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The Cyclopedia of New Zealand [Auckland Provincial District]

Ateamuri

Ateamuri.

Ateamuri is a secluded spot on the old road between Rotorua and Taupo; it is twenty-eight miles from Rotorua, twenty-five from Taupo, and twenty-two miles from Wairakei. It is on the banks of the Waikato river and has a weekly coach service. There is fine trout fishing close by in the Waikato river and the Tarangatara and Maungaharakiki streams. The Rainbow Falls on the Waikato are about two miles from the hotel. They are about fifty feet wide, and beautiful rainbow effects are seen in the spray. The Government is opening up a road from this point to Orakeikorako, which is about eight miles distant, and is said to abound in thermal wonders. As it is necessary to cross the Waikato river to reach Orakeikorako, the Maoris keep a ferry for the purpose. About two miles away on the road to Ongaroto, a native settlement, there is a row of stones,
Ateamuri from the Bridge.

Ateamuri from the Bridge.

page 821 set upright in the ground, which are of considerable interest in native history. It is said that at this spot the Maoris of the Ngatikaupungapunga tribe made their last stand against the Ngatiraukawa tribe, and were all killed with the exception of five, who made their escape to Horohoro, where their descendants live. The cause of the quarrel was the murder of a native woman, who was given in marriage to the chief of the Ngatikaupungapunga tribe, and the stones were set up at the heads of the bodies of the chiefs as they lay in a row preparatory to being consigned to the ovens. The fight is said to have taken place ten generations ago, and the spot is known to the Maoris by the name of Te Urupa o Ngatikaupungapunga. About two miles from Ateamuri there are two large hot springs named MokuTuhana; and about a quarter of a mile from the Ateamuri Hotel there is the long stone named Pohaturoa, which is situated at an altitude of about 4000 feet above the river. The spot, as fortified by the Maoris, is understood to have stood a good many sieges, and never to have been captured.

The Ateamuri Hotel (George Parsons, proprietor) is situated at the rise of the Rotorua-Taupo Road, near the bridge over the Waikato river, and is a relief to the eye after many miles of fern-clad hills and grass plain. There are several hot springs and points of interest within easy access, and Pohaturoa rears its steep and rocky sides some 500 feet above the river. A row of stones, a short distance down the river, marks the spot where the original native inhabitants were killed and eaten by the ancestors of the Ngati Whaita, who now live at Ongaroto, about three miles from Ateamuri. At Ateamuri is the starting point for Orakei Korako, where some of the finest sights in the thermal district are to be seen; the Alum Cave is worth going round the world to see. Money has been voted by Parliament on two occasions to make a buggy road, but most of it has been spent on surveys, and tourists still have to use the bridle track; but it is hoped that the driving road will be finished this year (1901). As a sporting resort Ateamuri is hard to beat, and those who can shoot make good bags of both pheasants and ducks; deer also abound in the district. Visitors will find in Mr. Parsons a true sportsman and a crack gun and rifle shot. The cuisine is under the personal superintendence of Mrs Parsons, which is a guarantee of quality. A cup of tea and a meal can be had at any time, which is a consideration to those who may be on the road, early or late. Stables and paddocks are attached to the hotel, and buggy and saddle horses are obtainable on hire.

Mr. and Mrs G. Parsons and Family.

Mr. and Mrs G. Parsons and Family.