Lord of the Rings

Download 'Journey to Edoras' Guide Brochure here. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the PDF file. This Brochure is a must-have for visitors who wish to explore this fantastic area and includes a road map to Mt Sunday.
 
The drive to Mt Sunday on Ashburton Gorge Road takes around one hour from Stronechrubie on half sealed / half gravel road. It is a beautiful drive, passing historical spots as well some picturesque lakes. There are a number of local operators who conduct guided tours if you prefer. 

 Mt Sunday was the set for Edoras, the fortress city of the Rohan people in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. The production crew took nine months to build the set at the top of sheer cliffs, building Golden Hall and surrounding buildings at the top, with the gatehouse and more buildings at its foot.
At the end of filming the set was dismantled and the area returned to its natural state. Although none of the actual set remains, the spectacular views of Mt Sunday sitting all alone in an expansive river plain surrounded by the Southern Alps is well worth the trip, not to mention the scenery you pass through to get there.
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"Never shall I forget the utter loneliness of the prospect only the little far away homestead giving sign of human handiwork, the vastness of mountain and plain, of river and sky; the marvelous atmospheric affects sometimes black mountains against a white sky, and then again, after cold weather, white mountains against black sky."
- Thus wrote Samuel Butler in his classic novel Erewhon, a fine description of a harsh landscape that for eleven months become Edoras, the capital city of Rohan.