The Awarau River, usually known as Larry's Creek is located within the South Island of New Zealand.[1] The river is about 27 kilometres (17 mi) long[2] and runs northwest from its headwaters in the Victoria Range to its confluence with the Inangahua River north of Reefton.[3] It also drains part of the Brunner Range and there was a track along that range linking to Lyell[4] by 1901,[5] though none existed in 1874.[6] A track also ran south over Kirwan Hill to the Montgomerie River.[5]
A 6 km (3.7 mi) forestry road runs north of the river from SH69 to Larrys Creek Track, which runs a further 2.4 km (1.5 mi) to the site of the Caledonian Gold Mine.[7] The mine operated from 1874 to 1910, with shafts up to 285 ft (87 m) deep.[8] It is the most northerly in the Reefton goldfield, in albite-epidote hornfels facies, which are less than 370 million years old.[9] Remnants of a stamping battery and a Robey portable steam engine are at the mine site.[10] Colinton was formed in 1874[11] as the township for the mine (and the river was sometimes called Colin River). By 1878 it had a population of 44,[12] but was gone by 1901. Just upstream is a deep, rocky gorge.[13]
The only bridges over the river are the Stillwater–Ngākawau railway and SH69.[14] Railway bridge 74 was a 325 ft (99 m) road-rail bridge of 7 spans, built in 1905 for £2,915.[15] A bridge was planned at Colinton in 1880, but never built.[16]
