Castle Hill Kura Tawhiti

Kura Tawhiti is a scatter of limestone tors standing out of tussock in a basin surrounded by mountains - rock laid down as sea floor about thirty million years ago, lifted and then sculpted by rain into rounded, fluted, hollowed shapes that look nothing like the surrounding schist. It is a wahi tapu of Ngai Tahu, historically a place where kumara was stored and where rock drawings survive; the reserve is co-managed and there are specific areas closed to climbers to protect drawings and to respect the site. Bouldering here is internationally known and the crags carry names climbers arrive knowing, but the closures are real and marked. For everyone else it is a twenty-minute walk from the car park up into the boulders and as long as you want wandering among them. The basin sits at about seven hundred metres and the weather turns quickly.

What you actually see

• The limestone tors - fluted and hollowed, out of tussock.
• The mountain basin - the Torlesse and Craigieburn ranges around it.
• The bouldering - internationally known, with marked closures.
• The cultural site - wahi tapu, with rock drawings under protection.

When to go

October to April. Early or late light shows the rock shapes best. Snow lies here in winter and the highway can close.

Honest expectations

It is a wahi tapu and parts are closed to climbing - the restrictions are signposted and should be followed. There are no facilities beyond a toilet. Weather at seven hundred metres changes fast and the basin is exposed.

Nearby

Cave Stream is a few minutes west; Arthur's Pass is further up SH73.