When the four ships carrying Christchurch's first immigrants arrived at
Lyttelton in 1850, the planned road over Evans
Pass to Christchurch was still not ready. A
steeper bridle track had been cut across
the Port Hills to Heathcote, so the early
migrants made the trip on foot and
dispersed across the plains to be joined later
by immigrants from Australia. It was these early pioneering settlers who established
the vast sheep runs that were to become
the economic base for the region. Christchurch started out as a
market town supplying the sheep stations and later the small farms that
spread across the region, but the city grew with the success of these pioneering families and soon boasted magnificent civic
buildings and mansions that reflected
the genteel aspirations and wealth of
the Canterbury landowners.
1INTERNATIONAL ANTARCTIC
CENTRE
The trip starts at the Christchurch International Airport.
The award-winning
International Antarctic Centre has outstanding displays including a fantastic snow and ice experience in the indoor polar room, chilled to -5 degrees Celsius, where you can slide down an icy slope, shelter in an ice cave and brave the wind chill machine at -18 degrees Celsius. If you are feeling brave, the 40 km/hr winds of the Antarctic Storm complete with lighting and audio effects can be experienced every 30 minutes. There is a replica
of the present Scott Base and the Antarctic Aquarium displays some of the actual specimens from the Antarctic ocean floor in McMurdo Sound. The New Zealand Penguin Encounter features indoor and outdoor penguin viewing areas providing a rare opportunity to see the normally nocturnal, Little Blue penguins. Most of the penguins were rescued from the wild and some have been cared for since they were chicks. Another really unique experience you can enjoy at the centre is an exciting ride on board an authentic Hagglund all terrain vehicle. This amphibious tracked vehicle will take you across a rough terrain course similar to what the scientists operating the Hagglund have to negotiate when crossing the icepack.
Spitfire Mk XV1E at the RNZAF Museum.
2THE AIRFORCE MUSEUM
Drive southeast on Memorial Drive 0.5 km and take the third exit from the roundabout onto Russley Road, drive 3.4 km and continue on Masham Road, continuing 2 km on Carmen Road. Turn left at Main South Road and drive 1.6 km, turn right onto Springs Road, drive 0.3 km, turn right onto Corsair Road and drive 0.5 km to the Airforce Museum.
The Royal New Zealand Airforce was
established at Wigram in 1923. This former airforce base is now the home of the Airforce Museum, featuring a world-class uv-lit display area with life-like figures being used to enhance displays of a collection of immaculate classic
aircraft. There are 12 aircraft featured inside the main hall including a Second World War MK XVIE Spitfire from No. 485 Squadron RNZAF in Germany under camouflage netting, an original SBD Dauntless used against the Japanese by No. 25 Squadron in the Pacific, a restored TBF-1C Grumman
Avenger and a Lockheed Hudson on display with its bomb doors open. There are also a number of post war jets including an English Electric Canberra used by the RNZAF in Malaya, a beautifully restored wooden Vampire jet used by the RNZAF in Cyprus and a McDonnell Douglas A4
Skyhawk which was operated by the RNZAF from 1969 until the late 1990s. Visitors can also take a look at the current projects in the restoration hangar. The museum is open daily.
Christchurch at Sunset from the Port Hills Road.
3THE PORT HILLS
Rerturn along Corsair Drive and turn right into Harvard Ave drive 0.7 km and turn right at Main South Road drive 0.7 km. Turn right onto Curletts Road and drive 1.2 km onto the Christchurch Southern Motorway. Continue 2.6 km and turn right onto Barrington Street, continue 2.8 km and take the first exit from the roundabout onto Cashmere Road. Continue 0.5 km and take the third exit from the roundabout onto Dyers Pass Road. Drive 5.7 km up Dyers Pass Road and turn left onto Summit Road. There are numerous viewpoints but there is a particularly good vantage point 7.2 km along the Summit Road.
A number of walks are signposted on this
road. The Crater Rim Walkway leads through
the Mount Cavendish Scenic Reserve. You
can spend a few minutes on the track, or
explore further into the reserve, from any one
of a number of points along the road. The Bridle Path Track, tracing the route the
first immigrants took from Lyttelton, also
starts from Summit Road. However, the
scenic drive along the top of the Port Hills is
still probably the best way to take in the
views from this long ridgeline high above the
city.
4cob cottage
Continue south on Summit Road 3.5 km and turn left onto Mount Pleasant Road, continue 4.7 km and turn left onto Main Road. Drive west 0.6 km to the cob cottage on the right side of the road.
This cottage was originally built by Captain James Penfold who was born in England in 1832 and at the age of 12 was trained on Nelson’s former flagship, the Victory, in Portsmith Harbour. By the age of 15 he was at sea, sailing to Australia where he later brought a ship he named the Excelsior. Trading across the Tasman between Australian and New Zealand ports, Penfold accepted a contract in 1861 to deliver hardwood sleepers from Melbourne to the port at Ferrymead on the Heathcote River in the new settlement at Christchurch. The Excelsior was wrecked on the Sumner bar and Penfold later used material salvaged from the ship to build a small cottage in 1862. Penfolds eight children were all raised in the home which had a living room and a kitchen on the ground floor and another two rooms in the attic. Originally located near the old steam wharf, the building was restored in 1944 and moved to near the Ferrymead Bridge where it was later refurbished with authentic nineteeth-century
furnishings and artefacts.
Ride one of the restored trams at Ferrymead.
5FERRYMEAD HISTORIC PARK
Continue 1 km along Main Road and turn left onto Ferymead Terrace. Drive 0.4 km and continue 1 km on Bridle Path Road to the Ferrymead Historic Park on the right.
Based around a collection of some sixty
nineteeth-century buildings, the park houses
a huge array of relics and vintage transport.
This is a 'working' museum run by volunteers and includes
a number of operating trams, railcars and steam trains. The ride in authentic carriages dating back to 1901 and towed by steam train along part of the original railway
line linking Ferrymead with Christchurch,
takes you to a recreated 1910 township with
a printing works and bakery in operation. You
can ride an electric tram down the long main
street which includes livery stables, a gaol
and a blacksmith's forge.
6CHRISTCHURCH GONDOLA
Continue south on Bridle Path Road 2.4 km to the Christchurch Gondola on the left.
In the pioneering days the Bridle Path
Road was part of the main route to Christchurch and the Canterbury plains. From
Lyttelton Harbour the early settlers walked
across the Port Hills on the old bridle path to
Heathcote where a ferry crossed the Heathcote River. It was here in 1863 that New
Zealand's first public railway was opened,
linking Christchurch with the river port at
Ferrymead using a steam locomotive operating on a 6.5 km section of line. Today the
Lyttelton Tunnel enters the Port Hills at
Heathcote. The first tunnel was built in 1867
to carry the railway, followed almost a
century later by a road tunnel between
Lyttelton and Heathcote.