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Ko tā tātou pūrākau i tēnei wiki hou e hāngai atu ana ki tētehi rarangi māunga e tū whakaiti kau ana ki te hiwa o ngā wai karekare. he mea wāhi rua a rotorua me te nehenehe nui o Ikataina e Whakapoungakau.
He tino wāhi nui tēnei ōnamata, momona i ngā rākau Māori, pakari hoki i ngā manu me ngā hua katoa o te whenua, ā, kai ētehi tihi o te tūara māunga nei ka whakaatungia e ngā tūpuna, he pa tūwatawata. E tika ana hoki, ko tini hoki ngā pūrākau mō te ingoatanga o tēnei takiwā, whoi anō he mea iti kau tēnei nāku.
E ai ki ngā whare wānanga, he tangata pakiki a Ngatoroirangi ko ia tēnei te Ariki Ihorei katoa o Ngāti Ohomairangi te pūkenga nui o Hawaiki. Me tana tapeha tata a Tamatekapua me tōna hūnuku, ka ū mai ēnei toa ki te whenua i kitea e Kupe, i hīa ai e Māui i tapangia ai ko Te Ahi nā Māui.
Ka whakatōmene te whenua e ngā waewae tapu, ko ētehi mā te ākau ko ētehi mā te puku tonu o te ika. Taro kau iho ka ū a Ngatoroirangi me tōna pahi ki ngā rekereke o Tongariro, tangata māia a ia ka piki ki te tihi o te māunga, ka roa e piki ana ka ngaua ia e te māeke me ngā hau anuanu, ka tata te hemo ka tukuna ngā karakia ki ōna tuāhine hai whakaora i a ia. Ka hoea te moana e ngā tuāhine me tō rātou tungāne ka ū ki uta.
He rūāhine hoki a Kuiwai me Haungaroa ko tō rāua tūngane a Tanewhakaraka he tangata whakangau manu māna e ora ai tēnei pahi. Tūmeke katoa ana ngā kanohi o tēnei tangata i tana kitehanga i te mātotorutanga o ngā manu Māori kāre i rite pea tōna Hawaiki ki te Hawaiki hou nei.
Kāti, e nohopuku ana te tokotoru ka titiro atu ngā kanohi o Tanewhakaraka ki tētehi huinga māunga ki tua, ka kī ia ki ōna tuahine, "Kua riro taku ngākau ki ngā hiwi rā tāria taku hokitanga mai e pūhake ai te māhau o te pātaka kai".
Ka wehe atu a Tanewhakaraka rātou ko tōna hūnuku, e haere ana me tana tao. Kīhai i mātau ai ngā tuahine ko te whakakitehanga whakamutunga tēnei ki tō rāua tūngane. E wāuna hoki i te korenga o tēnei toa.
He rongo kōrero kau he takawheta ngutu i mea nei, i patua pea tōna pahi e ngā tangata Māori he iwi i nōhia tēnei whenua nō mua mai i ēnei tangata hakoke, tēnā pea he rite ki te iwi o Maruiwi i toromi atu ai ki Te Reinga, ka rere i te pari ka rere ki te mate.
I puritia rātou e te nehenehe nui hai hoa mōna oti atu. Rānei i torotika tana haerenga ka puta ki tētehi atu taha o te whenua ki reira tōna pahi noho ai. Ka tāria rātou e ngā rūāhine, ka roa e noho ana, ka wehe i tēnei whenua, ko te mea kē me haere tonu rātou ki tō ratou Ariki ki a Ngātoroirangi, whoi anō i mua i tō rāua wehenga i tēnei takiwā ka tapangia ko āua maunga rā ko Whakapoungakau, e ora ake tonu nei te kōingo manawa o tō rātou tūngāne ki ngā hiwi ururua.
Ko tētehi anō kōrero nā ngā uri o Te Rangiteaorere, te kurī unutoto o Te Arawa nō tana hokitanga mai ki ngā waiariki ki te ngaki utu ka whakaara matua e ia ka whakaeke atu ki runga o Mokoia ko te moutere e pōtere ra ra i wē moana ka hinga katoa ngā tangata, he rangatira anake, whoi anō ka houhia ki te rongo taketake ka aro atu tana titiro ki uta ka ki atu tēnei amokura ki tōna iwi nōna e nohotū ana ki te Te Aro-aro-o-Te-Rangikaawatea, "Ka whakapou atu taku ngākau ki ngā maunga e tū mai rā!". Ka mau roa te ingoatanga ki tēnei rarangi maunga moroki noa nei.
This pūrākau pertains to the great ranges that stand to the East of Rotorua township.
The hills of Whakapoungakau separate the Rotorua region from Ikataina. It was an area once renowned for its abundance of trees and birdlife and the many fortified villages that dotted its backbone.
Though many stories lie upon the hilltops regarding the site's naming, this is only a tiny contribution.
The priest of Ngati Ohomairangi was a curious man; he was Ngatoroirangi, the learned scholar of Hawaiki. With his relations, the followers of Tamatekapua berthed safely upon the shores of Te Ahi na Maui.
As time passed, the leaders and their entourage dispersed throughout the area today known as the Bay of Plenty. Ngatoroirangi eventually made his way South and had decided to ascend the great mountain of Tongariro.
Finding himself near death, he called for the strength of his sisters, who arrived with their brother Tanewhakaraka. The sisters, Kuiwai and Haungaroa, were also learned priestesses, and the skills of their brother, Tanewhakaraka, were necessary to ensure that they retained their strength.
Tanewhakaraka was a great hunter who was incredibly overwhelmed by the prolific birdlife this country had to offer.
As the trio rested with their followers, Tanewhakaraka pointed to the ranges in the distance; turning to his sisters, he said: "I'm going to hunt in those hills, I have my heart fixed on a spot that may be full of birdlife when I return I will bring you both many birds."
As they said their farewells to each other, Tanewhakaraka gathered his hunting equipment and departed from the site that he had been occupying with his group. That was the last time his sisters saw their brother, for sadly, he never returned. No one truly knows what happened.
Some earlier people also occupied the ranges, and it could be that he fell to their weapons.
On the other hand, he may have become lost or continued past the great hills and, true to his nature, continued his land explorations.
Kuiwai and Haungaroa waited for a long time, hoping they would again see their brother exit from the fringe of the forest; sadly, he did not.
Knowing that they had to continue their journey to Ngatoroirangi, they decided to leave, naming the ranges, Whakapoungakau – because of the feelings expressed by their brother – saying that he had fixed his heart upon a site of greatness.
Another story told is comes from the time of the brave warrior Te Rangiteaorere. The descendant of Rangitihi had laid low the occupants of Mokoia Island.
Having defeated his enemies and in a moment of stillness, his attention turned to the ranges that stand to the east in amazement of the beauty that overwhelmed him; he said: "My heart desires to wander the ranges that stand yonder".
From this gentle exspression comes the name of the range, Whakapoungākau.
There are 93 horses still facing an uncertain fate.