Marlborough Sounds 152763 215948433 2008-05-30T12:03:11Z SmackBot 433328 Date the maintenance tags or general fixes [[Image:Tory Channel Marlborough Sounds.jpg|thumb|Tory Channel, a major arm of Queen Charlotte Sound.]] [[Image:Marlborough Sounds From Space.jpg|thumb|The Sounds visible to the left of the [[Space Shuttle]], image taken from the [[International Space Station]].]] The '''Marlborough Sounds''' are an extensive network of [[ria|sea-drowned valley]]s created by a combination of [[subsidence|land subsidence]] and rising sea levels<ref>[http://www.teara.govt.nz/EarthSeaAndSky/OceanStudyAndConservation/CoastalErosion/2/en Rocky coasts] (from the [[Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand]]))</ref> at the north of the [[South Island]] of [[New Zealand]]. According to [[Māori mythology]], the sounds are the prows of the sunken [[waka (canoe)]] of [[Aoraki]].<ref name="DOCHIST"/> ==Geography== === Overview === Covering some 4,000 km² of sounds, islands, and peninsulas, the Marlborough Sounds lie at the South Island's north-easternmost point, between [[Tasman Bay]] in the west and [[Cloudy Bay]] in the south-east. The almost [[fractal]] coastline has 1/5th of the length of New Zealand's coasts.<ref>[http://www.tourism.net.nz/new-zealand/accommodation/backpackers/marlborough-sounds/te-arahe-lodge/ Pelorus Sounds and Marlborough Sounds] (from the tourism.net.nz website)</ref> The steep, wooded hills and small quiet bays of the sounds are sparsely populated, as access is difficult. Many of the small settlements and isolated houses are only accessible by boat. The main large port is [[Picton, New Zealand|Picton]] on the mainland, at the head of [[Queen Charlotte Sound, New Zealand|Queen Charlotte Sound]]. It is at the northern terminus of the South Island's main railway and [[New Zealand State Highway network|State Highway]] networks. The main small boat port is [[Waikawa, Marlborough|Waikawa]] which is one of New Zealand's largest and provides a base for leisure sailors and vacationers. The main sounds, other than Queen Charlotte Sound, are [[Pelorus Sound]] and [[Kenepuru Sound]]. [[Tory Channel]] is a major arm of Queen Charlotte Sound, and between them they isolate the hills of [[Arapawa Island]] from the mainland. Other islands in the sounds include [[D'Urville Island, New Zealand|D'Urville Island]]. The [[Department of Conservation (New Zealand)|DOC]] manages a total of over 50 reserves in the area.<ref name="DOCHIST">[http://www.doc.govt.nz/templates/page.aspx?id=35179 Marlborough Sounds] (from the [[Department of Conservation (New Zealand)|DOC]] website. Accessed 2008-05-16.)</ref> ===Dangerous waters=== The main channels of the Marlborough Sounds have calm water and are popular for [[sailing]]. Cook Strait, however, is infamous for its strong currents and rough waters, especially when the wind is from the south or north. Because of this, some of the narrow channels closer to the Strait are notoriously dangerous. Notable amongst these is French Pass at the southern end of D'Urville Island, which has several [[whirlpool|vortices]]. The most notable shipwreck in the sounds is that of the Russian cruise liner ''[[Mikhail Lermontov (ship)|Mikhail Lermontov]]'', which sank in [[1986]] in [[Port Gore, New Zealand|Port Gore]], close to the mouth of Queen Charlotte Sound, after striking rocks. One life was lost in the incident. == History == ===Pre-Modern era=== The sounds were extensively travelled and partly inhabited by [[Māori]] groups before the coming of the Europeans, using the sounds as shelter from bad weather and partaking of the rich food sources. They were also known to carry their canoes over some stretches of land on [[portage]] paths.<ref name="DOCHIST"/> However, like in most areas of the South Island, populations were thinner than in the North Island. European history of the area is considered to start with [[Captain Cook]]'s visit to the sounds in [[1770s]], dicovering a plant ([[Cooks scurvy grass]]) high in [[vitamin C]] which helped to cure [[scurvy]] amongst his crew. On [[Motuara Island]], Cook also proclaimed British sovereignty over the South Island.<ref name="DOCHIST"/> Some parts of the sounds also later developed a significant [[whaling]] history,<ref name="DOCHIST"/> and much of the sounds was (thinly) settled by European farmers in the late 19th and early 20th century.{{Fact|date=May 2008}} ===Ferries and marine farms=== [[Image:Marlborough Sounds From Ferry.jpg|thumb|The Marlborough Sounds as seen from the Wellington-Picton ferry.]] The Marlborough Sounds are connected to the [[Cook Strait]] at the north-east extreme. At this point, the [[North Island]] is at its closest to the South Island, and the inter-island road, rail, and passenger [[ferry]] service between Picton and [[Wellington, New Zealand|Wellington]] travel through the sounds. Marine farming, especially of [[salmon]] and [[mussel]]s, is increasingly common, having started in the 1960.<ref>[http://the6322s2.handel.2day.com/industry/aton/marifarm.asp History of the NZMFA] (website of [[New Zealand Seafood Industry Council]])</ref> However, the [[wake]]s caused by fast [[catamaran]] vehicular ferry services to the North Island have allegedly damaged farms and destroyed [[crab]] grounds. They were also blamed for stripping the local beaches bare of sand, and damaging landings and other facilities built close to the water's edge. This resulted in a dispute heard in the New Zealand [[Environment Court]] in the early 1990s, brought forward by the 'Guardians of the Sounds' group. However, the court not only refused to restrict the fast ferries, but also awarded NZ$ 300,000 in court costs to the citizen group having brought forward the case, which then seen as a strong blow against civic action, and a curtailing of the powers of the [[Resource Management Act]]. However, as damage increasingly became visible, and protests continued, the fast ferries (which only operated for the summer season) were eventually restricted to a lower speed of 18 kn in the sounds (officially for safety reasons), reducing their time advantage over the conventional ferries.<ref>[http://www.guardiansofthesounds.org.nz/fastferries.htm Fast Ferries] (from the ''Guardians of the Sounds'' action group website)</ref> They have since been discontinued. In July/August 2007, the 'Guardians of the Sounds' environmentalists are planning a 100-ship flotilla protest against [[scallop]]s [[dredging]] in the sounds, which they consider damages the ecosystem of the sounds similar to [[trawling|bottom trawling]] in the open sea. The protest is intend to call attention to what they allege is the Ministry of Fisheries ignoring the detrimental effect of the practice. Commercial scallops harvesting companies have warned that protests could endanger lives if the protesters engaged in dangerous manoeuvres, while the Ministry of Fisheries has also noted that only 6% of the sounds are set aside for the dredging, though this had been much more extensive in the past.<ref>''[http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10450166 100-strong flotilla to stage protest on scallop fishing]'' - ''[[The New Zealand Herald]]'', Saturday [[7 July]] [[2007]]</ref> ==References== [[Image:MarlboroughSounds-OceanKayakking.jpg|thumb|Sea kayakers in the Marlborough Sounds.]] {{Reflist}} ==External links== *[http://www.nzmaritime.co.nz/lermontov.htm NZ Maritime Museum's article on the ''Mikhail Lermontov''] {{coor title dms|41|08|30|S|174|05|22|E|region:NZ-MBH_type:landmark}} [[Category:Coastline of New Zealand]] [[Category:Marlborough, New Zealand]] [[Category:Sounds of New Zealand]] [[de:Marlborough Sounds]]