Mount Tarawera

Other Walks

Mount Tarawera is central to the history of the Rotorua region since the earliest days of Maori settlement through to the dramatic eruption in 1886 and beyond.
In the 1800s, the Tarawera region was the centre of tourism in New Zealand. People travelled from all over the world to view the famous Pink and White Silica Terraces as well as the lakes, hotpools and other wonders of the area. The Terraces were thought to have been destroyed on the 10th June 1886, in an eruption which killed over 150 people and devastated much of the surrounding landscape. Violent explosions excavated huge craters, one of which is now filled by Lake Rotomahana. Maori Tohunga (spiritual medicine men) were said to have forewarned about the eruption and blamed it the anger of the gods at the excesses of the tourist trade.
Research in 2016 now speculates that the terraces may remain on the lakeside and are only covered in a few metres of volcanic matter and resulting regenerating bush.
There are many fascinating accounts of the eruption to be read or learned from guides.
You can walk, hike, take a helicopter flight or enjoy a 4WD (four-wheel drive) trip to the top of the now dormant Mount Tarawera. The more adventurous can enjoy a scree run down into the crater. A sense of magnitude still exists when one stands on the summit peaks and peers into the crater of this sleeping giant. The natural landscape today is testimony to the incredible earth forces of the region. The mountain is privately owned by the Ngati Rangitihi tribe for whom it is sacred. There is a fee for climbing the mountain.

Image Credits: Tarawera Crater, DB 543, White Terraces Burton Bros from Te Papa, Mount Tarawera Eruption : Tarawera shortly after Eruption, circa 1886, Bay of Plenty, by George Valentine. Gift of J Hector, 1951. Te Papa, Mount Tarawera Eruption : North Island Map, circa 1886, maker unknown. Gift of J Hector, 1951. Te Papa