Tākaka Hill is a range of hills in the northwest of 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. Made of

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...

that has weathered into many strange forms and with numerous

sink hole A sinkhole is a depression or hole in the ground caused by some form of collapse of the surface layer. The term is sometimes used to refer to doline, enclosed depressions that are locally also known as ''vrtače'' and shakeholes, and to openi ...

s, it is typical

karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...

country. The marble is

Ordovician The Ordovician ( ) is a geologic period and System (geology), system, the second of six periods of the Paleozoic Era (geology), Era. The Ordovician spans 41.6 million years from the end of the Cambrian Period million years ago (Mya) to the start ...

in age and from the

Takaka Terrane The Takaka Terrane is a Paleozoic terrane that outcrops in the South Island of New Zealand. It is most extensively exposed within the Kahurangi National Park in the Tasman District. The terrane is mostly made up of marble and volcanic rocks but i ...

. There is only one road winding over and around the flanks of Tākaka Hill, State Highway 60, following the valleys of the

Tākaka River The Tākaka River lies in the northwest of New Zealand's South Island. It runs north for 70 kilometres, entering Golden Bay / Mohua, Golden Bay near the town of Tākaka. It was reported on 17 January 2007 that the Tākaka River is one of a growi ...

to the northwest and the

Riuwaka River The Riuwaka River, formerly known as the Riwaka River, is located in the Nelson region in the northwest of New Zealand's South Island. It flows for 20 kilometres, entering Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere close to the town of Riwaka, 10 kilometres no ...

to the southeast. In July 2020, the name of the pass was officially gazetted as Tākaka Hill Saddle by the

New Zealand Geographic Board The New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa (NZGB) was established by the New Zealand Geographic Board Act 1946, which has since been replaced by the New Zealand Geographic Board (Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa) Act 2008. Althoug ...

. It rises to 791 metres at its highest point and separates the coastal communities of

Golden Bay Golden Bay may refer to: * Golden Bay / Mohua, a bay at the northern end of New Zealand's South Island * Golden Bay (Malta), a bay and beach on the coastline of Malta * Golden Bay High School, a high school in Takaka, New Zealand * Golden Bay, Wes ...

from those of the more populous

Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere Tasman Bay (; officially Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere), originally known in English as Blind Bay, is a large V-shaped bay at the north end of New Zealand's South Island. Located in the centre of the island's northern coast, it stretches along ...

to the southeast and because of its winding nature isolates Golden Bay from the rest of the South Island. Tākaka Hill is notable for its (now defunct) marble

quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to reduce their envi ...

and for many limestone

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

s and sinkholes, including Ngarua Caves which are open to the public and feature deposits of

moa Moa are extinct giant flightless birds native to New Zealand. The term has also come to be used for chicken in many Polynesian cultures and is found in the names of many chicken recipes, such as Kale moa and Moa Samoa. Moa or MOA may also refe ...

bones. Harwood's Hole, at one time the deepest cave in New Zealand, is also to be found on Tākaka Hill. Many of the caves drain into ''The Resurgence'', a spring at the foot of the hill. Tākaka Hill, as many other areas in and around the Golden Bay, has also been the location for many scenes filmed for ''The Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy.Lord of the Rings Driving Routes
New Zealand Travel Guide

Demographics

Tākaka Hills statistical area includes Rākauroa / Torrent Bay and covers . It had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km². Takaka Hills had a population of 1,185 at the

2018 New Zealand census Eighteen or 18 may refer to: * 18 (number), the natural number following 17 and preceding 19 * one of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018 Film, television and entertainment * ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the sho ...

, an increase of 87 people (7.9%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 42 people (3.7%) since the

2006 census 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

. There were 435 households. There were 618 males and 570 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.08 males per female. The median age was 46.5 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 195 people (16.5%) aged under 15 years, 156 (13.2%) aged 15 to 29, 624 (52.7%) aged 30 to 64, and 210 (17.7%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 91.4% European/Pākehā, 9.6% Māori, 1.8% Pacific peoples, 3.0% Asian, and 2.3% other ethnicities (totals add to more than 100% since people could identify with multiple ethnicities). The proportion of people born overseas was 21.0%, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people objected to giving their religion, 63.8% had no religion, 22.8% were Christian, 1.0% were Buddhist and 2.3% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 192 (19.4%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 165 (16.7%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $26,900, compared with $31,800 nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 534 (53.9%) people were employed full-time, 159 (16.1%) were part-time, and 21 (2.1%) were unemployed.

References

External links

Caving areas in New Zealand
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tākaka Hill Hills of New Zealand Landforms of the Tasman District Golden Bay