Cobb Reservoir facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Cobb Reservoir |
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Cobb Reservoir in autumn
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 Cobb Reservoir
Location in South Island
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| Location | New Zealand |
| Coordinates | 41°07′16″S 172°39′28″E / 41.121014°S 172.657796°E |
| Type | reservoir |
| Primary inflows | Cobb River |
| Primary outflows | Cobb River |
| Built | 1949–1954 |
| Max. length | 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) |
| Max. width | 450 metres (1,476 ft) |
| Water volume | 25,600,000 m3 (900,000,000 cu ft) when full |
| Surface elevation | 819 metres (2,687 ft) |
The Cobb Reservoir, surrounded by Kahurangi National Park and fed by the Cobb River, is in the South Island of New Zealand. The reservoir feeds the Cobb Power Station and is 819 metres (2,687 ft) above sea level but drops significantly with low rainfall. Cobb Reservoir is the highest hydro storage lake in New Zealand.
The dam that forms the reservoir was built from 1949 to 1954, replacing a smaller structure built about ten years earlier. It is an earth dam 32 metres (105 ft) high by 221 metres (725 ft) long. The geology of the area precluded the construction of a concrete dam.
A narrow winding road leads over Cobb Ridge to Cobb Reservoir and along the lake's shore, providing access to tramping tracks in the area surrounding the valley. The road was built in the 1940s and remains unsealed from Cobb Power Station onwards.
