Day trip to St Bathans

St Bathans originally named Dunstan Creek, the town underwent a name change when surveyor John Turnbull Thomson documented the fledgling settlement with the name for the Scottish parish of Abbey St Bathans. In the 1860’s the town’s inhabitants were over 2000. The gold stampede started in May 1861 with an gold find in Gabriel’s Gully several thousand miners in a matter of months. Currently there are six permanent residents. An iconic pub is your first stop.

St. Alban the Martyr church was built in 1883 during the booming gold rush. The unique building is a pioneer in prefabrication being shipped in parts from England by a prominent land runholder. There is a lack of timber (trees) in the alpine regions, largely tussock grasses hence the use of corrugated iron. “Through its association with nearby Hawkdun Station, station owner and founder of stock and station agency Dalgety and Co., Frederick Dalgety, and manager William Burnett the Church demonstrates the historically important role of the runholder and stock agent to the wider community in such isolated districts in the nineteenth century. The prefabricated structures were an expression of the development of engineering technologies, and St Alban’s is a typical example of what is now an increasingly rare building type.” Source Heritage NZ.

You’ve completed your exploration of the town, enjoyed a pub lunch now it’s time to get the walking shoes on. The Blue Lake is an extraordinary lunar landscape deserving further exploration. It’s origins lie in the gold mining era with miners sluicing and dredging for gold. The sharp blue colour of the water contrasting with the stripped bare white cliffs is spectacular creating a favourite spot for photographers year round.

Pre-European Maori were familiar with the area as it was a passageway to the ponumena mines on the West Coast. At this period the terrain was largely tussock. Due to the fragile nature of the site cyclists are not allowed around the lake, For more information about Blue Lake facilities check DOC, Blue Lake walks.

DETOUR FALLS DAM

The glorious scenery makes the detour to the Falls Dam an activity in itself. The Falls Dam is the story of water management, the allocation of a valuable resource, water and the contentious issue of water supply. Falls Dam is situated on Loop Road 10km east of St Bathans. The power house was constructed in 1935 and generates 1,250 kW of electricity. When you are driving Loop Road look out for the sign Fiddlers Flat Road which lead into the Dam wall. The dam is photogenic with the backdrop of the snow tipped Hawkdun Mountains.

• In 1873 when John Ewing formed the St.Bathans Channel Company to mine the Kildare Hill Gold Claim in St Bathans. His company constructed a tailings channel and introduced hydraulic elevating to work the claim. The site became the site of the deepest hydraulic elevating operation in the world. The Kildare Hill Claim faltered and eventually the site was managed by the Scandinavian Water Race Company in that year. The claim was abandoned in 1932 due financial hardship. Additionally there was pressure to close the claim with concerns that St Bathans would be undermined due to excessive mining practices. Runoff from the surrounding hills filled the quarry site creating the Blue Lake.

• Oteake Conservation Park is St Bathans backyard. In summer trekkers traverse the mountain ranges to Omarama on horseback, by mountain bike or in four wheel drives.
• Town public toilets are opposite the pub.
• Town water supply requires boiling first. A 19th century Scandinavian open water race passing through farmland makes contamination an ongoing issue.
• Wildlife enthusiasts might be disconcerted by the wild pigs casually visible in the back of trucks. Hunting for game is a regular pastime. The karearea (New Zealand falcon) wheel about hunting for rabbits, skinks and geckos. A hot spot for falcon spotting is the Blue Lake