Skippers Canyon

A brief history

Skippers Canyon was formed by Glaciers approximately 25,000 years ago as loose gravel rock and gold ground its way down the valley. In this glacial process ton after ton of precious gold was deposited throughout the canyon. Over the years the mighty Shotover River Queenstown flowed from the Southern Alps and created what would be known as the richest gold bearing river in the world.

In 1862 two Maori Shepherd’s stumbled upon these riches when their sheep dog was washed downstream, upon finding the dog the Shepherd’s noticed gold on the ground were the dog was standing. That day the two picked up 25 pounds of the precious metal.

The gold rush was born.

Within two months there were over four thousand miners in the canyon.

Over the next century miners toiled in the harsh environment. Freezing cold winters, blistering hot summers and flash floods hampered the miners in their quest for gold. It took 22 years to carve out an access road using only black gunpowder and hand drills. This was considered to be an engineering miracle as the road is literally carved out of solid schist rock.

Various methods were used to mine for gold such as hard rock mining, dredging, hydraulic elevating and river diversion schemes.

The remnants of these schemes are still visible today with steel flumes, diversion channels and dredges lying alongside the riverbank. Some of these were greatly successful, some ended in failure.

Today, as 5th generation locals, we are proud to offer you the opportunity to see and appreciate the grandeur of Skippers Canyon and Jet boat the Shotover river through Skippers Canyon. This is a truly back country experience and with our exclusive access to the Sainsbury gold claim, the serenity and quiet is a far cry from city living. No one around, but mother nature!

Location

Skippers Canyon Jet is located in skippers canyon 22 kilometers from Queenstown New Zealand, access is by the famous Skippers Canyon road, a gravel road carved by hand by miners over 140 years ago.

Our specialized Queenstown 4WD vehicles offer an opportunity to visit one of Queenstown’s oldest and most unique areas, much of it still in the original condition since work began in the 1860’s.

We do not offer a self drive option for Skippers Canyon Jet.