The Rangitata Gorge is a gorge located in the
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour.
...
High Country in the
South Island
The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...
of
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
. The narrow gorge links the headwaters of the
Rangitata River with the fertile
Canterbury Plains. The Rangitata gorge is commercially rafted by a local company. It is also a popular river for visiting kayakers, fishermen and adventurist locals in jet boats. The gorge is a class IV to V+ depending on the flow of the river and home to the notable rapids including Rooster's Tail, Pencil Sharpener, The Pinch, Pigs Trough and Hells Gate.
Rangitata Diversion Race
The Rangitata Diversion Race takes water from Klondyke at the bottom of the gorge. Construction of the race began in 1937 and completed in 1944. Today the race is 67 kilometers long and carries a maximum of 30 cubic metres of water per second discharging the remaining water at Highbank into the
Rakaia River
The Rakaia River is in the Canterbury Plains in New Zealand's South Island. The Rakaia River is one of the largest braided rivers in New Zealand. The Rakaia River has a mean flow of and a mean annual seven-day low flow of . In the 1850s, Euro ...
.
The race provides water for various irrigation systems and two power plants at Highbank and Montalto.
Tenehaun Conservation Area
On the north bank of the gorge is the Tenehaun Conservation Area which has good views of the gorge.
Activities include hiking and mountain biking.
Reference List
{{Coord, 43, 45, 14.49, S, 171, 12, 39.81, E, display=title
Timaru District
Populated places in Canterbury, New Zealand