The Tekapo River flows occasionally through the

Mackenzie Basin The Mackenzie Basin (), popularly and traditionally known as the Mackenzie Country, is an elliptical intermontane basin located in the Mackenzie and Waitaki Districts, near the centre of the South Island of New Zealand. It is the largest su ...

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a 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. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

, in

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 ...

's South Island, although the riverbed is now often dry in the upper reaches. It maintains a constant flow below the confluence of several tributaries, notably the Maryburn, Forks, and Grays rivers. The lower reaches (below the Maryburn confluence) are popular with anglers chasing brown and rainbow trout, although recent infestation by the invasive algae didymo ('' Didymosphenia geminata'') has somewhat limited angling opportunities. Tekapo-Pukaki canal

Originally, the river flowed southwest for from the southern end of

Lake Tekapo __NOTOC__ Lake Tekapo ( mi, Takapō) is the second-largest of three roughly parallel lakes running north–south along the northern edge of the Mackenzie Basin in the South Island of New Zealand (the others are Lake Pukaki and Lake Ohau). ...

before joining with the Pukaki River and flowing into the northern end of

Lake Benmore Lake Benmore is New Zealand's largest artificial lake. Located in the South Island of New Zealand and part of the Waitaki River, it was created in the 1960s by construction of Benmore Dam. Characteristics The lake has an area of about 75 ...

. However, the water from Lake Tekapo is now diverted via a canal to

Lake Pukaki Lake Pukaki is the largest of three roughly parallel alpine lakes running north–south along the northern edge of the Mackenzie Basin on New Zealand's South Island. The others are Lakes Lake Tekapo, Tekapo and Lake Ohau, New Zealand, Ohau. All t ...

as part of the Waitaki hydroelectric scheme. These lakes are used to store water, and occasionally during a particularly heavy snow melt or if the power stations or canal need servicing, water may spilt from either the dam or canal back into the riverbed. These events are much anticipated by kayakers, to the extent that they have been known to re-shape parts of the riverbed to create "better" rapids. In 2020, there were warnings of potential water spill. Normally, its summer maximum level is set at 709.8 meters above the sea level whereas it reached 709.9m at one point.

References

Rivers of Canterbury, New Zealand Rivers of New Zealand {{CanterburyNZ-river-stub