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Story: Tāmaki tribes

Te Tō Waka, the canoe portage

Audio file

Te Tō Waka, the narrow stretch of land between the Tāmaki River and the Manukau Harbour, was used extensively by Māori as they travelled between the east and west coasts. Listen to the traditional chant used by the Tainui people while they dragged their canoes across the isthmus. Today the crossing is used for very different forms of transport, as this view looking towards the Manukau suggests.

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Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision

Reference: 40703

Image: Te Ara – The Encyclopedia of New Zealand, by Jock Phillips

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How to cite this page

Rāwiri Taonui, Tāmaki tribes – The canoes of Tāmaki, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/music/3880/te-to-waka-the-canoe-portage (accessed 11 June 2026).

Story by Rāwiri Taonui, published 4 March 2009, updated 22 March 2017.