The Coromandel Peninsula () on the North Island of New Zealand extends north from the western end of the Bay of Plenty, forming a natural barrier protecting the Hauraki Gulf and the Firth of Thames in the west from the Pacific Ocean to the east. It is wide at its broadest point. Almost its entire population lives on the narrow coastal strips fronting the Hauraki Gulf and the Bay of Plenty. In clear weather the peninsula is clearly visible from Auckland, the country's biggest city, which lies on the far shore of the Hauraki Gulf, to the west. The peninsula is part of the Thames-Coromandel District of the Waikato region. Origin of the name The Māori name for the Coromandel comes from the Māori legend of Māui and the Fish, in which the demigod uses his hook to catch a great fish from the depths of te Moana-Nui-a-Kiwa (The Pacific Ocean). Te Tara-O-Te-Ika-A-Māui means 'The spine of Māui's fish'. The spine can be understood to be the Coromandel Ranges which dominate the peninsula. The English name for the peninsula comes from HMS Coromandel (originally named HMS Malabar), a ship of the British Royal Navy that stopped at Coromandel Harbour in 1820 to purchase kauri spars. The ship was named for India's Coromandel Coast. Geography The peninsula is steep and hilly and largely covered in bush. The Coromandel Range forms the spine for most of the peninsula, with the Moehau Range at the northern end providing the highest point at nearly . Beyond, the large island of Great Barrier, which lies beyond the northern tip, can be thought of as an extension of the ranges. Great Barrier is separated from Cape Colville on the peninsula's northern coast by the Colville Channel. Although the peninsula is close to large centres of population such as Auckland to the west and Tauranga to the southeast, its rugged nature means that much of it is relatively isolated, and the interior and northern tip are both largely undeveloped and sparsely inhabited. The Coromandel Forest Park covers much of the peninsula's interior. Numerous small islands and island groups lie offshore, such as the Motukawao Islands to the northwest, the Aldermen Islands and Slipper Island to the southeast, and the Mercury Islands to the northeast. The peninsula shows considerable signs of past volcanism. It comprises the eroded remnants of the Coromandel Volcanic Zone, which was highly active during