Westward Ho – Springfield

We had been parked up in Ashburton Holiday Park for about a week as we were needing to sort out a ‘heater issue’.  Quite important as we enter into some of the colder months of the year!  FYI, Ashburton Holiday Park (TD#7774) is part of the Campersaver Scheme with the NZMCA.  If you are members, check them out as there is a discount available.

With the heater (and hot water) issue resolved, we discussed the daily question…..” where to next?”.

we were in great company, turned out to be JB Caravan Corner…..made for a few wonderful Happy Hours!

Westward Ho is Calling

We have explored central and eastern areas of the South Island quite extensively so it was decided that we wanted to head westward.  It has been a couple of years since we ventured over to that side of the island and to be fair, mother nature didn’t treat us particularly well while we were visiting some places.

We were on a timeframe as we were due to be in Ophir, Central Otago, for a month-long house/pet sit.  So with this in mind, we had a set end date and point, we left Ashburton for the western wilderness and beyond……destination – Westward Ho Springfield.

This blog will cover our stay in a small town called Springfield.  However, the whole series of Westward Ho will see us meet up with the West Coast and end up at Lake Hawea before the final destination of our house/pet sitting assignment in Ophir.

Over the next few blogs, this is the route we will be travelling…..a total of approximately 670km.  Some of the places we’ve visited before, but there is also a range of new activities we found to do.

Check out our route above – a total of 668km sojourn down the West Coast.

The first in this series is Westward Ho Springfield

Ashburton to Springfield

There are a few different ways to get to Springfield.  As you can see on the map above, google insists that we take SH1.  Sometimes the shortest way isn’t always our first option.  We took the alternative route and travelled via Mt Hutt, Methven and Glentunnel.  Just a few km further but some of the roads were new to me and the Rakaia Gorge is a way more attractive drive.

Kowhai Pass Domain Campground

Located in Springfield, is the Kowai Pass Domain Campground.

Once again, we were attracted to this camping ground (TD#7700) after reading the positive comments on the NZMCA App and because they are part of the Campsaver scheme, more savings for us.  At just $22 per night for two adults hooked into power, it’s value for money for sure.

Keep a look out for the signage on the main highway

This delightful camp has a feeling of being ‘old school’.  How camping grounds used to be. 

Joy and Ben have made the camp their own, I loved the little ‘stone art’ rocks scattered around the camp

The onsite custodians Joy & Ben treat the grounds as their own.  You can see and feel their personality throughout the lovingly kept grounds and spotless ablution block.  There are hot showers, basic kitchen facilities, a dump station and a comfy, homely lounge area.

the old clubrooms now double as the basic kitchen and a homely, comfy lounge area, there is also a new playground for the kids and a tennis court

Nestled in the foothills of the Southern Alps, and within walking distance to the tavern and convenience store/service station, it makes a great stopover on your way to or from Arthurs Pass.

the Southern Alps seem so close

The silence was occasionally broken by the coal trains passing by and the Tranz Alpine Express making its daily journey to and from Greymouth.

the main trunk line to Greymouth

Claim to Fame

In 2007, a statue of a giant pink doughnut was erected to promote the upcoming movie, The Simpsons Movie.  This was paying homage to the hometown of the Simpson family, Springfield.  The original doughnut was gifted to the town by 20th Century Fox as a tribute to the special role the fictional Springfield has played in the cartoon, also Homer Simpson’s love of doughnuts.

the 6-tonne concrete doughnut…..looks pretty real to me!!

The six-tonne landmark replaces an earlier version.  Someone obviously took exception to the landmark and set fire to the said doughnut, destroying it in 2009.  There was a bit of kiwi ingenuity by way of a replacement – a pink painted tyre. However, a 6-tonne concrete pink doughnut now has pride of place in the park.  There was an official unveiling in 2012.

Springfield Hotel

As you can guess, we did pay a visit to the Springfield Hotel, because that’s just what you do on a Friday night in Springfield.  We made the leisurely walk there and took up their offer of the courtesy van back to camp.  I can’t report back on their meals as we weren’t overly hungry, so we decided on sharing a bowl of fries with cheese, bacon and gravy.

it’s an easy walk/cycle to the hotel (bottom right), our loaded fries for dinner, and a hotel that has history, it has been here for a long time

The old hotel comes with its own history.  It was a coach stop on the road west from Christchurch until trains became the usual way to travel between the two coasts, then the refreshment rooms at the station became very well patronised.

The Springfield Hotel was one of the first buildings to be erected (as usual!) in 1862 and back then, the town was known as Kowai Pass.  The town had a name change in 1880.  

Sheffield

Just down (or up depending o your direction of travel), is the small settlement of Sheffield with a BIG ‘pie reputation’.  We thought that it was appropriate that we travel the 9km to check out “the World Famous Sheffield Pie Shop“.

Copied from their website pretty much sums it up:

“The World Famous Sheffield Pie Shop in Sheffield has been a local icon for well over 40 years and has always been the essential ‘stop off’ and refuel for travellers to and from the West Coast. The Sheffield pies have always been a local cuisine, and all locals who attended Sheffield Primary school will have fond memories of Mondays being pie day, as it still remains today!”

The cabinets were jammed packed with all sorts of goodies and I really, really wanted a custard square, but today it was all about the pies.  My pie of choice was steak, cheese & onion, whereas Scotty was more of a venison & whisky pie.

We weren’t short-changed on the filling and the pastry was super flakey.  We’d rate them 8/10.  Not the worst pie we’ve had but not the best on our Pie Chart.

not just pies……make sure you make time to stop on your way to or from Arthurs Pass

It is certainly a popular stop for Arthur Pass travellers so avoid the peak morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea times as you will need to be prepared to wait in line.  But in saying that, worth the wait for sure.

Springfield to Hokitika

We stayed in Springfield for a total of 3 nights.  We were watching out for a window of opportunity weather-wise.  As you can imagine, sometimes you have to ‘run the gauntlet’ when it comes to travelling Arthurs Pass, especially in winter. We decided to ‘gap it’ to Hokitika before the weather closed in.

there’s always time for the photo stop though!!

On this journey through the pass, we didn’t make many stops as we had already ‘slow travelled’ when we traversed the pass a couple of years ago.  Click here to read all about our East Meets West blog.

It is fair to say that we enjoyed our stay in Springfield.  It makes a good base to explore the wider area. It’s certainly reasonably priced for what you get.

As mentioned earlier, Westward Ho Springfield is the first in our Westward Ho series.

Keep a look out for the rest of our blogs as we travel Westward Ho along the West Coast.  Link to Westward Ho Hokitika below.

For more in-depth information on what else to see on the West Coast, check out our other blogs.   Well worth a read.  Here is just a taster:

Top Picks for the West Coast Part 1

Top Picks for the West Coast Part 2

Westward Ho – Hokitika