Arthur's Pass National Park
| Arthur's Pass National Park | |||
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| Location: | West Coast , Canterbury , New Zealand | ||
| Specialty: | home to the northernmost glaciers in New Zealand | ||
| Surface: | 1145 km² | ||
| Founding: | July 1929 | ||
| Address: | Arthur's Pass Visitor Center P.O. Box 8 Arthur’s Pass Tel. 64 3 318 9211 |
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Founded in 1929, Arthur's Pass National Park is a national park in the north-central part of New Zealand's South Island . It covers an area of 1145 km² in the New Zealand Alps (Southern Alps) . The altitude reaches up to ~ 2400 m . The park is located on the historic route from Canterbury to the west coast and is now crossed by State Highway 73 , which leads over the 920 m high Arthur's Pass , which gives it its name.
The landscape of the park is characterized by high mountains , mountain rivers and deep gorges. It clearly shows the traces that the huge glaciers left in it during the last ice age. There are very different habitats on both sides of the main ridge of the New Zealand Alps. While the forests on the east side consist almost exclusively of beeches , there is mixed forest on the west side . There is alpine vegetation above the tree line . The New Zealand Alps form a climate limit in the park: while in Otira on the west side of the mountains around 5000 mm of precipitation fall per year, in Bealey on the east side it is "only" around 1500 mm (for comparison: in Berlin it is around 550 mm per year Year). The precipitation falls mainly as snow between June and September, although it can snow all year round in the higher elevations. The most famous species in Arthur's Pass National Park is the kea , a species of parrot found only in New Zealand . New Zealand's only pure mountain bird, the rock slip (Xenicus gilviventris) occurs in the park.
The first stop for visitors to the park is usually Arthur's Pass Village , which can also be reached by public transport. The village is the starting point for several hiking trails. Several simple huts are available in Arthur's Pass National Park for multi-day hikes through the mountains. In addition, the park with its 16 two-thousanders is a traditional destination for mountaineers.