Dusky Sound
Encyclopedia
Dusky Sound is a fiord on the south west corner of New Zealand
, in Fiordland National Park
.
One of the most complex of the many fjords on this coast, it is also one of the largest, 40 kilometres in length and eight kilometres wide at its widest point. To the north of its mouth is the large Resolution Island
, whose Five Fingers Peninsula shelters the mouth of the sound from the northwest; along the east coast of the island, Acheron passage connects Dusky Sound with Breaksea Sound, to the north.
Several large islands lie in the sound, notably Anchor Island
, Long Island
, and Cooper Island. The upper reaches of the sound are steep-sided, and the high precipitation of the region leads to hundreds of waterfalls cascading into the sound during the rainy season. Seal
s and dolphin
s are often sighted in the sound's waters and occasionally visited by whale
s. The Seaforth River is the largest of many small rivers and creeks which flow into the sound.
in pre-European times.
The inlet was first sighted by Europeans and Captain Cook
noted its entrance during his first voyage to New Zealand in 1770. He named it Dusky Bay. On his second expedition he spent two months exploring the sound, and used it as a harbour, establishing workshops and an observatory. It is believed his crew brewed the first beer
in New Zealand during his stay. He encountered some Maori with whom he had friendly relations. Later they seemed to have disappeared and it was speculated their countrymen had killed them, perhaps for the presents Cook gave them.
Cook saw the place as a good harbour for ships entering the Pacific from Europe by the shortest route, highlighting its maritime significance and overlooking its land-locked character. This gave it an unusual prominence in earliest European times which disappeared as Europeans became more familiar with New Zealand's geography.
Dusky was consequently relatively frequently used as a harbour by other European navigators and merchant ships in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. From 1792 it became a favoured site for seal hunters
. Men landed by Captain Raven from the Britannia in that year built the first European house in New Zealand and the first ship in Australasia, and the first European woman known to have been in New Zealand was recorded as a visitor in 1793. A group of 244 Europeans was stranded in Dusky Sound in 1795, which included two women, Elizabeth Bason and Ann Carey, the first known to have lived ashore. The last of this group left in 1797. The attention of the sealers moved to Bass Strait from 1798 but returned to New Zealand, at Dusky Sound, from 1802. In that year Captain Charles Bishop and George Bass
in the Venus
spent 14 days in Dusky Sound stripping iron from the hulk of Captain Brampton's old ship the Endeavour. The blacksmith converted the iron into axes which they then used in Tahiti
to trade for pork before returning to Sydney by November 1802. Following this, in January 1803, George Bass
asked Governor King
of New South Wales
for a fishing monopoly, from a line bisecting New Zealand from Dusky Sound to Otago Harbour
extending south to include the subantarctic Islands. It wasn't granted but it indicates the sealers' area of interest and Dusky Sound's place in it. The Matilda under Captain Fowler was on this part of the coast in 1814 when six of his lascar (Indian) seamen absconded in an open boat. It seems it was at Dusky Sound they were set upon by Maori when three were killed and eaten and the others enslaved. One or more of them later lived in what is now the Dunedin
district. Sealers continued to visit until the late 1820s when the second sealing boom faded.
An attempt was made in 1903 to construct a road from Dusky Sound to Lake Manapouri, but it was never completed, terminating abruptly on the western side of Loch Maree.
and Hauroko
.
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...
, in Fiordland National Park
Fiordland National Park
Fiordland National Park occupies the southwest corner of the South Island of New Zealand. It is the largest of the 14 national parks in New Zealand, with an area of 12,500 km², and a major part of the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage site...
.
Geography
Resolution Island, New Zealand
Resolution Island is the largest island in Fiordland region of southwest New Zealand, covering a total of . It is the country's seventh largest island...
, whose Five Fingers Peninsula shelters the mouth of the sound from the northwest; along the east coast of the island, Acheron passage connects Dusky Sound with Breaksea Sound, to the north.
Several large islands lie in the sound, notably Anchor Island
Anchor Island
Anchor Island is a island in Dusky Sound, Fiordland National Park in the Southland district of New Zealand. The island has an elevation of and is from the New Zealand mainland. It is now used by the Department of Conservation as a safe haven for endangered birds such as Tieke and the Kakapo....
, Long Island
Long Island, Southland
Long Island is an island in Fiordland, in the southwest of New Zealand's South Island. It lies within Dusky Sound, to the southeast of Resolution Island, and is separated from it and the South island mainland by Bowen Channel to the north, and from the South Island mainland by Cook Channel to the...
