Geography of New Zealand Geography of New Zealand New Zealand ("") is an island country located in the south-western Pacific Ocean, near the centre of the water hemisphere. It is a long and narrow country and comprises around 600 islands. The two main islands by size are the North Island (or "Te Ika-a-Māui") and the South Island (or "Te Waipounamu"), separated by the Cook Strait; the third-largest island, Stewart Island (or "Rakiura"), is located off the tip of the South Island across Foveaux Strait. Significantly smaller islands include Waiheke Island, Chatham Island, Great Barrier Island and more, although many are uninhabited. New Zealand's landscape
Balclutha, New Zealand town is the concrete Balclutha Road Bridge across the river, which was built in 1935. The original 1868 wooden bridge was washed away on 14 October 1878. Rebuilt in 1881, it was later considered unsuitable for motor vehicles. The South Island Main Trunk Railway crosses the river some 800 metres downstream, near the junction where the Clutha River divides into the southern branch, known as the Koau (pied shag), and the northern the Matau (derived from Mata Au, the Maori name for the Clutha). Most of Balclutha township lies on 'the flat' land which lies within a wide loop in