The Tuia Mātauranga GeoTour is about having fun discovering the history of Aotearoa New Zealand by finding sites of significance in local communities from early Pacific voyaging and migration, European settlement to present day. The interaction between people, and people and the land have provided a rich history that the GeoTour invites you to explore.
Large groups of Māori settled Te Rae Kura (Redcliffs) during the 14th century. A kāika was located at Te Rae Kura that was occupied by the early Waitaha people and then, later, by the Ngāti Māmoe tribe. Ngāi Tahu displaced Ngāti Māmoe in the 17th century and were still living in the area when the first Europeans began to arrive
Te Ana o Hineraki originally consisted of three chambers, the biggest of which was over 30 metres long, but the extent of the cave has sadly been reduced as a result of roadworks and extensive European excavation during the 19th century.
Moa bones and egg shells, along with bones of seals, birds and fish, shellfish and many Māori taonga were discovered and removed from the cave during that time.
Te Ana o Hineraki would not only have provided shelter in poor weather but also once served as a safe storage place for many valuable treasures.
Following the earthquakes of 2010 and 2011 the cave systems of Te Ana o Hineraki have been permanently closed as a safety precaution.
Sources:
CCC Archaeology website
Library website
To be able to complete this Geotour and receive your special geocoin, remember to take a note of the codeword on the log book of the cache. This will need to be recorded in your passport which can be downloaded from here. If the passport is unavailable for any reason just keep a note of the codeword and try again later.