The Mt John Observatory is operated by the University of Canterbury and was chosen as the best observatory site in New Zealand because of its clear nights throughout the year, the uniquely dark skies in the Mackenzie Basin and devoid of city light pollution. The astronomical observatory was founded in 1965 and is arguably one of the most beautifully placed observatories in the world, with the magnificent surroundings of glacial lakes and the Southern Alps. Mt John is an asymmetrical rock shaped by the movement of ancient glaciers.

The Mackenzie Country was named after an early Scottish settler, James McKenzie, who was imprisoned on a charge of stealing 1,000 sheep from the Levels Station, South Canterbury in 1855. He had apparently rustled them with his dog ‘Friday’, through a remote alpine pass. McKenzie was a native of Invernessshire who immigrated to Australia in 1849. He then came to New Zealand with the idea of taking up land. He was about 35 years old when he was arrested in Lyttelton and was sentenced to five years imprisonment. After several unsuccessful attempts to escape, McKenzie was unconditionally pardoned on 11 January 1856. He only spent nine months in prison, then he took a boat to Australia and was never seen again.

The Church of the Good Shepherd was built in 1935 to the glory of God as a memorial to the pioneers of the Mackenzie Country. It is located on the shore of Lake Tekapo surrounded by matagouri, tussock and rock. The church was built by the Duke of Gloucester and was made to last from lakeside stone and oak, with a clear plate glass window. Congregations of the three main faiths worship regularly in the Church.

Lake Tekapo covers an area of 83 km2 and is at an altitude of 700m above sea level. The bright, clear, turquoise colour of the lake seems like magic but it’s actually caused by a product of 'rock flour' or sediment in the water. The sediment refracts the brilliance of the sun, hence the outstanding clear colour. The lake is fed at its northern end by the Godley River, which has its source in the Southern Alps, to the north.

Lake Pukaki is 2km northeast of the Mt Cook turnoff. The lake is fed at its northern end by the Tasman River, which has its source in the Tasman and Hooker Glaciers, close to Mount Cook. It's particularly pretty as you see the lake in all its glory with Mt Cook standing tall behind it and all the surrounding impressive snow-capped peaks.

The lake's outflow is at its southern end, into the Pukaki River. Lake Pukaki is an upper part of the Waitaki hydroelectric scheme, and there are several dams and canals near its outflow, linking it with lakes Tekapo and Ruataniwha. It provides over half of New Zealand’s hydroelectricity storage with a capacity of 1,600 GWh.

Lake Ruataniwha is a manmade lake that was formed as part of the Waitaki hydroelectric project. The name is Maori and refers to legendary supernatural creatures that lurk in waters and caves, often depicted as dragons or serpents. It is situated 2km from the township of Twizel. The Ohau River flows into the lake. Lake Ruataniwha is the site of one of New Zealand's main rowing venues. The rowing course was surveyed and anchors put down for lane markers prior to the lake being filled. This work was not officially planned as part of the hydroelectric project, but instead was built on the instruction of the Project Engineer Max Smith as a public service. He took early retirement on completion of the rowing development.

Lake Benmore was manmade in the 1960s by construction of the Benmore Dam and covers an area of approximately 75km2. It is New Zealand’s biggest manmade lake and has the largest earth dam in the Southern Hemisphere. The lake holds 1.5 times more water than the Wellington Harbour. Rivers Ohau, Pukaki and Tekapo feed into the lake.

Lake Ohau is fed by the Hopkins and Dobson rivers, which have their headwaters in the Southern Alps, and has its outflow in the Ohau River, which itself feeds into the Waitaki River hydroelectric project. Lake Ohau covers 60km2 and is the smallest of three roughly parallel lakes running north-south along the northern edge of the Mackenzie Basin. The lake forms part of the traditional boundary between Otago and Canterbury regions, Otago's northernmost point being the headwaters of the Hopkins River.

Mount Cook is the highest mountain in New Zealand. It lies in the Southern Alps, the range runs the length of the South Island. Mt Cook consists of three summits lying slightly south and east of the main divide, the Low Peak, Middle Peak and High Peak, with the Tasman Glacier to the east and the Hooker Glacier to the west.

The name Mt Cook was given by Captain John Lort Stokes and honours Captain James Cook, who first surveyed and circumnavigated the islands of New Zealand in 1770.

The Southern Alps are formed by tectonic uplifting and pressure as the Pacific and Australia-Indian plates collide along the island's western coast. The uplifting continues, raising Mount Cook an average of 7mm each year.

Erosive forces also play a role in shaping the mountains. Mount Cook was 10m higher until approximately 10 million cubic metres of rock and ice fell off the northern peak on 14 December 199

The Mount Cook National Park covers 70,696 hectares and has New Zealand’s highest mountains and largest glaciers. It was formally established as a national park in 1953 and carries World Heritage Status.