Chapter I.—The Harbour.

Lyttelton Times, Volume V, Issue 315, 7 November 1855, Page 3

Chapter I.—The Harbour.

" This spot is well sheltered from ths south-west gales, hag twenty-six feet water in excellent holding ground, oue hundred yards from the shore, and affords every convenience for constructing a wharf where ships of the largest size might land cargoes alongside. It is called Gollan's Bay, is three miles from the Heads, and is now used as a landing place for stock," —Mutual Relations between the Canterbury Association and the Purchasers of Land in the Canterbury Settlement. The group of volcanic craters, known as Bank's Peninsula, contains no less than four good harbours, viz.,-Akaroa, Pigeon Bay, Port Levy, and Port Cooper. Of these, the last named is the only one capable of being connected by land with the Canterbury Plains, and it was for that reason selected by the Agent of the Canterbury Association as the Port of the Settlement. Port Cooper is separated from the Plains by a continuous chain of hills, extending from Godley Head eastward, to Lake Ellesmere on the west, and varying in height from 1,000 to 1,700 ft. On the side next the harbour, it presents a series of precipices, but on the north side the descent to the level of the Plains is by a number of long spurs, between the points of which are valleys running far up into the mountain chain. Of these, the one which approaches nearest to the seaward side of the range is Sumner Valley, originally laid out as a town, but afterwards sold as rurjil land. At the saddle, dividing Gollan's Bay in Port Cooper from the gorge of Sumner Valley, the range is only 636 feet above the sea, this being the lowest gap between Godley Head and Lake Ellesmere. Through Sumner Valley and Evan's Pass, as this gap is called, must, therefore, necessarily be formed the land communication between Port Cooper and the Plains, whatever the nature of that communication. Port Cooper, as a harbour, has many good points, and but few bad ones. There is plenty of room, ample depth of water, and no hidden dangers ; but occasionally a very heavy swell sets in from the eastward, which is the only exposed quarter. All risk from this cause might be obviated by laying down moorings, and then, as an anchorage, Port Cooper would be all that could be wished. The only available locality for a port town, on the north side of the harbour, is two miles above Evan's Pass, at Cavendish Bay, which has been selected as the site of the port town of Lyttelton. It has many heavy disadvantages, the worst of which is, that the beach is exposed to the full fury of the south-west gales, so that on the least sign of southerly weather coming on, the small crafts are obliged to make a precipitate retreat from the jetty. There was originally not a foot of level ground in the place; the spurs, on which the town is built, coming down to the very beach, and the whole of the wharfage has been formed artificially at a great expense.

For the deficiency of wharf accommodation, there is a simple, though a costly remedy. It is to throw out a new line of wharfage, some 200 feet in advance of the present high water mark, and to build the warehouses required for the trade of the port on the flat thus gained from the sea ; throwing out one or more jetties in advance of the main line of wharf, at which vessels of 2UO tons might discharge cargo, with moorings, to which they could warp oat in the event of bad weather coming on. Large vessels must always discharge by lighters. These works would be easy of execution, but would be very costly, and should the Settlement ever have the funds necessary for carrying them out, it would be a question for consideration whether the money would not be better spent in cutting a low level tunnel from Sumner Valley into Gollan's Bay, where vessels of large tonnage can discharge within a short distance of the shore, and which, with proper moorings, would be as safe an anchorage as any other part of the harbour, whilst as a landing place, it is superior to Cavendish Bay, being comparatively sheltered from the south-west gales, that blow with such terrific force over the town of Lyttelton. It is unnecessary here to reply to any of the objections which have been made to this proposal in the public prints. It was recommended to the notice of the Provincial Government by the Lyttelton and Christchurch Road Commissioners as the best possible means of communication between the Port and the Plains; and the unanimous opinion of five professional engineers and surveyors, whose reputations were at stake in the correctness of their decision (especially when it is considered how unpalatable they knew that decision to be,) must carry with it more weight than the loose assertions of anonymous newspaper correspondents. These observations on the harbour may be summed up as follows : — Port Cooper is the only harbour capable of being used as the port of the Settlement, and Only requires moorings to make it perfectly safe in every respect. The port town of Lvttelton is placed on the only site on which a port town could be placed, but the wharfage room is limited and exposed to the south-west gales. Gollan's Bay presents greater natural facilities than Lj-ttelton for landing and shipping goods, but is useless for that purpose until connected with Sumner Valley by a low level tunnel under Evan's Pass.