Rotorua

Pohutu and Prince of Wales Feathers geysers on the Te Whakarewarewa geyser terrace in Rotorua, New Zealand

Te Puia

Located within the city limits of Rotorua, Te Puia is home to some amazing geothermal activity, including boiling mud pools, hot springs, and geysers.

Te Pui is also the area where the Maori settled in the 1300s and have been living there ever since. The people from the Te Arawa tribe made their home here. Te Puia has two important attractions :

  1. Te Whakarewarewa Valley
  2. Maori model village

Te Whakarewarewa Valley

The geothermal activity is centered around the Te Whakarewarewa  valley in Te Puia. There are bubbling mud pools, geysers and hot springs in this area.

Boiling Mud Pool

The image below shows a pool of boiling and bubbling slurry of gray mud in the Te Whakarewarewa geothermal valley. These pools are known as mud pools or mud pots.

Mud pools are a typical occurrence in geothermal areas. They occur when the acids, gases, and microorganisms emanating from the underground geothermal activity break down the rocks into the mud. If the water supply is limited, the mud becomes a viscous slurry, which boils and bubbles because of the high temperature.

Boiling Mud Pool in Te Whakarewarewa Geothermal Valley
Boiling Mud Pool in Te Whakarewarewa Geothermal Valley

The image below shows a beautiful pool with water flown into it from geothermal activity in the Te Whakarewarewa valley.  The water sprouted from the geysers flows though underground channels into many pools spread around this area. Because of the dissolved minerals, the water in these pools is alkaline.

A pond with water from thermal activity in Te Puia near Roturoa, New Zealand
A pond with water from thermal activity in Te Puia

Whakarewarewa Geyser Terrace

The geyser terrace has six geysers, of which three are active, two are occasionally active and one is dormant. There is a nice walk to this terrace for visitors to watch the geyser eruptions.

Whakarewarewa Geyser Terrace in Te Puia near Roturoa, New Zealand
Whakarewarewa Geyser Terrace in Te Puia

Pohutu and Prince of Wales Feathers Geysers

The Pohutu geyser is one of the most active among the six geysers on the Whakarewarewa geyser terrace and the largest active geyser in the Southern Hemisphere.

Pohutu in Maori means big splash, which is an appropriate name for this geyser as it can shoot up water to a height of 100 feet. The eruption occurs once or twice in an hour and can last up to 30 minutes.

The Pohutu geyser has a twin named Prince of Wales Feathers (Te Tohu in Maori). The shape of this geyser resembles a feather. When the Prince of Wales visited the area in the 1900s, it was named Prince of Wales Feathers to honor him. Prince of Wales Feathers typically erupts slightly before Pohutu, and its eruption can last up to seven minutes.

The images below show Pohutu and Prince of Wales Feathers before and during its eruption.

Pohutu Geyser before eruption
Pohutu Geyser before eruption
Pohutu Geyser after eruption
Pohutu Geyser after eruption

Blueys Pool

As the name suggests, the Blueys Pool is a small pool of cobalt blue water flown into it from the nearby geysers. It is situated next to the Pohutu geyser. A variety of minerals dissolved in this water gives it the blue color and also makes it alkaline.

Blueys Pool in the Te Whakarewarewa Geothermal Valley
Blueys Pool in Te Puia

Related Pages
Hobbiton Movie Set, Auckland
Queenstown, Fiordland National Park, Milford Sound, New Zealand
Maori Culture

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