North Otago

The Kakanui Mountains form the principal cordillera, rising at their highest point, Mount Pisgah, to 1,643 metres (5,390 ft).

Other towns and settlements in the region include Alma, Totara, Teschemakers, Reidston, Maheno, Kakanui, Herbert (also known as Otepopo), Waianakarua, Hampden, and Moeraki, all on or close to the coast south of Oamaru.

Inland settlements include Weston, Ardgowan, Windsor, Five Forks, Peebles, Papakaio, Duntroon, Kurow (on the south bank of the Waitaki), Omarama, and Otematata.

[2] The rolling, tussock-clad hill country of North Otago provides the important agricultural base,[3] originally through sheep-farming but now largely superseded by dairy.

The generation of hydro-electricity in the Waitaki Valley has also drawn attention to the area (see Project Aqua), and tourism has grown in recent years.