Ocean Beach is a long sandy beach which runs along the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...

coast of south

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. It stretches for some three kilometres from

Saint Clair Saint Clair (also spelled St. Clair, St Clair or even Sinclair, and sometimes also pronounced that way) may refer to: Saints * Clair of Nantes (3rd century), first bishop of Nantes, the Saint named Clair * Clare of Assisi (1194–1253), source na ...

in the southwest along the coast of Saint Kilda to the foot of Lawyers Head in the east. The beach is a popular recreation area for swimming, surfing, and walking.

Geography

The beach is divided into three roughly equal lengths, known as Saint Clair Beach, Middle Beach, and Saint Kilda Beach. Access is easiest at the Saint Clair end, with steps and ramps down to the beach from Saint Clair Esplanade. The esplanade is the site of several cafes and restaurants. At its end, also the western end of the beach, is the Saint Clair salt-water swimming pool, the city’s oldest pool, opened in 1884. The pool has been upgraded on several occasions, most recently in 2002. A short walking track leads southwest from the pool to Second Beach, a small stony beach sitting at the bottom of the

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90 ...

cliffs of Forbury Head. Saint Clair Beach is a popular surfing venue, as well as having a patrolled swimming area. Shark nets have been deployed one kilometre out from the beach every summer since 1970, making this a safe swimming area. Major surf lifesaving and surfing championships are regularly hosted at Saint Clair Beach. The western end of Saint Clair Beach is marked by a series of old wooden posts, the remains of an old breakwater

groyne A groyne (in the U.S. groin) is a rigid hydraulic structure built perpendicularly from an ocean shore (in coastal engineering) or a river bank, interrupting water flow and limiting the movement of sediment. It is usually made out of wood, concre ...

. These posts are often erroneously thought by to be the remains of a jetty. During the Victorian and Edwardian eras, there were several groynes along the beach which protected it from erosion. The groynes have fallen into disrepair since that time, with only a handful of posts from the last groyne remaining in place. The other major access-point to the beach is at Saint Kilda, where a sandy slope leads down to the sea from the road. Here, too, is a patrolled swimming area. Between the two access points is Middle Beach. This is backed by a series of high dunes topped by a walkway linking Saint Clair Esplanade with the Sir James Barnes Lookout, which offers views across south Dunedin from above

Forbury Park Raceway Forbury Park Raceway was a horseracing venue in the New Zealand city of Dunedin until its closure in 2021. It was located close to the Pacific Ocean coast in the suburb of Saint Kilda. The raceway was initially developed in 1870 on an area of ...

. Behind these dunes are several of the city’s sports grounds, notably Kettle Park. The

Ocean Beach Railway The Ocean Beach Railway (OBR) is a heritage railway that operates in Dunedin, New Zealand. It is located between John Wilson Drive in the suburb of Saint Kilda and sports grounds near Forbury Park Raceway, and runs parallel with the city's main b ...

runs through these parks from the Otago Model Engineering Club’s premises close to the Saint Kilda beach access point. In recent years the dunes have been subject to severe erosion, and measures have been taken by the

Dunedin City Council The Dunedin City Council ( mi, Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Ōtepoti) is the local government authority for Dunedin in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority elected to represent the people of Dunedin. Since October 2022, the Mayor of Dunedin is Jul ...

to reinforce them. This is not the first time that erosion has threatened properties along this stretch of Dunedin’s coast. Heavy seas during the 1890s and early 1900s caused loss of land close to Saint Clair, and the current esplanade is sited along the line of the first sea wall to be built along this stretch of coast, built between 1911 and 1913.Newton, p.103

Wildlife

Despite being a well-frequented beach within an urban area, Ocean Beach is regularly visited by a wide array of wildlife. Both seals and

sea lions Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear flaps, long foreflippers, the ability to walk on all fours, short and thick hair, and a big chest and belly. Together with the fur seals, they make up the family Otariidae, eared seals. ...

are occasional visitors, as are blue penguins.

Geography

Wildlife

See also

References

Further reading