Flock Hill

Our family loves the place. It’s conveniently placed right beside State Highway 73 so it’s easy to get to and it’s got easy access for glider trailers. The Station boasts a backpackers lodge, motel units and a restaurant. Large, nearly flat paddocks running down towards Lake Pearson have provided variable temporary airstrips over the years. The paddock the gliding club now uses is at the base of Purple Hill and, while it has undulations, it has a smooth surface and reasonable approaches for a mountain strip.

The Canterbury Gliding Club has been having an away camp on Labour Weekend for forever. And for long enough now that no one can remember quite how long it has been, the camps have been at Flock Hill. Flock Hill is a high country station between Porters Pass and Arthurs Pass. Famous world-wide in recent years as the setting for filming of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, it has been a favoured gliding site for much longer.

By Jill McCaw

Launching straight into the mountains has pros and cons. It can be pretty scary at times. In the pre-trip briefings it is emphasised that this is an extremely hostile environment with wind shear and turbulence affecting the strip and the surrounding hills. It can also be brilliant for gliding. Launching straight into ridge lift it is often very easy to transition into wave. Over the years some fantastic flights have been done from Flock Hill and even just local flights onto the nearby ridges are scenic and spectacular.

There are other activities available at Flock Hill which makes it an ideal camp for families. Lake Pearson is just down the road for paddling and rare bird watching. The native grebe nests on this lake, literally. It builds floating nests in the reeds. Hence the power boat prohibition on the lake. The Craigieburn Forest Park and Arthurs Pass are close with walks of various grades. It has

Photo Jill McCaw

BA over the Waimakariri

Above Right One of the waterfalls within an easy walk.

become traditional for family members and even some glider pilots to undertake a reasonably challenging day tramp during the camp. On the farm itself there are waterfalls and streams, plus mountains with scree slopes that enterprising young people seem to delight in climbing. A short drive and a walk across a stream can take you into the famous stone “flock”, a fantastic landscape of limestone sculptures where the movie was filmed. Somehow I’ve never actually managed to do this although I’ve intended to make a day of it for years.

Flock Hill camp has come to mean a great weekend away. The Saturday night has traditionally been a communal meal, either pot luck or a barbeque. For a lot of years a raucous quiz was semi-organised for the evening’s entertainment. Sadly, or not, this seems to have fallen by the wayside in recent years. The Sunday evening meal is held in the restaurant, giving the ever-patient wives and girlfriends a break and no doubt being part of the reason the lodge is so keen on us coming back every year. Over the years various rugby games have necessitated trips to the Sky TV service at the Bealey Pub, but otherwise Flock Hill’s isolation and lack of cell phone coverage are generally much appreciated. This year we had visitors from Nelson Lakes and Alexandra, but generally we like to keep it quiet. However, if you did happen to be passing next Labour weekend you’d find a very hospitable bunch of people and some excellent soaring.

Photo Oliver Winkler