Rangitikei
Rangitikei is a mapped river in the YearMaps hydrographic index. River courses organise settlement, agriculture and frontier-making more durably than any political boundary, and this reach is indexed against the dams, lakes and cities within its catchment.
- Feature Class
- River
- Coordinates
- -39.77°, 175.81°
About Rangitikei
The Rangitīkei River is one of New Zealand's longest rivers at 253 kilometres (157 mi) long.
Its headwaters are to the southeast of Lake Taupō in the Kaimanawa Ranges. It flows from the Volcanic Plateau and Inland Pātea south past Taihape, Mangaweka, Hunterville, Marton, and Bulls, to the South Taranaki Bight at Tangimoana, 40 kilometres (25 mi) southeast of Whanganui. The river gives its name to the surrounding Rangitikei District.
The river is a popular leisure and recreation area for jetboating, white water rafting, kayaking and fishing, and includes public camp grounds along its banks, including Vinegar Hill, New Zealand. Its sheer vertical "paapa" (clay) cliffs (unique to this part of New Zealand) and deep canyons provide the perfect setting for adventure activities such as bungy jumps and flying fox rides. The cliffs, which display oxygen isotope stages, have been incised into the soft Quaternary, 2.6 to 1.7 million year old, marine sediments as the land has risen since the last ice age. The rise has left 19 terraces, which have been mapped.
There are rainbow trout and brown trout throughout the river system, with fish in the upper reaches reaching trophy size (i.e.
Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Rangitīkei River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Rangitikei in Depth
History
In 1897 the river flooded and all the bridges over it (Vinegar Hill, Onepuhi, Kakariki railway bridge and Bulls) were damaged or destroyed. Port of Rangitikei, at the mouth of the river, was washed away and never rebuilt. Other notable floods were in 1882, 1917, 1936, 1958, 1965 and 2004. Until 1908 a ferry linked Tangimoana to Scotts Ferry. Onepuhi, or Onepuehu, bridge was shown on the 1941 map, but missing from the 1968 and later maps. Further decking for the 807 ft (246 m) long Onepuhi bridge was suggested in 1958.
Part of the river was used as the Anduin River in Peter Jackson's movie The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Rangitīkei River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Rangitikei: Key Facts
| Length | 240 km |
|---|---|
| Drainage basin | 3,948 km² |
| Source | Kaimanawa Mountains |
| Mouth | Tasman Sea |
| Tributaries | Mangawharariki River, Moawhango River, Whakaurekou River, Mangamaire River, Mangatera River, Hautapu River |
Facts from Wikidata Q1768704 (CC0).
Major River Dossiers
Hand-written studies of the great river systems of history.
Connected Reaches
Nearby watercourses in the same drainage network.
Water Bodies in the Catchment
Settlements Along the Reach
Hydraulic Infrastructure Nearby
Surrounding Terrain
Rangitikei: Quick Answers
- Where is Rangitikei?
- Rangitikei is located in New Zealand, at 39.7734° S, 175.8126° E.
- Are there dams on the Rangitikei?
- No dam on the Rangitikei is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.