Mōtū River

The Mōtū River is a major waterway in the eastern part of the North Island of New Zealand. It rises south-west of Mātāwai in the Gisborne District, on the south-western side of the Raukūmara Range, and heads roughly northwards to the Pacific Ocean. It flows in a gorge the whole way through the range, where its important tributaries merge with it. It empties into the eastern Bay of Plenty at Houpoto, between Hāwai and Ōmāio, 31 km (19 mi) north-east of Ōpōtiki.[1]

Mōtū River
Mōtū Falls, downstream from Mōtū village
Native nameMōtū (Māori)
Physical characteristics
SourceSouth-west of Mātāwai
 • locationGisborne District
MouthBay of Plenty
 • location
Ōpōtiki District
Mōtū river mouth

The river passes through mostly uninhabited hill country, very steep and still thickly covered in rainforest.[1] It is much used for adventure tourism (jet-boating and white-water rafting). The first modern traverse of the river, from the Mōtū Falls to its mouth, was in 1920 by the Fisher brothers and S. Thorburn, and this was re-enacted in 2013 by Kevin Biggar and Jamie Fitzgerald in series 2 of the "First Crossings" TV series.

A mid-20th century proposal to dam the river for hydroelectricity was rejected.[2]

37°51′S 177°35′E

References
  1. McLintock, A. H., ed. (1966). "Motu River". An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 29 August 2023 – via Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand.
  2. G. W. Gray, 1954. "An Account of the Motu River Hydro Investigations". Whakatane Historical Society Newsletter 15/2:140-142


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