Lake Waihola
Lake Waihola | ||
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Geographical location | Clutha District , Otago , New Zealand | |
Drain | Waipori River → Taieri River | |
Places on the shore | Waihola | |
Data | ||
Coordinates | 46 ° 1 ′ 0 ″ S , 170 ° 6 ′ 0 ″ E | |
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surface | 9 km² | |
length | 6 km |
Lake waihola is a tide of underlying freshwater lake, 15 km north of Milton in the region Otago on the South Island of New Zealand . It has an area of about 9 km² and a length of 6 km.
It is the larger of a pair of lakes in the hill country between the Taieri Plains in the north and the Tokomairiro River . The other lake is Lake Waipori . Lake Waihola is drained by the Waipori River , a tributary of the Taieri River . Both lakes are shallow and surrounded by wetlands. These include the protected Sinclair Wetlands , which are home to many waders . In the area between the lake and Mosgiel there were a number of other lakes that no longer exist: Lake Tatawai, Loch Ascog, Loch Katrine, Lake Potaka and the Silverstream Lagoon. They were drained in the course of European settlement.
Lake Waihola is a destination for the residents of Dunedin, 40 km north . The small town of Waihola is located on the eastern shore of the lake. It is used for fishing, boating and water skiing and is an important rowing route.
Lake Waihola was used as a transportation route during the Otago gold rush . The boats went up the Taieri River and then to the south side of the lake, where the prospectors made their way over the hills to Gabriel's Gully . In the early days of settlement, a paddle steamer , the Betsy Douglas, operated from Owhiro near Henley in the north to Clarendon at the south end.
etymology
The place name is interesting because the alphabet of the Māori language does not contain the letter L. The word waihola is considered an analogue in the dialect of the South Island of wai-hora ("expanding waters").
Ecosystem
Lake Waihola is of international importance because of its ecosystem located in a freshwater tidal lake. Danish scientists have carried out annual studies of the lake since 2000 . The cryptid " Waitoreke ", possibly a kind of otter, is said to have been sighted in the lake .
Individual evidence
- ^ Sharon Bray: Under the Eye of the Saddle Hill Taniwha . 1998.
- ↑ spreading waters . maoricictionary.co.nz
- ^ New Zealand Ecological Society report (PDF).