Golden Bay
Encyclopedia
Tasman Sea
The Tasman Sea is the large body of water between Australia and New Zealand, approximately across. It extends 2,800 km from north to south. It is a south-western segment of the South Pacific Ocean. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, the first recorded European...
and Cook Strait
Cook Strait
Cook Strait is the strait between the North and South Islands of New Zealand. It connects the Tasman Sea on the west with the South Pacific Ocean on the east....
. It stretches for 45 kilometres from the long sand spit of Farewell Spit
Farewell Spit
Farewell Spit is a narrow sand spit situated at , at the northern end of the South Island of New Zealand. Known to the Māori as Tuhuroa, it runs eastwards from Cape Farewell, the island's northernmost point...
in the north to Separation Point in Abel Tasman National Park
Abel Tasman National Park
Abel Tasman National Park is a national park located at the north end of the South Island of New Zealand. The park was founded in 1942, largely through the efforts of ornithologist and author Perrine Moncrieff to have land reserved for the purpose. With a coverage of only 225.3 square kilometres,...
at its southern extremity. Beyond this point, the larger of the two bays at the top of the South Island, Tasman Bay
Tasman Bay
Tasman Bay is a large V-shaped bay at the north end of New Zealand's South Island. Located in the centre of the island's northern coast, it stretches along of coastline and is across at its widest point. It is an arm of the Tasman Sea, lying on the western approach to Cook Strait.At the bay's...
, begins.
The northern part of the bay is largely devoid of population; the southern part contains the populous but small plains around the mouth of the Takaka River
Takaka River
The Takaka River lies in the northwest of New Zealand's South Island. It runs north for 70 kilometres, entering Golden Bay near the town of Takaka....
. Between the two lies the small town of Collingwood
Collingwood, New Zealand
Collingwood is a town in the north-west corner of the South Island of New Zealand. It is located in the hub of the Aorere Valley, in the western half of the Golden Bay area.-Geography:The town lies at the end of State Highway 60 in Golden Bay...
. Other than the Takaka River, the Aorere River
Aorere River
The Aorere River is in the South Island of New Zealand.The headwaters are within Kahurangi National Park. The river flows generally northwards for 40 kilometres, before draining into Golden Bay at the town of Collingwood....
is the main watercourse to reach the sea at Golden Bay.
Abel Tasman
Abel Janszoon Tasman was a Dutch seafarer, explorer, and merchant, best known for his voyages of 1642 and 1644 in the service of the VOC . His was the first known European expedition to reach the islands of Van Diemen's Land and New Zealand and to sight the Fiji islands...
anchored in this bay in 1642. However, the resulting hostile encounter with the local Māori when a party from his ships tried to land caused him to bestow upon it the name Murderers Bay. English explorer James Cook
James Cook
Captain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
included the bay as part of Blind Bay in his first journey, but in 1873 realised that it was in fact the location of Murderers Bay. The French explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville
Jules Dumont d'Urville
Jules Sébastien César Dumont d'Urville was a French explorer, naval officer and rear admiral, who explored the south and western Pacific, Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica.-Childhood:Dumont was born at Condé-sur-Noireau...
appears to have changed the name to Massacre Bay. In the 1840, it was for a time known as Coal Bay following the discovery of coal. With the discovery of gold in Collingwood
Collingwood, New Zealand
Collingwood is a town in the north-west corner of the South Island of New Zealand. It is located in the hub of the Aorere Valley, in the western half of the Golden Bay area.-Geography:The town lies at the end of State Highway 60 in Golden Bay...
, the name changed to the current name of Golden Bay.