The Kura Tawhiti Conservation Area is just off the highway on the way to Arthur's Pass from Christchurch on New Zealand's South Island. The square mileage of New Zealand is about 25% greater than that of our state of Kansas. Yet, New Zealand offers jungles, deserts, orchards, vast wheatfields, volcanoes, glaciers, fjords, alpine skiing, black sand beaches, white sand beaches and just about any earthly environment that you can imagine in a relatively small amount of space. The two main islands are stretched along a north/south axis. From top to bottom the distance is about the same as between Kansas City and Los Angeles.
Kura Tawhiti literally means "the treasure from a distant land" in the language of the Ngāi Tahu, the principal Maori tribe of the South Island. The "treasure" refers to the Kumara, a version of the sweet potato which was plentiful in this area. However, currently the "treasure" seems to refer to the awe-inspiring scenery. The other-worldliness of the rock outcroppings attracts rock climbers from afar as well as movie makers. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) was filmed here. As a result of thirty million years of geologic uplift, faulting and erosion, nature has carved a cluster of mystical limestone sculptures and beautifully arranged them within the park. If God is nature and nature is God, this place is holy and not just for the Maori people. It should be treated with respect by all. The rock formations are an easy one-mile walk from the parking lot.
We inhabit an amazing world. Take a walk with Birkenstock.
