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New Zealand is a jewel in the South Pacific, comprising large high islands, long isolated from the rest of the world and surrounded by vast stretches of ocean. Once covered in primeval forest, it is a land rich in biodiversity, and its geography is equally varied and stunning.
The country stretches more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km) from the sandy subtropical peninsula at the northern tip to the glacier-carved fjords of the far south. In between lie mighty snow-covered peaks, smoking volcanoes, vast lakes, dense forests, and fertile grasslands. Beaches, bays, and coves punctuate a convoluted, 9,400-mile (15,000 km) coastline.
With an area of about 104,000 square miles (270,000 square km), New Zealand is the same size as Colorado, or about 10 percent bigger than the United Kingdom. The South Island is slightly bigger than the North Island, which together make up the vast majority of the landmass, but significant smaller islands exist, most notably Stewart Island in the far south.
Lying on the boundary of the Australian and Pacific plates. New Zealand is geologically defined by the collision of these giant slabs of the Earth’s crust. It is a highly active region of earthquakes, volcanoes, and geothermal activity, part of the Pacific Ring of Fire.
In the north, the Pacific plate subducts, or pushes underneath, the Australian plate, which carries the North Island. The enormous friction of this collision is responsible for the volcanoes and thermal activity of the north. The Kermadec Trench to the east of the North Island marks the line where the plates meet, but around the center of the country the plates twist along multiple fault lines. In the South Island, the Australian plate pushes under the Pacific plate, forcing up the Southern Alps along the Alpine Fault, which runs the island’s length.
North Island
Less mountainous than the South island the North Island makes up for it with volcanic display. All of the country’s active volcanoes are found around the center of the North Island, from smoking White Island just off the east coast, through the geotherrnal regions around Rotorua, to the trio of volcanoes -To ngariro, Ngauruhoe, and Ruapehu – in the high alpine desert of the Central Plateau.
Near the volcanoes, smack in the middle of the island, mighty Lake Tajpo is the country’s largest lake and itself the product of a massive volcanic explosion. From the lake, the Waikato River, the country’s longest, surges north through fertile plains of rich volcanic soil. The farming heartland of the Waikato region is typical of the North Island, much of which is covered with green pasture dotted with sheep and cattle.
Past the Waikato lies the city of Auckland, home to a third of the country’s population, on a narrow isthmus that separates the Pacific Ocean and the Tasman Sea. The city sprawls for miles across old volcanic cones and is rent by harbors.
Northland, the region at the top of the North Island, is a long finger of land lashed by winds on the wild west coast, while the sheltered east coast has delightful coves and bays, such as the scenic Bay of Islands. Kauri forests once covered this area, but only a few small pockets of these massive conifers remain.
The east of the North Island extends from the attractive coastline of the Coromandel Peninsula along the Bay of Plenty, a sunny region noted for kiwifruit orchards, to the remote East Cape, a stronghold of Maori culture. Farther south, the east coast is backed by rugged forested mountains down to Hawke’s Bay, a farming district noted for its wineries.
Where the west coast juts out into the Tasman Sea stands towering Mount Taranaki, a dormant volcano. The most stunning mountain in the country, Taranaki’s sweeping white-tipped cone dominates the surrounding farmland for miles. Farther south along the west coast, the Wanganui District is named after New Zealand’s longest navigable river, which flows from the mountains of the interior. The island tapers at the bottom, terminating at the country’s capital, Wellington, which straddles fault lines that threaten earthquakes.
South Island
Scenic as the North Island is, nothing compares to the majestic landscapes of the South Island. The magnificent Southern Alps run the length of the island, flanking the highest peak of Aoraki/Mount Cook (12,316 feet/3,754 m) in the middle. They have another 18 peaks over 10,000 feet (3,048 m) permanently draped in snow and glacial ice, while most of the range is snow-covered in winter.
In the far south of the island around Fiordland, the alps are lower but no less awe-inspiring. In this region, ancient glaciers gouged out deep fjords as well as great inland lakes such as Te Anau and Manapouri. Much-visited Mi ford Sound is the most famous of the fjords, where sheer peaks rise from glassy waters, while low clouds threaten to drench the primeval forest.
The Southern Alps trap the rains brought by the prevailing westerlies, making the West Coast of the South Island the wettest part of New Zealand. The rain feeds a tangle of dense growth on the narrow strip of land between sea and mighty peaks, while up high, compacting snow creates the Fox and Franz Josef glaciers. These rivers of ice flow almost to the sea and are among the world’s most accessible glaciers.
In complete contrast, the leeward side of the mountains is dry. Desert landscapes of craggy rock and scree are punctuated by turquoise, glacier-fed lakes. High plains of tussock grass give way to greenery lower down, but this beautiful world in the shadow of mountains is a harsh environment of freezing winters and baking summers.
Away from the alps, the east coast has lolling pasture around Southland, while ihc spreading Canterbury Plains around Christchurch are prime farming land. Smaller ranges and hills include the weathered volcanoes of the scenic Banks Peninsula, while in the north, the dramatic Kaikoura Ranges run next to the sea.
The far north of the island presents yet another face. Sheltered by forested mountains, Nelson and Marlborough are warm and sunny, the valleys and coastal land home to orchards iind wineries. The seas are also sheltered, nowhere more so than in the stunning Marlborough Sounds, with sun-speckled waterways and forested islands just a ferry ride away from the North Island.
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