The Papahaua Range is a mountain range on the West Coast of

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...

east of the town of Westport. It is a geological continuation of the

Paparoa Range The Paparoa Range is a mountain range in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island. It was the first New Zealand land seen by a European – Abel Tasman in 1642. Part of the range has the country's highest protection as a national par ...

that is south of the

Buller River The Buller River () is a river in the South Island of New Zealand. The Buller has the highest flow of any river in the country during floods, though it is only the 13th longest river; it runs for from Lake Rotoiti (Tasman), Lake Rotoiti throu ...

and it runs north from the

Buller Gorge The Buller Gorge is a gorge located in the northwest of the South Island of New Zealand. The Buller River flows through the deep canyon between Murchison and Westport. Land Information New Zealand lists two sections for the gorge, Upper Buller ...

to the

Mōkihinui River The Mōkihinui River is a river located on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island, about 40 kilometres north of Westport. Meridian Energy had proposed the Mokihinui Hydro project on the river in 2007 but it was cancelled in May 2012. In ...

. At its north end, it meets the Glasgow Range. Significant coal deposits are located in the range, and the Denniston Incline at the end of the

Conns Creek Branch The Conns Creek Branch was a 2.7 kilometre (1.7 mile) branch line railway in the West Coast, New Zealand, West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island. It diverged from the Seddonville Branch at Waimangaroa and followed the southern bank of ...

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

was built up to a plateau in the Papahaua Range to provide railway access for some mines. Due to its extremely steep climb and spectacular operations, the Denniston Incline was known during its life as the "eighth wonder of the world" by locals.New Zealand Institute of Professional Engineers
Engineering Heritage - Denniston Incline
/ref> The Papahaua Ranges are largely forested and human habitation is low. The decline of coal has led to some settlements such as Denniston and Millerton becoming virtually

ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

References

Mountain ranges of the West Coast Region Buller District {{WestCoastNZ-geo-stub