Country Article / Postcards

There's a New Gold Rush in Town

Date: 08/16/2007

The gold rush hit town in the 1860s and 70s. Irish, Australian, and Chinese prospectors sought their fortunes by sifting through the sands of the Arrow and Shotover rivers. Eventually all the gold left town. After a while, so, too, did the people. This part of New Zealand, deep in the far south, went quite.Arrowtown became a ghost-town but featured on country calendars for its poplars clad in fall colors. Queenstown and Frankton, on mountain-surrounded Lake Wakatipu, became camping and tramping sites and bases for hill country sheep properties. Cromwell earned a reputation for stone fruits and extremes of weather--hot, dry summers and harsh winters blown by chilly, Antarctic winds.But now New Zealand is experiencing another "rush"; real estate and wine. Thanks to American, European, and New Zealand investors, where once you found sleepy villages, now bed and breakfasts, apart-hotels, bars, shops, and golf courses have sprung up. Rumor has it that one private golf course hopes to host the World Pro Cup in 2008.The schist region in the far south has become the pivot point for development. Building codes impose a harmony that must reflect the grey/beige tones and where possible incorporate the actual granite stone slabs, recalling the first cottages built in the area 165 years ago.This land is also playing host to new vineyards; acres and acres of carefully tended vines spread across north-facing hills. The vines reflect and retain the sun on the long, hot summer days, then go dormant in the frost- and snow-chilled winter months. Twenty years after the first plantings of the (predominantly) pinot noir grapes, Central Otago's wines are making an important name for themselves within the world's best wines.There are many activities in the district such as golfing, trout and salmon fishing, hiking, trekking, and para-gliding. Or take in a wine trail, where you visit four or five vineyards--spend the day sipping wines and tasting local cheese or other regional delicacies. I recommend the venison or wild rabbit sausages.Hilary Roots.For International LivingEditor's note: We're leading a small group of modern "prospectors" to New Zealand, March 5, 2008, for our Live and Prosper in New Zealand Seminar. We'll release full details soon, but for advance notice and special discounts, contact events@internationalliving.com.