Tarawera Phantom Canoe. Lake Tarawera. New Zealand.
S 38° 12.400 E 176° 22.570
60H E 445382 N 5771070
Eleven days before the great eruption of Mt Tarawera in June 1886, a phantom Maori war canoe was seen to be sailing across the waters of Lake Tarawera.
Waymark Code: WM6Q7R
Location: North Island, New Zealand
Date Posted: 07/06/2009
Views: 9
Lying 24 kilometres south-east of Rotorua, Tarawera is a curious-looking mountain, with several large domes and a broad, flat top. Its distinctive profile formed during eruptions around 1314 AD. Early Maori and the Europeans who arrived in the 1800s did not realise that Tarawera was an active volcano. In June 1886, however, it came to life in a violent one-day eruption – the deadliest in the history of New Zealand settlement.
One pervasive legend of the 1886 eruption is that of the phantom canoe. Eleven days before the eruption, a boat full of tourists returning from the famous Pink and White Terraces saw what appeared to be a war canoe approach their boat, only to disappear in the mist half a mile from them. One of the witnesses was a clergyman. Nobody around the lake owned such a war canoe, and nothing like it had been seen on the lake for many years.
Though skeptics maintained that it was a freak reflection seen on the mist, tribal elders at Te Wairoa claimed that it was a waka wairua (spirit canoe) and was a portent of doom.
It has been suggested that the waka was actually a freak wave on the water, caused by seismic activity below the lake, but locals believe that a future eruption will be signalled by the reappearance of the canoe.
In the days before Mt Tarawera erupted there was an increase in hot spring activity, but otherwise there were no warning signs. Eleven days before, however, Maori and Pakeha tourists reported a phantom Maori war canoe sailing across Lake Tarawera, and surges in the water.
Just days before the eruption, a phantom canoe or apparition was seen on Lake Tarawera by both Maori and European. When the great Tohunga (priest) Tuhoto was asked what it meant he replied, "it was an omen, it is a sign that all in the region will be overwhelmed." Tuhoto believed the local people had desecrated their sacred mountain and values. Two days later, Mt Tarawera erupted...
At approximately 1.00 am on 10 June 1886, people at Te Wairoa were woken by earthquakes and continuous rumblings. The eruption destroyed the world famous Pink and White Terraces and also buried many Maori villages, including Te Wairoa with the loss of more than 150 lives.
Since then the legend of that "Phantom canoe" has continued to enthral many people. Was it true? Will it ever be seen again?
Additional Requirement?:
Visit Lake Tarawera at the given co-ords and take a photograph across the lake with Mt Tarawera in the background.
Website Source: [Web Link]
What's the Real Story?: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
Visit the location. If an action is required, test the action. Post a story and photograph of what happened. Do your best to keep your GPSr out of the photos.