Kaikorai Valley is a long broad valley which runs through the west of the New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 city of Dunedin

Dunedin

Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...

, 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) to the west of the city centre. It is the valley of a small stream, the Kaikorai Stream

Kaikorai Stream

The Kaikorai Stream is a short river which runs through Otago, in New Zealand's South Island. The entirety of its length is within the city of Dunedin....

,which runs from northeast to southwest down the length of the valley.

The valley provides a route into central Dunedin (Kaikorai Valley Road) which avoids the steep climb and descent over Lookout Point into Caversham

Caversham, New Zealand

Caversham is one of the older suburbs of the South Island New Zealand city of Dunedin. It is sited at the western edge of the city's central plain at the mouth of the steep Caversham Valley, which rises to the saddle of Lookout Point...

, instead allowing for a gradual climb to the top of Stuart Street, Dunedin

Stuart Street, Dunedin

Stuart Street is one of the main streets of Dunedin, New Zealand. As with many of Dunedin's streets, it is named after a main street in Edinburgh, Scotland....

 before a steep drop into the heart of the city. The valley contains several suburbs, largely isolated from the city centre by the ridge which forms the valley's eastern edge. This ridge was part of the crater wall of the long-extinct Dunedin Volcano.

The valley is largely occupied by light industrial and wholesale businesses. Much of the land to the west of the valley is semi-rural; the eastern wall contains residential properties.

The valley is home to three distinct suburbs: Kaikorai, Bradford, and Kenmure, while a fourth suburb, Burnside, lies at the valley's mouth, close to the junction of Kaikorai Valley Road and the Dunedin Southern Motorway

Dunedin Southern Motorway

The Dunedin Southern Motorway is the main arterial route south from the South Island city of Dunedin, part of New Zealand's State Highway 1. It is one of the world's southernmost motorways.-Route:...

, part of State Highway 1.

Kaikorai

The suburb of Kaikorai sits at the head of the valley, or more precisely, on the northeastern slopes of the valley opposite the point where the Kaikorai Stream first turns south (the Kaikorai Stream initially flows southeast through parkland and a scenic reserve before turning southwest at the true start of the Kaikorai Valley). This suburb is largely residential, sitting close to the junction of Kaikorai Valley Road and Stuart Street, to the west of which Stuart Street becomes Taieri Road. Taieri Road links with the outer suburbs of Halfway Bush

Halfway Bush

Halfway Bush is a suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. It is located to the northwest of the city centre, close to the point at which Taieri Road becomes the winding rural Three Mile Hill Road...

 and Helensburgh before traversing the rugged Three Mile Hill, eventually emerging on the Taieri Plains

Taieri Plains

The Taieri Plains are an area of fertile agricultural land to the southwest of Dunedin, in Otago, New Zealand. The plains cover an area of some 300 square kilometres, with a maximum extent of 30 kilometres....

. A complex junction links Stuart Street, Taieri Road, and Kaikorai Valley Road, and also provides a link with Highgate, the main road through the suburbs of Roslyn

Roslyn, Otago

Roslyn is a major residential and retail suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. It is located above the city centre on the ridge which runs in a crescent around the central city's western edge. It is to the northwest of the city centre, immediately above the Town Belt. Roslyn's 2001...

 (which lies on the ridge immediately to the east of Kaikorai) and Maori Hill

Maori Hill

Maori Hill is a residential suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. It is located at the northern end of the ridge which runs in a crescent around the central city's western edge, to the northwest of the city centre, immediately above and within the Town Belt...

. The suburb of Wakari

Wakari

Wakari is a residential suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. It is located to the northwest of the city centre, immediately to the west of the ridge which runs to the west of the city's centre. Wakari lies to the north of the upper reaches of the Kaikorai Valley, and is also north of the...

 lies immediately to the northwest of Kaikorai.

Notable features of Kaikorai include the former Roslyn Woollen Mills factory, now an industrial estate, and a sports ground, Ellis Park. Close to the southern end of the suburb is a significant road junction linking Kaikorai Valley Road with the suburb of Brockville

Brockville, New Zealand

Brockville is a residential suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. It is located at the edge of the city's main urban area, to the northwest of the city centre, but separated from it by both a ridge of hills and the Kaikorai Valley....

 to the west.

Bradford

Bradford is a smaller, more ill-defined suburb lying in the centre of the Kaikorai Valley and in a small series of streets which lie immediately to its west. Like other parts of the lower valley, it contains numerous commercial properties such as wholesalers and car yards. Bradford Primary school lies in the suburb.

A road junction close to the boundary of Bradford and Kaikorai close to the former mills links the Kaikorai valley Road with Stone Street, which rises rapidly to the east to meet the ridge at Belleknowes. A disused quarry is a notable feature on this road.

Kenmure

Kenmure occupies much of the lower valley and the slopes immediately to its east which stradddle the land between Kaikorai Valley Road and Mornington Road. Most of these properties are reached by either Kenmure Road, which climbs the hill to join these other two roads, or by one of the streets which lead off it. This large suburb is predominantly residential, although it contains more wholesale commercial properties, some light industrial works, and several car sales yards, all on Kaikorai Valley Road. The suburb is linked via Mornington Road with the suburbs of Mornington to the north and Balaclava to the south.

A major feature of Kenmure is one of the city's larger secondary schools, Kaikorai Valley College

Kaikorai Valley College

Kaikorai Valley College is a large co-educational secondary school in Dunedin, New Zealand. Initially starting as Kaikorai Valley High School in 1958, the school combined with Kenmure Intermediate School in 1996 to become Kaikorai Valley College, and in 2008 celebrated its 50th jubileeThe college...

(formerly Kaikorai Valley High School and Kenmure Intermediate School), which lies on Kaikorai Valley Road.