The Tranz Alpine. New Zealand’s most famous train ride, rated as one of the great train journeys of the world. The travel between Christchurch and the West Coast (Greymouth) takes you through the Canterbury Plains, climbing the Waimakariri Gorge to Artur’s Pass National Park with its snow capped mountains and heading down through Otira Tunnel to burst into the rain forest of the West Coast.
From my conversations with many tourists I know it is difficult to find the train station in Christchurch, which for some unknown reason is hidden inside the Tower Junction shopping Centre (I guess the station was there long before the shopping centre surrounded it). Drive towards the junction of Blenheim Rd and Clarence Rd. Turn into the shopping centre and look for the train station sign. If you have trouble locating it, ask a local. In Winter there is plenty of parking, but during Summer it might be more crowded.
The first part of the journey crosses the rich farmaland of Canterbury Plains. Twenty minutes and a turn to the west later, you can see in the distance the mountains covered by fresh snow. The first stop is at Springfield. Springfield used to be a major rail terminal but lost its role when the network was cut in the 80′s. From here the train will follow the Waimakariri River. In Māori, Waimakariri has several meanings, one of which is “river of cold rushing water,” from experience – a very appropriate name…
The first tunnel in the mountain is not far after the train starts to climb. When the train emerges out from the tunnel it is as if someone quickly replaced the calm flat scenery of Canterbury Plains with a dramatic one of ridges and gorges, the river rushing far below us and the snowy majestic peaks. I decided it is a good time to pay a visit to the open observation car. Note to travellers – when in NZ, if you are being told there is an open observation car this is exactly what you are going to get; but the feeling of being exposed to the amazing surrounding is worth the experience and the cold.
At about 10.30am the train pulls into Arthur’s Pass station. Long before surveyor Arthur Dudley Dobson found his way over the pass in 1864, it was known to Maori hunting parties as a route between east and west. When gold was discovered near Greymouth construction of a road and railway began so that gold could be transported over the mountains to Christchurch. The road across Arthur’s Pass was built quickly during the winter of 1865. The railway took longer to build as the only way through the mountains was to excavate a tunnel. The tunnel finally opened in 1923; the gold rush was long since gone, but coal had been discovered and the train is still the main carrier of coal to the Port of Lyttelton.
It takes about ten minutes for the train to ride through the tunnel to emerge at Otira on the west side of the Alps. This side of the Alps is known as Westland. The land here is very scenic, with wild coastlines, mountains, and a high proportion of native bush. The locals sometimes call this area ‘Wetland’ on account of the amount of rain fall in this area.
The journey continues and I can already see the Grey River, named by explorer Thomas Brunner in honour of NZ’s Governor Sir George Grey. The Grey River has an ancient history. It was the landing place for Maori canoes visiting its shores for greenstone. The name is very appropriate nowadays as the river is dark from the silt from the mines.
Greymouth is the town located at the mouth of the Grey River. Greymouth has a history of coal and gold mining. Shantytown (10kms south of Greymouth) have recreated the 19th Century pioneer town, inspired by the West Coast gold rushes of the 1860s. If you travel with children mark this as a place worth a visit.
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