Te Aka Ōtākou (The Otago Vine) is a cycleway and shared pathway for walking and cycling in

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; ) is the second-most populous city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from ("fort of Edin"), the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of S ...

, New Zealand, which follows the shoreline of the

Otago Harbour Otago Harbour is the harbor, 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 m ...

. It also known as the Otago Harbour Cycleway, and has previously been known by various names, including The Harbour Loop, and by the names of various sections (e.g., the Dunedin-St Leonards cycleway).

Route

The cycleway has been built in various section through the early years of the 21st century, and extended in an unbroken section from St Leonards along the western edge of the

south to the heart of Dunedin City parallel with the

South Island Main Trunk The Main North Line between Picton and Christchurch and the Main South Line between Lyttelton and Invercargill, running down the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand, are sometimes together referred to collectively as the South Isl ...

railway and SH 88, along Portsmouth Drive on the

Southern Endowment South Dunedin is a major inner city suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. It is located, as its name suggests, to the south of the city centre, on part of a large plain known simply as "The Flat". The suburb is a mix of industrial, retai ...

at the head of the harbour, and along Portobello Road close to the shore of

Otago Peninsula The Otago Peninsula () is a long, hilly indented finger of land that forms the easternmost part of Dunedin, New Zealand. Volcanic in origin, it forms one wall of the eroded valley that now forms Otago Harbour. The peninsula lies south-east of Ot ...

as far as

Macandrew Bay Macandrew Bay () is located on the Otago Peninsula in the South Island of New Zealand. It is situated on the edge of Otago Harbour, and is named for pioneer Scottish settler James Macandrew who lived here during his later life. The Te Reo Māor ...

(opened in September 2020). Further sections were then completed from Broad Bay to Portobello. The completion in 2023 of sections between St Leonards and

Port Chalmers Port Chalmers () is a town serving as the main port of the city of Dunedin, New Zealand. Port Chalmers lies ten kilometres inside Otago Harbour, some 15 kilometres northeast of Dunedin's city centre. History Early Māori settlement The or ...

and between Macandrew Bay and Broad Bay created a single cycleway/pathway in length. The cycleway briefly shares roadway between Fryatt Street and Wharf Street close to the city's docks, a distance of some 1200 metres.

New infrastructure

The creation of the pathway has included the widening of various roads around the city, notably the extension and separating of paths on the embankment that runs along the edge of Otago Peninsula. On the other side of the harbour, causeways used by the rail line have been widened to create room for the cycleway, and a new boardwalk causeway was constructed crossing Blanket Bay between St Leonards and Port Chalmers. Within the heart of the city, a new bridge was constructed across the mouth of the

Water of Leith The Water of Leith (Scottish Gaelic: ''Uisge Lìte'') is the main river flowing through central Edinburgh, Scotland, that starts in the Pentlands Hills and flows into the port of Leith and then into the sea via the Firth of Forth. Name The ...

and extensive short cycling and walking paths were created close by at the time of the construction of the nearby

Forsyth Barr Stadium Forsyth Barr Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Dunedin, New Zealand. At various stages of development it was also known as Dunedin Stadium or Awatea Street Stadium, or its non-commercial official name during the 2011 Rugby World Cup and 2 ...

Artwork

The section of cycleway close to Roseneath includes a large retaining wall decorated with a stylised

taniwha In Māori mythology, taniwha () are large supernatural beings that live in deep pools in rivers, dark caves, or in the sea, especially in places with dangerous currents or deceptive breakers (giant waves). They may be considered highly respecte ...

by local artist Simon Kaan. The cycleway runs close to a controversial sculpture of giant teeth, ''Harbour Mouth Molars'' by Regan Gentry, at the northwestern end of Portsmouth Drive. A large brutalist sculpture, ''Kuri/Dog'' by Stephen Mulqueen, guards the harbourside close to Otago Yacht Club, just to the northwest of the mouth of the Leith. This was constructed prior to the opening of the cycleway in 2008.Benson, N.,
A kuri for all that ails us
" ''Otago Daily Times'', 15 May 2008. Retrieved 9 September 2022. The cycleway also passes close to another older work, '' Toroa'' by Peter Nicholls.

References

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External links

Cycle the Loop
website
SH88 Dunedin to Port Chalmers shared path: a bird's eye view – March 2022

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA), superseded by is a New Zealand Crown entity tasked with promoting safe and functional transport by land, including the responsibility for driver and vehicle licensing, and administering the New Zealand st ...

Transport in Dunedin Cycleways in New Zealand Otago Harbour 2023 establishments in New Zealand Otago Peninsula Hiking and tramping tracks in Otago