Trincomalee Bay, also known as Koddiyar Bay, is a

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

in the Eastern Province,

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

. The bay is located by

Trincomalee Trincomalee (; , ; , ), historically known as Gokanna and Gokarna, is the administrative headquarters of the Trincomalee District and major resort port city of Eastern Province, Sri Lanka, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka. Located on the east coast o ...

town on the north-east coast of the island.

Geography

Trincomalee Bay is open towards the northeast and has three differentiated parts. The main bay, also known as Koddiyar Bay, is located in the south and southeastern side and fairly regularly shaped, as well as enclosed and deep, forming a large

natural harbour A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be moored. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is ...

in the shores of the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...

. The commercial harbour is located in the long and wide northern indentation, also known as China Bay, on whose western side lies

China Bay Airport China Bay Airport (; ; ) is an air force base and domestic airport in China Bay in eastern Sri Lanka. Located approximately south west of the city of Trincomalee, the airport is also known as Trincomalee Airport and SLAF China Bay. Originally bui ...

. Tambalagam Bay is a mostly shallow western indentation of the main bay stretching westwards for . The bay is overlooked by terraced hills in the northwest and its entrance is guarded by two headlands.Trinco Harbour will be developed next – SLPA Chief
Ceylon Today dated 5 February 2013 Trincomalee Bay has a length of and a width of , while the mouth of the bay is wide. The bay includes a few islands: Round Island, Elephant Island and Clappenburg Island in the main bay, and Great Sober Island and Little Sober Island in China Bay. The latter two are

wildlife sanctuaries A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologi ...

History

Trincomalee Harbour, formerly a naval base of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

, was taken over by the Sri Lankan Government in 1956 to be developed as a commercial port. The base in Trincomalee was fitted out to perform slipway repairs for the

Sri Lanka Navy The Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) (; ) is the navy, naval arm of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces and is classed as the country's most vital defence force due to its island geography. It is responsible for the maritime defence of the Sri Lankan nation and its ...

References

External links

* {{Commons category-inline, Trincomalee Bay Bays of the Indian Ocean Bodies of water of Sri Lanka Geography of Eastern Province, Sri Lanka Bodies of water of Trincomalee District

Geography

History

See also

References

External links