The Cust River is a river in the

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

region of New Zealand. It flows east across the upper

Canterbury Plains The Canterbury Plains () are an area in New Zealand centred in the Mid Canterbury, to the south of the city of Christchurch in the Canterbury region. Their northern extremes are at the foot of the Hundalee Hills in the Hurunui District, and in ...

from its source north of the town of

Oxford, New Zealand Oxford is a small town serving the farming community of North Canterbury, New Zealand. It is part of the Waimakariri District and is a linear town, approximately long. Originally, it was served by the Oxford Branch railway, and had two station ...

, flowing into the

Cam River / Ruataniwha The Cam River / Ruataniwha is a small river in Canterbury in the South Island of New Zealand. It is a tributary of the Kaiapoi River, itself a tributary of the Waimakariri River. The Cam / Ruataniwha rises just to the east of the town of Rangi ...

close to the town of

Rangiora Rangiora is the largest town and seat of the Waimakariri District, in Canterbury, New Zealand. It is north of Christchurch, and is part of the Christchurch metropolitan area. With an estimated population of Rangiora is the 30th largest urba ...

. The small town of Cust lies on the banks of the river. The lower part of the river, to the south-west of Rangiora, is diverted into a channel and called the "Main Drain". The channel was built in 1862 to drain the swampy land between Rangiora and the

Waimakariri River The Waimakariri River is one of the largest rivers in Canterbury, on the eastern coast of New Zealand's South Island. It flows for in a generally southeastward direction from the Southern Alps across the Canterbury Plains to the Pacific Ocean. ...

, and when it was enlarged in 1868 it accidentally captured the Cust. The river was named in 1849 after Sir Edward Cust, a member of the

Canterbury Association The Canterbury Association was formed in 1848 in England by members of parliament, peers, and Anglican church leaders, to establish a colony in New Zealand. The settlement was to be called Canterbury, with its capital to be known as Christchur ...

Brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morp ...

spawn in the river and are suitable for fishing in spring.

References

Land Information New Zealand
- Search for Place Names Rivers of Canterbury, New Zealand Waimakariri District Rivers of New Zealand {{CanterburyNZ-river-stub

See also

References