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Sharplin Falls

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Sharplin Falls
Tāhekura (Māori)
Sharplin Falls
Map
LocationStaveley, New Zealand
Coordinates43°37′30.5″S 171°24′33.4″E / 43.625139°S 171.409278°E / -43.625139; 171.409278
TypeCascade
Elevation560 m (1,840 ft)
WatercourseBowyers Stream
Sharplin Falls Track
Length1.3 km (0.81 mi)
LocationStaveley, New Zealand
TrailheadsFlynns Road
Elevation change88 m (289 ft)[1]
Difficultyeasy
Sightsnative forest
Surfacegravel path

Sharplin Falls (Māori: Tāhekura) is a waterfall on Bowyers Stream in the Staveley district of mid-Canterbury in the South Island of New Zealand. The waterfall is located within a scenic reserve, and there is a popular walking track to a viewing platform. Sharplin Falls is located in a deep gully beneath the fault scarp that separates Mount Somers / Te Kiekie from Mount Winterslow, near the small settlement of Staveley.[2] The falls and 1.3-kilometre-long (0.81 mi) access track are located within the 247 ha (610 acres) Sharplin Falls Scenic Reserve.[3] The track to the falls passes through mixed beech forest that provides habitat for endemic birds including fantail (piwakawaka), bellbird (korimako), tomtit (miromiro), and kererū (the New Zealand pigeon).[1] The forest includes Metrosideros umbellata (southern rātā), a species that has limited distribution in Canterbury.[4]

History

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Establishment of the reserve

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In the 1890, Henry Havelock Sharplin established a timber mill at Staveley, employing around 50 men.[5] He owned around 650 ha (1,600 acres) in the area.[6] In 1908, Sharplin proposed that the Government should make an exchange of land with him, so that the area around the Sharplin Falls could become a scenic reserve.[7] The Commissioner of Crown Lands in Canterbury visited Sharplin Falls in November 1908 to assess the proposal.[8][9] The site was already a popular location for picnics at that time.[10] An exchange of land was agreed by 1910, and an area was designated as the Sharplin Falls Scenic Reserve, with the land initially protected under the Scenery Preservation Act 1903.[11][12]

Road access

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In 1925, newspapers reported that the Sharplin Falls were not visited frequently because of the difficulty of access.[13] Motorists wanted to access the reserve but there were no roads into the area.[14] In 1927, the Mt Somers Road Board declined to fund a new access road, despite consent already having been obtained from Government for a road through the reserve.[15] Lack of road access to the Sharplin Falls remained a concern for the local community, and in February 1936, the Advance Staveley Association was formed to promote improved access.[16] The Ashburton County Council agreed in April 1936 to survey and legalise the track into the Sharplin Falls as a step towards providing road access.[17] A road survey was completed by July 1937.[18]

In March 1941, severe flooding throughout the Ashburton District caused extensive damage, and the road to the Sharplin Falls was washed away.[19]

Control of the reserve

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In 1939, control of the Sharplin Falls Scenic Reserve (area 223 ha (552 acres)), was vested by Government in the County Council for a period of five years.[20] This arrangement was renewed in 1944,[21] and again in 1950.[22]

In 1987, the reserve came under the control of the newly-formed Department of Conservation. An existing swing bridge was replaced with a steel truss bridge in 1992. To improve access and safety, in 1990, a gantry walkway was built around a rocky bluff.[5]

Closure of the track (2015)

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The track to Sharplin Falls suffered damage in the 2010 Canterbury earthquake, with slips taking out 10 m (33 ft) of the route.[23] The track was closed in February 2015 after a rockfall took out a part of the track built as a gantry along a rock face.[24] Two years later, the Department of Conservation announced that the closure of the track to Sharplin Falls would be permanent.[25]

Construction of a new track

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There was considerable demand for the re-opening of a track to the falls, and the Mt Somers Walkways Society eventually obtained environmental consents for the construction of a new track. A route for the new track was chosen mostly along the true right of Bowyers Stream, to avoid the problems with rock fall that had affected the previous track.[26] After five years of fundraising and 3,500 hours of volunteer labour,[27] a new 1.3 km (0.81 mi) track was built. The route required two new steel truss footbridges, walkways and a viewing platform.[5] The new track was opened by the Mt Somers Walkways Society in June 2023, and they will manage on-going maintenance.[28][29]

Access

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The road access to the Sharplin Falls Scenic Reserve is via Flynns Road, off the Inland Scenic Route 72 at Staveley. The Sharplin Falls car park at the road end has toilets and an information panel.[30]

