Next Stop... Murchison

 My next stop was Murchison. I have always just stopped

for coffee and driven on  but now the NZMCA have

a park over property and because I had challenged

myself  on this trip north not to stay anywhere I had

stayed before... I decided this was my next stopping place...

I actually stayed four days and had a lovely time

exploring this historic town... In 2006 population 496!

 Looking further north... Turn left past the Mobil station

to find the NZMCA Park...

 It's a big area, this is half of it...

 I'm tucked into the corner enjoying the sun and not

smoking anybody away with smoke from my fire.

 I walked back to the main road, wandered south...

Looking for the cafe I had been to before.

 Murchison is recognised as the "Whitewater Capital"  of 

New Zealand, nearby rivers include the Gowan River, 

Mangles River Matiri River, Glenroy River, Matakitaki

River, Maruia River, and the Buller, with many excellent 

whitewater runs along their lengths. 

These rivers vary from Class 2 to 4 whitewater. 

Not what I wanted to do today but interesting to read about it all

 

 Past the Info centre and booking for 'Flames"... About an hours  

organised walk through private farmland in the Mangles 

Valley to see natural gas burning as it comes from the ground..

I didn't want to do that either... And I didn't want to

go on a helicopter ride or guided fishing trip...

Although all could be booked here.

 I was looking for some coffee... And came here

because I've been here before... A good reason or not?

 The next day I found Rivers Cafe.

This was more 'me'... More laid back, good coffee

and food, comfy couches, the newspaper and

books to read or exchange. The fire was going...I came 

here several times... Just as well I eventually moved  on!

 

 I visited the butcher as had read a rave review of it...

It was a real old fashioned, home kill and cure place...

And smelt really meaty...

 I tried the ham, the bacon and some pork belly

strips which I cut into pieces and made pork and

pineapple with some fresh pineapple I had... Yum!

 The butcher also had honey, a range of home made

soaps and body creams and chocolates.

 Round the town were these old plaques and

photos of the history of this town... The

old Hampden Hotel...

 The Commercial Hotel...

 And looking east...The 1914 fire destroyed this old

Downie's Hotel, Hodgsons Store and Moxey's Hall...

The district is steeped in history from the days of the gold 

miners and early settlers in the mid 1800's.

The gold rush in nearby Lyell was 1862...

There is a DoC camp there now, the cemetery

and an old stamping battery left to tell the old stories.

And the 1929 Murchison earthquake which occurred at 

10:17 a.m. on 17 June, with an estimated magnitude 

of 7.8, which was felt throughout New Zealand.

There were 17 casualties, mostly as a result of landslides  

triggered by the earthquake. The rumbling sound of the 

earthquake was loud enough to be 

heard at  New Plymouth, more than 250 km away.

There is an old museum that I spent  half a day in...

Absolutely full of all the fascinating old history.

 Today's hotels... Still old and interesting...

 And the road travelling north... Past the Tourist Information

Centre... A man who works as a volunteer in here was

also computer savvy and for a $20 donation fixed my

laptop for me... And on the other side of the road

the local dairy...

That sold the biggest 'single scoop' ice creams...