Otemetata

Otematata is a village in the Waitaki District of South Canterbury and North Otago in New Zealand's South Island. It is defined as a "populated area less than a town" and the 2001 New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings gave the "usually resident population count" as 243. By the 2006 census it had declined to 189 inhabitants: this was considerably higher in the 1960s during the construction of the Benmore Dam then the Aviemore Dam. Surrounded by rugged peaks and beautiful lakes of the Waitaki Valley, this area echoes with tales of long ago. The earliest inhabitants were Māori on hunting expeditions or travelling through the valley to reach the inland areas and mountain passes. Otematata in Māori means "place of good...