Invercargill Archives

Overview The son of a shearer who worked in the Te Anau Basin during the 1940s, Cliff's first introduction to the district was in 1945. Since then he has developed extensive knowledge of the deer-run hinterland as well as the craggy coastline of the southern fiords where he spent many years both as fisherman and tourism operator. In this interview, Cliff remembers traditional skills such as blade-shearing and oyster-catching as well as forming a small tourism business in Doubtful Sound. He also talks...

Overview Peter's immediate environment, as a young child, was the granite, tree-covered mountains and clear waters of the Hollyford Valley. As a youth and into early adulthood it was the tussock country of the Te Anau Basin that he frequented. He was also among the early contract staff to carry out the initial task of levelling swathes of shrub and bush so that it could become productive agricultural soil. Leaving for a few years to live further south, Peter returned and worked for the Fiordland...