The Aropaoanui (Awapawanui) river runs through northern Hawke's Bay Region in the eastern North Island of New Zealand.
The Aropaoanui (Awapawanui) river runs through northern Hawke's Bay Region in the eastern North Island of New Zealand.
Aropaoanui is a Māori word which roughly translates to 'big smoke'. In local myth, the area was named when the local tribe were roasting their captives on a fire after a victory in battle. The fatty pulp around the kidneys of their victims began to bubble, giving the impression that the victims were still alive, which terrified the tribespeople.
The upper part of the river, above its junction with the Mairau Stream, is called the Waikoau River, [1] a name also given to a river in the South Island. [2] The Waikoua rises from streams on the Maungaharuru Range, [3] running generally south-southeastwards, flowing through steep-sided gullies. It is joined by a tributary, the Mahiaruhe Stream, which is the main outflow of Lake Tūtira, [4] also known as Tūtira Stream where it leaves the lake, [5] after which it continues south along the lake's western flank. [6]
South of the lake, the river is crossed by State Highway 2 before veering eastward, joining with the Mairau Stream to become the Aropaoanui. It continues through a steep-sided valley past the Tangoio Forest, reaching its narrow floodplain just 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from the coast. [6] Some small farms dot the upper part of the floodplain, accessed by a metal road which meets the Napier–Wairoa highway. The river empties into Hawke Bay, the waters joining the Pacific Ocean, just north of the small settlements of Tangoio and Waipātiki Beach, some 25 kilometres (16 mi) north of Napier.
The Aropaoanui has been described as one of the cleanest rivers in New Zealand by the Department of Conservation (only phosphorus levels are in the category of worst 25% of rivers and the river has longfin and shortfin eels, koura, inanga, torrent fish, blue gill bully, common bully, redfin bully, banded kōkopu and pātiki), [7] and is fished for many species including trout and whitebait.
Floods in 1938 swept away the bridge on the Napier-Wairoa section of State Highway 2. [8] The area around the river was also badly affected by floods in 2022.
Hawke's Bay is a region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region is named for Hawke Bay, which was named in honour of Edward Hawke. The region's main centres are the cities of Napier and Hastings, while the more rural parts of the region are served by the towns of Waipukurau, Waipawa, and Wairoa.
Napier is a city on the eastern coast of the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Hawke's Bay region. It is a beachside city with a seaport, known for its sunny climate, esplanade lined with Norfolk pines, and extensive Art Deco architecture. Napier is sometimes referred to as the "Nice of the Pacific", although that is largely outdated and a more common nickname is 'The Art Deco Capital of the world'.
Hawke Bay, formerly named Hawke's Bay, is a large bay on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand, surrounded by the Hawke's Bay region. It stretches from Māhia Peninsula in the northeast to Cape Kidnappers / Te Kauwae-a-Māui in the southwest, a distance of some 90 kilometres (56 mi).
Wairoa is the largest town in the Wairoa District and the northernmost town in the Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand's North Island. It is located on the northern shore of Hawke Bay at the mouth of the Wairoa River and to the west of Māhia Peninsula. It is 118 kilometres (73 mi) northeast of Napier, and 92 kilometres (57 mi) southwest of Gisborne, on State Highway 2. It is the nearest town to the Te Urewera protected area and former national park, which is accessible from Wairoa via State Highway 38. It is one of three towns in New Zealand where Māori outnumber other ethnicities, with 62.29% of the population identifying as Māori.
Lake Tūtira is a body of water in north-eastern Hawke's Bay in New Zealand.
The Palmerston North–Gisborne Line (PNGL) is a secondary main line railway in the North Island of New Zealand. It branches from the North Island Main Trunk at Palmerston North and runs east through the Manawatū Gorge to Woodville, where it meets the Wairarapa Line, and then proceeds to Hastings and Napier in Hawke's Bay before following the coast north to Gisborne. Construction began in 1872, but the entire line was not completed until 1942. The line crosses the runway of Gisborne Airport, one of the world's only railways to do so since Pakistan's Khyber Pass Railway closed.
Tutira is a village to the north of Napier and is part of the Hawke's Bay Region in New Zealand's North Island. It is located on State Highway 2 between Wairoa and Napier.
Putorino is a small farming settlement in northern Hawke's Bay, on the eastern side of New Zealand's North Island. It is located on State Highway 2 between Tutira and Mohaka, on the Hastings side of the border between Hastings and Wairoa.
