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North Otago is an area in New Zealand covers the area of the Otago region between Shag Point and the Waitaki River, and extends inland to the west as far as the village of Omarama (which has experienced rapid growth as a developing centre for astronomy and for gliding). [1]
Prominent rivers include the Shag, the Waianakarua, the Kakanui and the Waitaki. The Kakanui Mountains form the principal cordillera, rising at their highest point, Mount Pisgah, to 1,643 metres (5,390 ft). These are separated from the lower, parallel Horse Range by the upper valleys of the Waianakarua and Shag rivers.
The large east-coast town of Oamaru serves as North Otago's main centre. Other towns and settlements in the region include Alma, Totara, Teschemakers, Reidston, Maheno, Kakanui, Herbert (also known as Otepopo), Waianakarua, Hampden, and Moeraki, all on or close to the coast south of Oamaru. The coastal plain north of Oamaru has the settlements of Hilderthorpe and Pukeuri.
Inland settlements include Weston, Ardgowan, Windsor, Five Forks, Peebles, Papakaio, Duntroon, Kurow (on the south bank of the Waitaki), Omarama, and Otematata.
The area aspired to provincial status in the 19th century, but never attained this. Most of its territory belonged to the Waitaki County, and today is officially part of the Waitaki District. Some sense of regional identity survives in support of sport, notably the North Otago rugby team. In recent years[ when? ] the northwestern part of the area, including the towns of Omarama, Otematata, Kurow, and Duntroon have officially become part of Canterbury region, testing this sense of identity and raising the ire of many locals.
The rolling, tussock-clad hill country of North Otago provides the important agricultural base, [2] originally through sheep-farming but now largely superseded by dairy. The generation of hydro-electricity in the Waitaki Valley has also drawn attention to the area (see Project Aqua), and tourism has grown in recent years.
Oamaru is the largest town in North Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand, it is the main town in the Waitaki District. It is 80 kilometres (50 mi) south of Timaru and 120 kilometres (75 mi) north of Dunedin on the Pacific coast; State Highway 1 and the railway Main South Line connect it to both cities. With a population of 14,000, Oamaru is the 28th largest urban area in New Zealand, and the third largest in Otago behind Dunedin and Queenstown. The town is the seat of Waitaki District, which includes the surrounding towns of Kurow, Weston, Palmerston, and Hampden, which combined have a total population of 23,200.
Omarama is a small town at the junction of State Highways 8 and 83, near the southern end of the Mackenzie Basin, in the South Island of New Zealand. Omarama is in the Waitaki District, in the southern Canterbury region. The Ahuriri River is a short distance to the north of the township. Omarama is 30 km southwest of Twizel, 40 km southeast of Lake Ōhau and 32 km northeast of the Lindis Pass.
The Mackenzie Basin, popularly and traditionally known as the Mackenzie Country, is an elliptical intermontane basin located in the Mackenzie and Waitaki Districts, near the centre of the South Island of New Zealand. It is the largest such basin in New Zealand. Historically famous mainly for sheep farming, the sparsely populated area is now also a popular tourism destination.
Kurow is a small town in the Waitaki District, New Zealand. It is located on the south bank of the Waitaki River, 60 kilometres (37 mi) northwest of Oamaru.
Waitaki District is a territorial authority district that is located in the Canterbury and Otago regions of the South Island of New Zealand. It straddles the traditional border between the two regions, the Waitaki River, and its seat is Oamaru.
Lake Aviemore or Mahi Tikumu is a man-made lake in New Zealand's South Island, part of the Waitaki hydroelectric scheme. Immediately upstream is Lake Benmore and downstream Lake Waitaki. Aviemore lies on both sides of the border between the Waimate and Waitaki districts.
Palmerston is a town in the South Island of New Zealand. Located 50 kilometres to the north of the city of Dunedin, it is the largest town in the Waihemo Ward of the Waitaki District, with a population of 890 residents. Palmerston grew at a major road junction: State Highway 1 links Dunedin and Waikouaiti to the south with Oamaru and Christchurch to the north, while State Highway 85 heads inland to become the principal highway of the Maniototo. The Main South Line railway passes through the town and the Seasider tourist train travels from Dunedin to Palmerston and back once or twice a week. From 1880 until 1989, the town acted as the junction between the main line and a branch line that ran inland, the Dunback and Makareao Branches.
The small town of Kakanui lies on the coast of Otago, in New Zealand, fourteen kilometres to the south of Oamaru. The Kakanui River and its estuary divide the township in two. The part of the settlement south of the river, also known as Kakanui South, formerly "Campbells Bay", was developed as a collection of cribs. A recent increase in the development of subdivisions has increased the density of dwellings within South Kakanui.
Danseys Pass is a mountain pass located in the Kakanui Range in the South Island of New Zealand.
Port FM was a local radio station based in Timaru, New Zealand that broadcast throughout South Canterbury and the MacKenzie Country. It also operated as a network with sister-stations in Ashburton and Oamaru known as 'Port FM Local'. Port FM's music genre was contemporary rock and pop, with the bulk of the weekday playlist made up of music from the mid eighties through the early nineties. The main station was used as a network feed for Port FM Local in Ashburton and Oamaru during breakfast, nights and weekends.
The Timaru Herald is a daily provincial newspaper serving the Timaru, South Canterbury and North Otago districts of New Zealand. The current audited daily circulation is about 14,500 copies, with a readership of about 31,000 people. The paper is owned by media company Stuff Ltd.
The Kakanui Range is a range of high hills located inland from Oamaru in the South Island of New Zealand. The range forms a boundary between the valley of the Waitaki River to the north and the high plateau known as the Maniototo and the upper watershed of the Taieri River to the southwest. The highest point in the Kakanui Range is Mount Pisgah, at 1643 m (5394 ft).
The Kurow Branch was part of New Zealand's national rail network. In the North Otago region of the South Island, it was built in the 1870s to open up the land behind Oamaru for development, and closed in 1983.
Duntroon is a small farming-town in the Waitaki District of New Zealand's South Island. Although traditionally considered a North Otago town, it is located as of 2018 within the farthest southern reaches of Canterbury. Just north of the town runs the Waitaki River, which forms the traditional border between the two regions, although the official border has moved south to put most of Waitaki District, including Duntroon, within Canterbury. To the east of the village runs the Maerewhenua River. Near the village are the Earthquakes, a limestone-cliff formation.
Hakataramea, spelt Hakateramea in some older sources, is a rural village located in the southern Canterbury region of New Zealand's South Island. It is in the Waimate District and sits on the north bank of the Waitaki River at its confluence with the Hakataramea River.
State Highway 83 (SH 83) is a South Island state highway in New Zealand running up the Waitaki Valley between the settlements of Pukeuri and Omarama. It forms part of the southernmost of the east–west roads crossing the South Island.
The Alps 2 Ocean Cycle Trail is a cycle trail in New Zealand. This trail is one of the projects of the New Zealand Cycle Trail project. The trail extends more than 300 kilometres (190 mi) from Aoraki / Mount Cook to Oamaru on the Pacific Ocean. From west to east, it descends from an altitude of 780 metres (2,560 ft) down to sea level. The trail has both on and off-road sections.
Maruakoa is a small farming settlement in Waitaki District, New Zealand. It is located close to the banks of the Kakanui River just south of its emergence form the Kakanui Gorge. It is 18 kilometres northwest of Oamaru and 4 kilometres southwest of Windsor, between the two settlements of Five Forks and Tapui. The name Maruakoa is a Māori word literally meaning "Happy valley".