TĀKAKA RIVER AND ITS TRIBUTARIES The relationship Ngāti Tama ki Te Tau Ihu has with the Tākaka River catchment is a significant one, as it encompasses both the spiritual and physical realms. The spiritual realm is reflected in the legend told about Huriawa. Huriawa is a tūpuna and kaiti aki taniwha (guardian) who works her way through the lands of Mōhua. Mōhua is the domain of Hine Tu Ahoanga (the Sandstone Lady). There are large areas all over the region showing her handiwork. The rock formations, the tunnels and the caves were all places that acted as shelter for the living and those who had passed on. Huriawa travels in the waters that flow through the domains of this Lady of the Stone. Thro ugh whakapapa, she has c onnections between Mōhua, the northern areas of the North Island and Te Wai Pounamu. Huriawa is the caretaker taniwha of the sacred carved prow piece of the waka “Uruao” that was ceremoniously invested in the mouth of th e W aitapu River, the river that was once called Ngā Waitapu o Uruao (the sacred waters of the Uruao). Huriawa travels through the northern lands to clear all the waterways from the effects of storms. She tosses fallen trees and tangled vegetation out of the rivers to free the flow. With the help of her children, she guards the top of the waka (canoe). When the rains come, Huriawa dives deep into the land and sea. It is she who churns up the waters when fresh water is found rising through the sea, far from shore. The waters in the Tākaka Rive r catchment whe re Huriawa resides are sacred - these waters are used for ceremonies, offerings, blessings and for healing purposes. The Waitapu River was originally a tributary of the Tākaka River. The confluence of these two rivers was subject to strong tidal flows. From the 1860s and onwards, modifications and extensions to the Waitapu Wharf separated the Waitapu River from the Takaka Rive r. However, Ngā ti Tama ki Te Tau Ihu whānau continue to recogniset he history here and how the waters of these two awa connected. The physical relationship Ngāti Tama ki Te Tau Ihu has with the Tākaka River relates to the protection and use of numerous resources associated with this taonga. Descendants of Ngāti Tama ki Te Tau Ihu chiefs have maintained ahi kā roa in Mōhua since the early 1800s. Traditionally, there were kāinga throughout the catchment, and the land and the river with all its resources were integral to the wellbeing of tūpuna. Te Meihana Te Ao, a Ngāti Tama ki Te Tau Ihu chief from Tākaka, and his whānau cultivated the lower reaches of the Tākaka River. On the east of the Tākaka River Mouth is an area once known as Patoto Island. This was another kāinga and mahinga kai of Te Meihan a. The natural outlet of the Tākaka River, Rangihaeata, was traditionally known as Rangi - ata. A place of great spiritual significance to Ngā ti Tama ki Te Tau Ihu, Rangihaeata was cited in an old mōteatea (lament) composed b y Te Meihana. The w ords relate to the significance of th River mouth and tell o f the grieving of Te Meihana over the e Tākaka loss of his loved one. Although the river now flows through the ur upā where the Meihana whānau are buried, a grave is sti ll visible on the Rangih aeata sid e. Ngāti Tama ki Te Tau Ihu have continuously maintained the role of kaitiaki over this awa since pre -1840. AORERE RIVER AND ITS TRIBUTARIES Aorere, which can be translated as the place of the flyin g or moving clouds, was the name of the place at the mouth of the Aorere River and encompassed the hinterland areas along the river. At the mouth of the Aorere River, the tip of the promontory, now called Collingwood, was the site of the Aorere pā. This was home to Tāmati Pirimona Marino of Ngāti Tama ki Te Tau Ihu descent. Marino exercised manaakitanga during the Te Tau Ihu Statutory Acknowledgements Page 93 of 163