Cheviot is a service town for highway traffic and for a pastoral farming district that is currently predominant in sheep farming. Based in the township are a volunteer fire and ambulance services and one full-time police officer. Surrounding settlements include:
Domett Originally a
railway town, Domett is now only populated by farms and a petrol station. Next to the
Old Main Road/Hurunui Mouth Road junction is the old Domett Railway Station, relocated and refurbished as a cafe. Domett Service Station provides after-hours sale of fuel (with surcharge): most service stations in the area close around 6pm.
Spotswood Spotswood has an old hall that is still used regularly, and mainly consists of farms around
Waiau East Road.
Parnassus Parnassus has a higher population than the other settlements, although the local Parnassus School was closed in 2008. The famous
Waiau River road/rail bridge was here, before being abandoned and replaced with a new road bridge. Prior to the opening of the old bridge in the 1930s a
ferry across the river carried goods north and south. The Waiau River ends not far away; however, access to the river mouth must be made over farm property with the owners' permission. On the State Highway north of Parnassus is
Leader Road which leads to the townships of
Waiau,
Rotherham,
Culverden and
Hanmer Springs.
Gore Bay Gore Bay is a surfing beach with summer beach houses and 14 permanent residents. There are two local camping grounds, each with beach access and business. It is a popular New Year's Eve venue. Of note is Cathedral Gully, a spectacular weathered clay canyon.
Port Robinson , oil on canvas Once a prospering port, Port Robinson is now an abandoned wreck. The old
wharf may still be seen, but it is in a dangerous state of disrepair.
Stonyhurst Station Stonyhurst is a farming station in the Blythe Valley, southwest of Cheviot. It was founded in 1851 by
Frederick Weld and
Charles Clifford. He had gained his impression when walking from Lyttelton to Flaxbourne, in Marlborough. Clifford landed sheep on the beach just south of the Blythe River which was later known as Stonyhurst Station, named after
Stonyhurst College in England where they were both educated. The farm originally occupied nearly , the whole of the Blythe Valley. About was sold in 1863, and a further a decade later. In about 1900, much of the rest of the land was subdivided. The current station is about one tenth of the original area. The area is described by the local authority as "a potentially significant natural area", and the manager's cottage is a Category II protected building under the Historic Places Act. ==Education==