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| Arrowtown's
environment has been shaped over millions of years with both
extremes of heat and cold forming the landscape and geology
of the Wakatipu Basin. The rock most common in the area, is Schist. It lies beneath Arrowtown and surrounding hillsides and was used in construction by early settlers. Formed by a process called metamorphism, layers of 250 million year old volcanic rock and sedimentary material combine with pressures of up to |
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| 4-5000 times normal atmospheric pressure and temperatures of up to 400°C. | An early Arrowtown store and bank contructed from Schist remains in the Chinese Village | |||
| The end product is Schist with interspersed layers of quartz, seams of gold, and copper. | ||||
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The Crown Terrace view point is a good place to see the evidence of the glacial action which carved the Wakatipu basin, which over time saw several periods of ice advance and retreat. This ice began to melt 14,000 years ago. Slowly, the plant species colonized the area. Mãori explorers had traveled through the Wakatipu basin for about a thousand years prior to the Goldrush. |
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| Wakatipu basin from the Crown Terrace lookout point | Finds of Pounamu (Jade) workings at Lake | |||
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Hayes,
Moa Hunting at Arrow Junction and artifacts near
Gibbston and near Macetown trace the steps of these early
traveling groups. |
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| A NZ native nectar eating Tui frequents an Arrowtown garden. | ||||
| Although
the Moa had become extinct through hunting in pre European times,
many other native birds including the Laughing Owl have become
extinct in the last 100 - 200 years. Rabbits were introduced
in Southland in 1867 and within about fifteen years had bred
to plague proportions, and spread throughout the South Island,
eating the pastures and starving the farmed sheep. Farmers were
forced to drastic measures, some going bankrupt and leaving
their farms. The 1880's introduction of Stoats, Weasels and
Ferrets was intended to control the rabbit numbers, however,
native birds were easier prey. Plants like Blackberries and
Briar Rose were introduced by early settlers as a good source
of Vitamin C, and was a useful hedge plant, however in New Zealand,
these also spread out of control and became weeds covering large
areas. Today, the hillside around Arrowtown is covered in mainly
exotic or introduced trees and shrubs, many turning the hillside
the flame reds and yellows in the autumn for which Arrowtown
is famed for, native song birds, such as the Bell bird and Tui
are heard in the trees and gardens in town, and many of the
original schist rock buildings remain and are still in use. |
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From Arrowtown By Julia Bradshaw, available at the Lakes District Museum bookshop Arrowtown |
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 Visit
the Lakes District Museum in Arrowtown |
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