, and Cooper Island. The upper reaches of the sound are steep-sided, and the high precipitation of the region leads to hundreds of waterfalls cascading into the sound during the rainy season. Seal
Pinniped
Pinnipeds or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semiaquatic marine mammals comprising the families Odobenidae , Otariidae , and Phocidae .-Overview: Pinnipeds are typically sleek-bodied and barrel-shaped...
s and dolphin
Dolphin
Dolphins are marine mammals that are closely related to whales and porpoises. There are almost forty species of dolphin in 17 genera. They vary in size from and , up to and . They are found worldwide, mostly in the shallower seas of the continental shelves, and are carnivores, mostly eating...
s are often sighted in the sound's waters and occasionally visited by whale
Whale
Whale is the common name for various marine mammals of the order Cetacea. The term whale sometimes refers to all cetaceans, but more often it excludes dolphins and porpoises, which belong to suborder Odontoceti . This suborder also includes the sperm whale, killer whale, pilot whale, and beluga...
s. The Seaforth River is the largest of many small rivers and creeks which flow into the sound.
History
It is believed that Māori occasionally camped by the sound's waters while hunting moaMoa
The moa were eleven species of flightless birds endemic to New Zealand. The two largest species, Dinornis robustus and Dinornis novaezelandiae, reached about in height with neck outstretched, and weighed about ....
in pre-European times.
The inlet was first sighted by Europeans and Captain 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...
noted its entrance during his first voyage to New Zealand in 1770. He named it Dusky Bay. On his second expedition he spent two months exploring the sound, and used it as a harbour, establishing workshops and an observatory. It is believed his crew brewed the first beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
in New Zealand during his stay. He encountered some Maori with whom he had friendly relations. Later they seemed to have disappeared and it was speculated their countrymen had killed them, perhaps for the presents Cook gave them.
Cook saw the place as a good harbour for ships entering the Pacific from Europe by the shortest route, highlighting its maritime significance and overlooking its land-locked character. This gave it an unusual prominence in earliest European times which disappeared as Europeans became more familiar with New Zealand's geography.
Dusky was consequently relatively frequently used as a harbour by other European navigators and merchant ships in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. From 1792 it became a favoured site for seal hunters
Seal hunting
Seal hunting, or sealing, is the personal or commercial hunting of seals. The hunt is currently practiced in five countries: Canada, where most of the world's seal hunting takes place, Namibia, the Danish region of Greenland, Norway and Russia...
. Men landed by Captain Raven from the Britannia in that year built the first European house in New Zealand and the first ship in Australasia, and the first European woman known to have been in New Zealand was recorded as a visitor in 1793. A group of 244 Europeans was stranded in Dusky Sound in 1795, which included two women, Elizabeth Bason and Ann Carey, the first known to have lived ashore. The last of this group left in 1797. The attention of the sealers moved to Bass Strait from 1798 but returned to New Zealand, at Dusky Sound, from 1802. In that year Captain Charles Bishop and George Bass
George Bass
George Bass was a British naval surgeon and explorer of Australia.-Early years:He was born on 30 January 1771 at Aswarby, a hamlet near Sleaford, Lincolnshire, the son of a tenant farmer, George Bass, and a local beauty named Sarah Nee Newman. His father died in 1777 when Bass was 6...
in the Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...
spent 14 days in Dusky Sound stripping iron from the hulk of Captain Brampton's old ship the Endeavour. The blacksmith converted the iron into axes which they then used in Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
to trade for pork before returning to Sydney by November 1802. Following this, in January 1803, George Bass
George Bass
George Bass was a British naval surgeon and explorer of Australia.-Early years:He was born on 30 January 1771 at Aswarby, a hamlet near Sleaford, Lincolnshire, the son of a tenant farmer, George Bass, and a local beauty named Sarah Nee Newman. His father died in 1777 when Bass was 6...
asked Governor King
Philip Gidley King
Captain Philip Gidley King RN was a British naval officer and colonial administrator. He is best known as the official founder of the first European settlement on Norfolk Island and as the third Governor of New South Wales.-Early years and establishment of Norfolk Island settlement:King was born...
of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
for a fishing monopoly, from a line bisecting New Zealand from Dusky Sound to Otago Harbour
Otago Harbour
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, from the harbour mouth...
extending south to include the subantarctic Islands. It wasn't granted but it indicates the sealers' area of interest and Dusky Sound's place in it. The Matilda under Captain Fowler was on this part of the coast in 1814 when six of his lascar (Indian) seamen absconded in an open boat. It seems it was at Dusky Sound they were set upon by Maori when three were killed and eaten and the others enslaved. One or more of them later lived in what is now the 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...
district. Sealers continued to visit until the late 1820s when the second sealing boom faded.
An attempt was made in 1903 to construct a road from Dusky Sound to Lake Manapouri, but it was never completed, terminating abruptly on the western side of Loch Maree.
Access
Access to the sound is by sea or air only, with no roads reaching the coast at this point. However, the Dusky Track stretches to the upper reaches of the sound from lakes ManapouriLake Manapouri
Lake Manapouri is a lake in the South Island of New Zealand. Its name is Maori for "sorrowful heart", though this name is misapplied due to an early cartographical error...
and Hauroko
Lake Hauroko
Lake Hauroko is located in a mountain valley in Fiordland National Park in the South Island of New Zealand. The long S-shaped lake is 30 kilometres in length and covers an area of 63 km². The surface is at an altitude of 150 metres above sea level, and the lake is 463 metres deep...
.