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Harataonga Bay on Great Barrier Island.

Location of Great Barrier Island.

Great Barrier Island is a large island of New Zealand, situated 88 km to the north-east of central Auckland in the outer Hauraki Gulf. One of the largest islands in New Zealand, it is named so as it acts as a barrier between the Pacific Ocean and the mainland. In the Maori language, it is called Aotea, meaning white cloud. Its official name is Great Barrier Island (Motu Aotea). The remote island, initially exploited for its kauri trees, is now inhabited by a small population of around 900 people.

From the end of February 2007, the island will be seen around the world as the setting for the BBC One reality show, Castaway, which will be filmed there for three months.

Kauri Dam on Great Barrier Island, 1967.

The kauri logging industry was a profitable in the island's early days. Kauri forests however were well inland and there was no easy way to get the logs to the sea or other routes to saw mills. The logs were therefore dragged to a convenient stream bed with steep sides and a Kauri Dam was constructed of wood with a "trapdoor" near the bottom large enough for the logs to pass through. When the dam had filled (which might take up to a year) the trapdoor was opened and the logs floating above the dam were sucked down through the hole and swept down to the sea, 16 miles away in the case of the illustrated dam. Another small-scale industry on the Island was gum-digging. Some smaller mining operations also existed.

The remote north of the island was the site of the sinking of the SS Wairarapa in 1894. This tragedy was one of New Zealand's worst ever shipwrecks, with 135 lives lost.

The island never received many agricultural settlers, and though close to the path of ships travelling to Auckland, the local population never grew strongly. These days, much of the income of Great Barrier is earned by its inhabitants working in Auckland or further away, or by tourism. House and real estate prices have also risen due to increasing demand for holiday homes in the Auckland area.

With an area of 285 square kms (110 square miles), Great Barrier is the sixth-largest island in New Zealand, following the South Island, the North Island, Stewart Island, Chatham Island, and Auckland Island. The highest point, Mount Hobson or Hirakimata, is 621 m above sea level.

The Island's name stems from its location on the outskirts of the Hauraki Gulf. With a maximum length (north-south) of some 43 kilometres, it protects the gulf from the storms of the Pacific Ocean to the east. Consequently, the island boasts highly contrasting coastal environments. The eastern coast comprises long, clear beaches, windswept sand-dunes, and heavy surf. The western coast, sheltered and calm, is home to hundreds of tiny, secluded bays which make for some of the best diving and boating in the country.

Entrance to the Hauraki Gulf is via two channels, one on either side of the island. Colville Channel separates the island's southernmost point (Cape Barrier) from Cape Colville at the northern tip of the Coromandel Peninsula to the south, and Cradock Channel separates the island from the smaller Hauturu/Little Barrier Island to the west.

Great Barrier Island has a permanent population of around 900, primarily in coastal settlements such as Tryphena, largest settlement on Great Barrier is in Tryphena Harbour, at the southern end of the island. Other communities are Okupu, Whangaparapara, Claris and Kaitoke. This population of the island swells substantially during the main holiday seasons, though it is still not a major tourist destination due to its relative remoteness.

The population of the island has decreased significantly in recent years, although house values have increased. The most significant increase in values has been at Kaitoke, where the white sandy beaches (Kaitoke and Medland's), nearby hot springs, and the central location on the Island, with the adjacent airfield, have allowed for a burgeoning vacation centre.

The main ferry service to the island takes about five hours, and transports tourists as well as locals working off-island.

There are airfields at Claris (Kaitoke) and Okiwi and natural harbours at Port Fitzroy, Tryphena, Whangaparapara, and Okupu. During the summer there are regular passenger ferries to Tryphena and a regular freight and car ferry service operates all year to Tryphena (several times weekly, stopping at Port Fitzroy once weekly). Aircraft reach Claris' grass airfield in about 30 mins from Auckland International Airport and North Shore Aerodrome while the fast ferries take about three hours from Auckland. The ship services takes approximately 5 hours from downtown Auckland to the island.

There are 3 primary schools on the island, but no secondary schools, so students either leave the island for schooling on the mainland, or do their studies via the New Zealand Correspondence School.

Although technically part of Auckland City, a certain relaxation in some of the rules governing daily activities and applicable standards for civic works and services exists, shared with some of the other inhabited islands of the Hauraki Gulf.

For example, every transport service operated solely on Great Barrier Island, the Chatham Islands, or Stewart Island/Rakiura is exempt from section 70C of the Transport Act 1962 (the requirements for drivers to maintain driving-hours logbooks). Drivers subject to section 70B must nevertheless keep records of their driving hours in some form.

• Official website with details of travel, accommodation and activities
• Directory of accommodation and visitor information (includes a map and photographs)
• Great Barrier Island Business Directory, Images, Artists & Products

Coordinates: 36°10′S 175°23′E