References

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  1. ^ a b "8 short waterfall tracks in Canterbury, New Zealand". Kor Adventures. 25 January 2021. Retrieved 8 June 2025.
  2. ^ "Will the real Sharplin Falls please stand up?". The Press. 23 October 1984. p. 13 – via Papers Past.
  3. ^ "Protected Areas dataset: Sharplin Falls Scenic Reserve". Land Information New Zealand. Retrieved 8 June 2025.
  4. ^ Glenny, David (1989). "Vascular plant records of Mt Hutt ecological district" (PDF). Retrieved 9 June 2025 – via New Zealand Plant Conservation Network.
  5. ^ a b c "Sharplin Falls Track" (PDF). The Nor'wester News. 69. October 2022.
  6. ^ "From forest to sawmilling to protected bush" (PDF). Staveley Camp. 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2025.
  7. ^ "The Sharplin Falls". Ashburton Guardian. Vol. XXIX, no. 7437. 16 March 1908. p. 2 – via Papers Past.
  8. ^ "The Sharplin Falls". The Press. Vol. LXIV, no. 13266. 6 November 1908. p. 5 – via Papers Past.
  9. ^ "A new beauty spot". The Press. Vol. LXIV, no. 13265. 5 November 1908. p. 4 – via Papers Past.
  10. ^ "Sharplin Falls – a place of beauty". Ashburton Guardian. Vol. XXIX, no. 7644. 14 November 1908. p. 2 – via Papers Past.
  11. ^ "Scenery Preservation". Evening Star. No. 14420. 16 July 1910. p. 5 – via Papers Past.
  12. ^ "More beauty spots". The New Zealand Herald. Vol. XLVIII, no. 14761. 17 August 1911. p. 8 – via Papers Past.
  13. ^ "Wild beauties – Mountain, forest and stream". The Press. Vol. LXI, no. 18520. 23 October 1925. p. 10 – via Papers Past.
  14. ^ "Scenic reserve – Sharplin Falls area". Ashburton Guardian. Vol. XLVII, no. 10746. 18 October 1926. p. 4 – via Papers Past.
  15. ^ "Local and General". Ashburton Guardian. Vol. XLVIII, no. 10987. 6 August 1927. p. 4 – via Papers Past.
  16. ^ "Mid-Canterbury". The Press. Vol. LXXII, no. 21711. 19 February 1936. p. 3 – via Papers Past.
  17. ^ "Local and General". Ashburton Guardian. Vol. 56, no. 148. 4 April 1936. p. 4 – via Papers Past.
  18. ^ "County Affairs – Work on roads and bridges". Ashburton Guardian. Vol. 57, no. 223. 2 July 1937 – via Papers Past.
  19. ^ "Floods recede". Ashburton Guardian. Vol. 61, no. 135. 20 March 1941. p. 6 – via Papers Past.
  20. ^ "Local and General". Ashburton Guardian. Vol. 60, no. 39. 25 November 1939 – via Papers Past.
  21. ^ "Local and General". Ashburton Guardian. Vol. 65, no. 47. 5 December 1944. p. 2 – via Papers Past.
  22. ^ "Local and General". Ashburton Guardian. Vol. 70, no. 131. 18 March 1950. p. 4 – via Papers Past.
  23. ^ van Beynen, Martin (14 September 2010). "Landslide closes hill path". The Press. pp. A.9. ProQuest 750959471.
  24. ^ Cavanagh, Liam (13 February 2017). "Sharplin Falls Track closes; Mainland view: Mt Somers". The Press. pp. A.8. ProQuest 1867365304.
  25. ^ Cavanagh, Liam (12 February 2017). "Sharplin Falls Track to be shut permanently following rockfall, DOC says". Stuff. Archived from the original on 27 July 2020. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  26. ^ "Construction underway for new track at Sharplin Falls". Wilderness Magazine. 20 April 2023. Retrieved 8 June 2025.
  27. ^ Peneycad, John (2 July 2023). "Sharplin Falls track opens". Star News. Archived from the original on 11 July 2023. Retrieved 20 May 2025 – via Otago Daily Times.
  28. ^ Leask, Jonathan (30 January 2023). "Big step forward for Sharplin Falls track". Ashburton Guardian. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  29. ^ "Sharplin Falls walkway opened". Ashburton Guardian. 23 June 2023. Archived from the original on 18 January 2025. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  30. ^ "Walks in the Mount Somers area" (PDF). Department of Conservation. January 2023.
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