Charles Sound (; officially Taiporoporo / Charles Sound) is a

fiord In physical geography, a fjord (also spelled fiord in New Zealand English; ) is a long, narrow sea inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Antarctica, the Arctic, and surrounding landmasses of the no ...

of the

South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...

of New Zealand. It is one of the fiords that form the coast of

Fiordland Fiordland (, "The Pit of Tattooing", and also translated as "the Shadowlands"), is a non-administrative geographical region of New Zealand in the south-western corner of the South Island, comprising the western third of Southland. Most of F ...

Geography

Extending south from

Milford Sound / Piopiotahi Milford Sound (, officially gazetted as Milford Sound / Piopiotahi) is a fiord in the south west of New Zealand's South Island within Fiordland National Park, Fiordland's marine reserves, Piopiotahi (Milford Sound) Marine Reserve, and the Te ...

, Charles Sound is the sixth fiord in Fiordland, on the southwest coast of New Zealand's South Island, situated between Taitetimu / Caswell Sound to the north and

Hinenui / Nancy Sound Hinenui / Nancy Sound is a fjord, fiord on the South Island of New Zealand. It is one of the fiords that form the coast of Fiordland. Geography Hinenui / Nancy Sound is located between Taiporoporo / Charles Sound and Te Awa-o-Tū / Thompson S ...

to the south.NZ Topographic Map: Charles Sound
/ref> At a length of just under , it is the second shortest standalone fiord in Fiordland (after

Te Rā / Dagg Sound Te Rā / Dagg Sound is a narrow fiord located in Fiordland, New Zealand. It lies south of Doubtful Sound / Patea and north of Te Puaitaha / Breaksea Sound. Whales frequent the waters out from the entrance of the fiord, close to the edge of the ...

). Despite this, Charles Sound has the deepest sill depth of the northern fiords, with a depth of before deepening to a maximum depth of in the main basin of the fiord. The main body of the fiord extends in a southeasterly direction from the outer Fiordland coast, before splitting into two arms of similar length in its upper reaches: the Emelius Arm (to the north) and the Gold Arm (to the south). The latter of these is protected by the Kahukura (Gold Arm) Marine Reserve. Other parts of the fiord are included in the Taumoana (Five Fingers Peninsula) Marine Reserve. The

Irene Irene is a name derived from εἰρήνη (eirēnē), Greek for "peace". Irene, and related names, may refer to: * Irene (given name) Places * Irene, Gauteng, South Africa * Irene, South Dakota, United States * Irene, Texas, United States ...

and Windward Rivers flow respectively into the ends of the Emelius and Gold Arms. The short Juno River enters to

Tasman Sea The Tasman Sea is a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean, situated between Australia and New Zealand. It measures about across and about from north to south. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, who in 1642 wa ...

just to the north of the fiord's mouth. Several small islands are located within the fiord, in the Gold Arm these are Catherine Island, Fanny Island and

Lloyd Island Lloyd Island is an island in the Aboriginal Shire of Lockhart River, Queensland, Australia. Geography Lloyd Island is part of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park in Lloyd Bay between Lockhart River, Queensland, Lockhart River and Cape Directi ...

, and at the mouth of the Emelius Arm sits Eleanor Island.

History

Charles Sound was known as Charlie's Sound during the early to mid-19th century. It was very probably named after Charles MacLaren, the captain of the ''Sydney Cove'', a sealing boat that visited the sound in 1810. In October 2019, the name of the fiord was officially altered to Taiporoporo / Charles Sound.

2003 tsunami

During the magnitude 7.0 23 August

2003 Fiordland earthquake The 2003 Fiordland earthquake struck the remote region of Fiordland in the South Island of New Zealand on 22 August 2003, at 12:12 am NZST. The epicentre was deep, and was thought to be near Secretary Island at the entrance to Doubtful Sound. A ...

, a significant landslide swept into Charles Sound causing a 4- to 5-metre high tsunami that damaged a wharf and helipad in the sound.De Lange, W., and McSaveney, E.,
Tsunamis – New Zealand's underrated hazard'
"

Te Ara ''Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand'' is an online encyclopedia established in 2001 by the New Zealand Government's Ministry for Culture and Heritage. The web-based content was developed in stages over the next several years; the first s ...

- the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, updated 13 July 2012. Retrieved 1 April 2018.

References

Sounds of Fiordland Fiordland National Park {{Fiordland