Otago Harbour 4.3

Otago Harbour is the natural harbour of Dunedin, New Zealand, consisting of a long, much-indented stretch of generally navigable water separating the Otago Peninsula from the mainland. They join at its southwest end, 21km from the harbour mouth. It is home to Dunedin's deep water port facilities on its western shores in the suburb of Port Chalmers.GeographyThe harbour was formed from the drowned remnants of a giant shield volcano, centred close to what is now Port Chalmers. The remains of this violent origin can be seen in the basalt of the surrounding hills. The last eruptive phase ended some ten million years ago, leaving the prominent peak of Mount Cargill.Substantial container port facilities exist at Port Chalmers, 9km along the western shore from the harbour mouth. A channel along the western side of the harbour is regularly dredged, allowing vessels with a draught of 12.5 m to Port Chalmers, and 8 m all the way to the heart of Dunedin. New Zealand's frozen meat export trade was inaugurated at Port Chalmers in 1882. The dredging of this channel, the Victoria Channel, was a major undertaking for the settlement of Dunedin in the 19th century. The eastern side of the harbour is shallow, with large sandbanks exposed at low tide.Two islands form a line between Port Chalmers and Portobello in the lower harbour—Goat Island and Quarantine Island/Kamau Taurua. A smaller island known as Pudding Island (Titeramoa) lies close to the Peninsula shore and can be reached by foot at low tide.