The Waipawa River is a braided river of southern Hawke's Bay, in New Zealand's eastern North Island. It flows southeast from the slopes of 1,687 m (5,535 ft) Te Atuaoparapara in the Ruahine Range, past the town of Waipawa, before joining the Tukituki River. The river rises at the 1,326 m (4,350 ft) Waipawa Saddle, which is also the source of the Waikamaka River. The Mangaonuku Stream is a tributary on the northern bank, west of Waipawa, near Ruataniwha. The Waipawa's flow is generally greater than that of the Tukituki River, into which it flows.
Waipātiki Beach is a small coastal village in the Hastings District and Hawke's Bay Region of New Zealand's North Island. It is situated in a little valley at the end of a road that branches off the main road from Napier to Gisborne and that finally, after 11 km, leads to a small sandy beach; first Tangoio Rd, then Waipātiki Road.
The Mangapōike River is a river beginning in the Gisborne Region of New Zealand's North Island. It flows generally southwest from sources south of Waingake, reaching the Wairoa River in Hawke's Bay 10 kilometres (6 mi) northeast of Frasertown. Mangapōike River was Gazetted as an official name on 28 November 2022.
The Moeangiangi River is a river of the Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand's North Island. It flows east from hill country to the east of Lake Tutira to reach Hawke Bay 25 kilometres (16 mi) north of Napier.
The Esk River of Hawke's Bay, in the eastern North Island of New Zealand, one of two rivers of that name in the country, is one of Hawke's Bay's major rivers. It flows south from the slopes of Taraponui in the Maungaharuru Range before turning east to reach Hawke Bay 10 kilometres (6 mi) north of Napier. State Highway 5 follows the lower course of the river for several kilometres close to the settlement of Eskdale. The river is probably named after the Esk River in southern Scotland and north-west England.
Wairoa District is a territorial authority district within the Hawke's Bay Region in the North Island of New Zealand. The Wairoa District Council is headquartered in the largest town, Wairoa. The district covers the northern half of the Hawke's Bay coast, extending from Māhia Peninsula to Lake Waikaremoana, and south to the mouth of the Waikare River.
The Waikari River is a river in the Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand's North Island. It flows generally east from its source at the northern end of the Maungaharuru Range passing the settlement of Putorino to reach Hawke Bay 25 kilometres southwest of Wairoa. The name Waikari comes from the Māori words wai meaning "water" and kari meaning "dig". The river was called Waikare until given an official name in 1941.
Tangoio is a farming locality and beach 23 kilometres north of Napier, 7 kilometres north of Whirinaki and 7 kilometres south-west of Waipatiki Beach in the Hawke's Bay Region of New Zealand's North Island. The locality is on the flat along Te Ngarue Stream and State Highway 2. It is part of Hastings District. Tangoio has been the official name since it replaced Tongoio in 1930. Near Tangoio Beach is Whakaari Headland, the site of a whaling station in the 1840s and a Maori canoe landing reserve.
Maungaharuru Tangitū is a collective of Māori hapū (subtribes) of the Ngāti Kahungunu iwi in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand, who joined forces for Treaty of Waitangi settlement negotiations. The hapū are Marangatūhetaua, Ngāi Tauira, Ngāi Te Ruruku ki Tangoio, Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Kurumōkihi and Ngāti Whakaari. The group's rohe ranges from Bay View in the south to the Waitaha Stream in the north, and from the Maungaharuru Range in the west to the sea in Hawke Bay, that part of the sea being known as Tangitū.
Kotemaori is a village and rural community located in the Wairoa District of the Hawke's Bay Region, in New Zealand's North Island. It is located between Raupunga and Putorino, to the west of Wairoa. The settlement itself lies immediately to the south of the highway.
The Maungaharuru Range is located 34 km from Napier in the New Zealand region of Hawke's Bay. The name means in the mountain that resounded in Te Reo Māori due to the bird population.
In late June 2024, torrential rain led to flooding in the North Island's East Coast regions of Hawke's Bay and the Gisborne District. This flooding led to evacuations and local states of emergency being declared in Hastings and Wairoa. 400 properties were flooded in Wairoa. In response, Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced that the New Zealand Government would contribute $300,000 to mayoral relief funds in Hastings, Wairoa and the Gisborne District. According to Mayor of Wairoa Craig Little, Wairoa sustained NZ$40 million worth of flood damage.