Lochmara Bay () is a large bay in Queen Charlotte Sound, New Zealand, north of Picton. Until the 1860s it was officially known by the

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

name Pehautangia.

Naming

Lochmara Bay takes its name from the

pastoral run A pastoral lease, sometimes called a pastoral run, is an arrangement used in both Australia and New Zealand where government-owned Crown land is leased out to graziers for the purpose of livestock grazing on rangelands. Australia Pastoral lea ...

set up there by

Courtney Kenny Courtney Kenny may refer to: * Courtney Kenny (New Zealand politician) Courtney William Alymer Thomas Kenny (25 December 1835 – 12 December 1905) was a 19th-century Member of Parliament from the Marlborough Region, New Zealand. Courtena ...

(1835–1905) in 1857 called Lochmara Run. The name is a thought to be a contraction of ,

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...

for 'loch of the sea'. means 'place of roaring winds', a reference to the rough gales there.

History

In 1857

took out a depasturage license for all of the land between Tōrea Bay and Ōnahau Bay in Queen Charlotte Sound, and between Te Mahia Bay and Portage in

Kenepuru Sound Kenepuru Sound is one of the larger of the Marlborough Sounds in the South Island of New Zealand. The drowned valley is an arm of Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere, it runs for from the northeast to southwest, joining Pelorus Sound a quarter of the way ...

. He named his

Lochmara Run, a name likely reflecting the Scottish and Irish connection of his wife Georgina Kenny (1835–1899). The Lochmara Run was initially about 2,000 hectares, but Kenny disposed of some in 1860, and converted around 1766 hectares to secure leasehold and freehold tenures. The 1880 block sheets show Kenny had cleared nearly half of his land of native bush, largely on the Lochmara Peninsula, Tōrea Bay, and ''Double Cove'', along with a swath from ''West Bay'' to Pukatea Bay. Kenny would go on to sell portions of the run to the Gullery family, with both families running sheep there for many years. Farming would come to an end on the remains of Lochmara Run by 1960, the land having been retaken by growth, making farming impossible. The land was subdivided for holiday housing in the 1960s, with some becoming the Lochmara Bay Scenic Reserve. By 1917 Lochmara Bay had been surveyed for townships. The majority of these lots never came to fruition, but some were developed by Marlborough families, who built houses and shacks there. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

more lots were subdivided and sold, some smaller than a hectare, and holiday housing became more popular along with the advent of improved roads and railways. In 1950 Lochmara Bay had around 20 buildings, today it has roughly 250 homesteads.

Contained geographies

East and West Bay

East Bay is located near the back of Lochmara Bay on its eastern coast, while West Bay is located at the very back of the bay on its west coast.

Hautehoro Point

Hautehoro Point sits on the western tip of Lochmara Bay. Evidence of pit dwellings has been found here, suggesting it may have been used as a look-out or temporary dwelling.

Nohokouau Point

Nohokouau Point sits on the eastern tip of Lochmara Bay. Nohokouau can be translated as 'to sit in sprinkling rain'.

Double Cove

Double Cove is located just outside of the eastern tip of Lochmara Bay. Double Cove consists of two arms connected by a large cove, resembling a crab claw and giving the cove its name.

References

{{Tōtaranui / Queen Charlotte Sound, state=expanded Bays of the Marlborough Region Marlborough Sounds