Danseys Pass (often incorrectly referred to as ''Dansey's Pass'' or ''Dansey Pass'') (el. 935 m.) is a mountain pass located in the

Kakanui Range The Kakanui Range is a range of high hills located inland from Oamaru in the South Island of New Zealand. The range forms a boundary between the valley of the Waitaki River to the north and the high plateau known as the Maniototo and the upper wa ...

in the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasma ...

of New Zealand. The pass itself is located at the boundary of the

Waitaki Waitaki District is a territorial authority district that is located in the Canterbury and Otago regions of the South Island of New Zealand. It straddles the traditional border between the two regions, the Waitaki River, and its seat is Oamaru. ...

and the

Central Otago Central Otago is located in the inland part of the Otago region in the South Island of New Zealand. The motto for the area is "A World of Difference". The area is dominated by mountain ranges and the upper reaches of the Clutha River and trib ...

districts. In this location, it is also the boundary between 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 ...

and

Otago Otago (, ; mi, Ōtākou ) is a region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local government reg ...

regions. The road lies between the

Maniototo The Maniototo Plain, usually simply known as The Maniototo, is an elevated inland region in Otago, New Zealand. The region roughly surrounds the upper reaches of the Taieri River and the Manuherikia River. It is bounded by the Kakanui Range to t ...

plain (part of the

Taieri River The Taieri River is the fourth-longest river in New Zealand and is in Otago in the South Island. Rising in the Lammerlaw Range, it initially flows north, then east around the Rock and Pillar range before turning southeast, reaching the sea sout ...

water catchment) and the northern foothills of the Kakanui Mountains (part of the

Waitaki River The Waitaki River is a large braided river that drains the Mackenzie Basin and runs some south-east to enter the Pacific Ocean between Timaru and Oamaru on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It starts at the confluence of the Ō ...

catchment). Much of the road going over Danseys Pass is unsealed and is occasionally cut directly from the Haast Schist bedrock. The road was built for the owners of large sheep runs, the brothers Allan McLean and

John McLean John McLean (March 11, 1785 – April 4, 1861) was an American jurist and politician who served in the United States Congress, as U.S. Postmaster General, and as a justice of the Ohio and U.S. Supreme Courts. He was often discussed for ...

. Though not a major arterial road, the pass is a fairly well-used link between the towns of

Naseby Naseby is a village in West Northamptonshire, England. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 Census was 687. The village is 14 mi (22.5 km) north of Northampton, 13.3 mi (21.4 km) northeast of Daventry, and 7 ...

and Ranfurly in the south and Duntroon, in North Otago. Also, if

State Highway 1 The following highways are numbered 1. For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads. For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads. For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads. For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads. For roads numbered S ...

between Hampden and Moeraki is closed, it is the closest detour, despite adding over to the journey. The

locality Locality may refer to: * Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England * Locality (linguistics) * Locality (settlement) * Suburbs and localities (Australia), in which a locality is a geographic subdivi ...

of Danseys Pass is located approximately halfway between the pass and Duntroon on the eastern side within the Waitaki District. The historic Danseys Pass Coach Inn/Danseys Pass Hotel is located on the western side within the Central Otago District, at the locality known as Kyeburn Diggings or Upper Kyeburn, north of Kyeburn. The pass and road are named after William Heywood Dansey. He was the lessee of the Otekaike run from 1857 to 1871 who, in 1855 with three companions, was the first European to cross the pass in search for land in the Maniototo district.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Danseys Pass
Maniototo Promotions information on Danseys PassDanseys Pass Coach Inn
Landforms of Otago Landforms of Canterbury, New Zealand Mountain passes of New Zealand