Glenorchy, Otago • New Zealand A nice view over the shore of Lake Wakatipu close to Glenorchy on the South Island


Glenorchy, Otago • New Zealand A nice view over the shore of Lake Wakatipu close to Glenorchy on the South Island of New Zealand. The lake as been created by a glacier that carved out the canyon 15,000 years ago. Even though it is a relatively thin canyon at its deepest it reaches 399m. With its total length of 84 km it is the second largest lake on the South Island. Still unexplained by science the lake rises and falls about 12 cm (5 inch) every hour - the Maori legend says that a giant who abducted a chiefs daughter was burned to death. So the shape of the lake reassembles the sleeping giant - with the head at Glenorchy and the knees at the hight of Queenstown - and the rising and falling of the lake is due to the heartbeat of the giant, since his heart did not stop beating even though he was burned. More about it here


Size: 4672px × 3104px
Location: Mount Creighton, Otago, Neuseeland
Photo credit: © Lille Ulven / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: -, adventure, alps, aotearoa, attraction, bank, clouded, clouds, cyanotype, enclosed, environment, forest, glacial, glenorchy, high, highland, hill, holiday, hollow, island, lake, lakeside, landscape, mountain, mountainous, mountains, nature, oceania, otago, panoramic, pasture, peak, photography, pounamu, range, recreation, rock, sight, slope, south, southern, steep, summer, summit, surface, te, top, tourist, travel, vacation, valley, viewpoint, wai, wakatipu, water, zealand