Kakepuku

Kakepuku
Kakepuku from the south as seen from the North Island Main Trunk Railway (Dec 2011)
Highest point
Elevation	449 m (1,473 ft)
Coordinates	38° 3' 57.51"S, 175° 14' 59.6358"E
Naming
Translation	swollen neck or swollen stomach of Kahu
Geography
Location	North Island, New Zealand
Topo map	BE33 Pirongia http://www.topomap.co.nz/NZTopoMap/nz53324
Geology
Age of rock	Pliocene
Mountain type	Volcano (extinct)
Climbing
Easiest route	from Kakepuku Rd

Kakepuku (Kakipuku-o-kahurere) rises from the plain between the Waipa and Puniu rivers, 8 km (5 mi) SW of Te Awamutu in the Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island.

The 'Geology of the Waikato Area' says, "The Alexandra Volcanic Group consists of several low-angle composite cones, including Karioi, Pirongia, Kakepuku, Te Kawa and Tokanui volcanoes, aligned southeast from Mount Karioi on the coast to Tokanui. They comprise about 55 km³ of mainly basaltic material erupted from at least 40 volcanic centres. The Alexandra Volcanic Group is the product of Late Pliocene to earliest back-arc volcanism, when both subduction-related basaltic magmas (Karioi, Pirongia, Kakepuku and Te Kawa) and intraplate alkalic basalts (Okete) were erupted. K-Ar ages range from 2.74 to 1.6 Ma, with the ages of the different magma series overlapping". It goes on to say Kakepuku is "composed mainly of basalt lava with minor tuff ". Kakepuku was formed about 2.5m years ago. See also the geological map http://data.gns.cri.nz/geology/

Kakepuku was named by Rakataura, a Tainui tohunga. One version says it was in memory of the shape of his pregnant wife, Kahurere. In Maori legend, Kakepuku travelled north in search of his father, until he reached the Waipa plain and fell in love with Te Kawa, daughter of Pirongia and Taupiri Mountains. However, he had a rival in Karewa, who also stood nearby. The mountains fought, Karewa lost and, pursued by Kakepuku's rocks, fled into the Tasman Sea, now also known as Gannet Island. So Kakepuku remains guarding Te Kawa.