Water of Laughter (Bay of Plenty) Traditional Cache

This cache has been archived.

Zero Gravitas: No response from owner. If you wish to repair/replace the cache sometime in the future, just contact us (by email), and assuming it meets the current guidelines, we'll be happy to unarchive it.

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Hidden : 10/14/2003
Difficulty:
1 out of 5
Terrain:
3 out of 5

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

" Please take note that the road is winding and narrow in parts and can get busy in the summer period of the year. "
Having your car headlights on when driving on this section of the road is a good idea, remember to turn them off when you arrive.

Lake Okataina is a scenic lake situated east-northeast of Rotorua. It is very popular for fishing and boating. In 1931 Ngati Tarawhai gifted the lake to the Crown for a scenic reserve.
Lake Okataina had an illustrious past during the land wars and most peninsulas contained a fortified pa. One pa, Te Koutu, was situated at the northern end of the lake and now lies under 15 metres of water.
The name Okataina means the lake of laughter, a shortened form of the original name Te Moana-i-Kataina-a-Te Rangitakaroro, which means
The Ocean Where Te Rangitakaroro Laughed. The name and its meaning relate to an incident, approximately 300 years ago, where the famous
Chief Te Rangitakaroro and his warriors were resting on what is now a submerged rock.
It is said that one member of his group referred to the lake as an ocean and this was seen as a great joke by the rest of the group.
Their laughter echoed around the lake and now remains enshrined in its name, which for ease of pronunciation was shortened to Okataina.
Continually rising lake levels caused many pa sites on the shores of Okataina to become submerged, because Lake Okataina has no major outlet for water to escape. Lake Okataina is affected by earthquakes such as the 1931 Napier earthquake which caused the lake to inexplicably lower by 3.5 metres, in the last century the lake has risen over 15 metres.

The Lake Okataina area was an important link in pre-european routes, when waka (canoes) were carried from Tarawera to Okataina, and from Okataina to
Rotoiti. Okataina road follows one of these ancient portage routes.

The above information was gathered from the internet and is a little history of the area.
(visit link)

I think it's one of those place's you hope will never change, it's well worth taking friend's or family for a day into the area, with a few very nice short bush walks and the lake front for a picnic lunch. (summer time is best )
Good parking and toilets available to the public.

From the car park, turn on your GPS. It should be telling you to head in a westerly direction towards the lake front.
In line with the pole you must go, bring a torch, it may come in handy, with arm in to find the prize, be careful of the wetas (just kidding, they moved out years ago).

(Sorry not wheelchair friendly.)

The contents :

Knuckle Bones/ Whistle/ Toy compass/ Playing cards/ Slinky/ Penguin key ring/ Credit card book/ Copy of Pirates of the Carribean

Additional Hints (No hints available.)



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