Just a short drive from Ashburton, Peel Forest is a family’s dream for an easy outdoor getaway.

 The beautiful landscape offers a variety of activities all involving getting up close and personal with the outdoors, from camping, to river activities and tramping.

 And you don’t have to be an expert on the outdoors to make the most of Peel Forest.

 Sure, you can try your hand at some of the area’s bigger challenges like climbing Little Mt Peel, but there’s also smaller challenges, perfect for those who are a bit out of the game, or young ones.

 There’s walks which will take just 30 minutes there and back, like one of the area’s most popular – the Big Tree Walk.

 It’s short and easy, starting from the Te Wanahu picnic shelter and leading into Mills Bush.

 There’s several large kahikatea and totara trees which measure almost three metres across and are thought to be about 1000 years old – they’re known as rakau rangatira, or chiefly trees.

 Peel Forest is a remnant of a magnificent podocarp forest which once covered a huge area in mid and south Canterbury.

 Now only 700 hectares remain, but what is left of the forest is rich and diverse.

 Peel Forest Park is situated along the foothills of the Southern Alps by the Rangitata River and such close proximity to the river means easy access to activities like fishing, jet boating or rafting.

 In the summer, you can make it a real outdoor adventure by pitching a tent and staying at the Peel Forest Camping Ground.

 With several secluded spots and plenty of room to move, it’s a great spot for a family holiday – particularly with the financial situation the way it has been lately.

 The camping ground charges just $9 per night, per person, or $5 for children, for your average non-powered site.

 They have 53 sites in total, a handful of cabins, and the facilities have recently been upgraded.

 From there, it’s easy access to everything, with walks like the Acland Falls just a short stroll away.

 The flora and fauna of Peel Forest Park are rich and abundant.

 The three largest trees in Peel Forest belong to the family “Podocarpaceae”, which simply translate to “seed foot” because of the arrangement of the seed on the ends of the branches.

 It is an ancient family with a line of descent going back in time more than 100 million years.

 The three trees are kahikatea (white pine), totara and matai (black pine).

 Peel Forest Park has a wide range of vegetation, from dense virgin stands to exposed herb-field communities.

 Peel Forest enjoys a mild moist climate - ideal conditions for ferns.

 Thirty-six per cent of all ferns that grow in New Zealand occur in Peel Forest Park.

 Spring and summer present a continuous array of beautiful flowering shrubs.

 The forest also has an abundant bird life.

 Native birds most frequently seen and heard are wood pigeon/kereru, the rifleman/titipounamu, bellbird/korimako, fantail/pïwakawaka, grey warbler/riroriro, silvereye/tauhou and tomtit/miromiro.

 Occasional rare visitors include both kaka and kakariki.

 The Rangitata riverbed provides a habitat for a number of waders and coastal visitors such as the black-billed gull/karoro and the pied oystercatcher/torea.

- Photos Erin Bishop