6. The Roxburgh Gorge
The next morning, drifting down onto the Roxburgh reservoir, there was still an appreciable current. We were at once isolated among towering canyon walls, sun-parched and barren. Wild thyme smothered the rock-tumbled faces.
Drifting down "Lake" Roxburgh.
Rock outcrops.
Stopping, we explored the fascinating remnants of numerous stone cottages and cave-dwellings alongside the historic gold-trail. Thousands of gold-seekers had once pitted themselves against this extreme landscape. After decades of hardship, and the loss of hundreds of lives, a staggering 70 tonnes of the imperishable metal had, ultimately, been won from the river of gold.
Remnants of a stacked-stone miner's cottage.
A rock shelter.
The reservoir gradually broadened, still dwarfed by the bluffs. Prior to the filling of the reservoir in 1956, the deep Roxburgh Gorge had been home to the largest rapids in New Zealand. We set up a square-rigged sail using the spare oar, a paddle, a tarpaulin and ropes. The wind, at first in our favour, now turned suddenly as a southerly swept up the reservoir. Dropping the sail, we hugged the lee-water near the gorge walls, rowing and paddling against the weather. By mid-afternoon it was raining.
On a sheltered rock ledge, we paused to eat and boil the billy. Driftwood now jammed every crevice and inlet, together with plastic containers and debris from the Clyde dam project such as tunnel wedges and detonator cord. Even more disconcerting were the spreading beds of noxious Lagarosiphon and evidence that this hydro-lake was silting up.
Evening found us preparing a hot meal in a large bivouac beside a rock-face.
Roxburgh camp in the rain.
The rain continued until midnight. Waking to a clear dawn, we found the reservoir had risen half a metre. The dam was now within sight, and we were soon lowering the raft over a rock bluff into the river below, thanks to local help.
Roxburgh Dam.
Re-entering the river below the dam.
Before Roxburgh, we passed the wreck of a gold-dredge midstream – its steel tailing boom extending over the swift water.
Gold-dredge wreck.
Passing old Roxburgh bridge pier.
The riverbanks were now lined with orchards, interspersed the rocky outcrops, in this very productive and scenic region.
Looking downriver from the Roxburgh Bridge.
