Your Place - Maniototo

An inland area in Central Otago comprised of a number of small towns linked under one community umbrella. In pre-European times the vegetation here was mainly flowing red tussock, hence the Maori name which means "Plains of Blood". There was no long term settlement there until gold was discovered 150 years ago. The gold has all but gone now, and massive fires destroyed most of the tussock long ago, but the name remains.