Rakaia Gorge

Today's the day .......................... for a picnic lunch

Most days that we have been in New Zealand - we have had a picnic lunch. And it hasn't been difficult to find somewhere spectacular to eat it. This is where we were today - overlooking the Rakaia Gorge.

The River Rakaia rises in the Southern Alps, travelling 150 kilometres in a generally south-easterly direction before it enters the Pacific Ocean 50 kilometres south of Christchurch. For much of its journey, the river is braided, running through a wide shingle bed. At this point however, it is briefly confined to a narrow canyon known as the Rakaia Gorge.

In the mid 1800s, there was a ferry service across the river provided by one John Bryan. His cottage was situated on the northern bank of the river and travellers from the south could shout across to him. He would then descend the ferrymans's track and bring the travellers across in a flat-bottomed punt pulled by a rope.

Sadly, nowadays there are a couple of bridges that get you across in a jiffy ....................