and Canterbury regions, 140 km from Christchurch and 95 km from Greymouth. The pass lies in a saddle between the valleys of the Otira River, a...
. It is private property.
The hill was so named because of the imposing array of limestone boulders in the area reminiscent of an old, run-down stone castle. The front of Christ Church Cathedral
Christ Church (cathedral), New Zealand
The Anglican cathedral of ChristChurch in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand, was built in the second half of the 19th century. It is located in the centre of the city, surrounded by Cathedral Square...
in Christchurch is made from Castle Hill limestone. The station was established by the Porter brothers, and later owned by brothers John and Charles Enys. John Enys was a noted entomologist
Entomology
Entomology is the scientific study of insects, a branch of arthropodology...
, and friend of novelist Samuel Butler
Samuel Butler (novelist)
Samuel Butler was an iconoclastic Victorian author who published a variety of works. Two of his most famous pieces are the Utopian satire Erewhon and a semi-autobiographical novel published posthumously, The Way of All Flesh...
.
Castle Hill Village
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...
. It is widely considered to be the epitome of New Zealand's South Island climbing scene, where on any given day one can find rock climbers bouldering
Bouldering
Bouldering is a style of rock climbing undertaken without a rope and normally limited to very short climbs over a crash pad so that a fall will not result in serious injury. It is typically practiced on large natural boulders or artificial boulders in gyms and outdoor urban areas...
the unique limestone outcroppings. This area has recently seen more visitors, as nearby Flock Hill station was used for the filming of the climactic battle scenes of the 2005 movie, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a 2005 epic fantasy adventure film directed by Andrew Adamson and based on The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first published and second chronological novel in C. S. Lewis's children's epic fantasy series, The Chronicles of...
. Flock Hill also has a huge number of climbable limestone boulders though access requires a short certification procedure via the internet, unlike Kura Tawhiti which, as a conservation area, allows free access at all times.