Parapara River

Parapara River
Route of the Parapara River
Mouth of the Parapara River Show map of New Zealand Parapara River (South Island) Show map of South Island
Location
Country	New Zealand
Physical characteristics
Source
• location	Parapara Peak
• coordinates	40°50′11″S 172°38′50″E / 40.8363°S 172.6471°E / -40.8363; 172.6471
• elevation	1,249 metres (4,098 ft)
Mouth
• location	Parapara Inlet
• coordinates	40°43′42″S 172°40′48″E / 40.72821°S 172.68005°E / -40.72821; 172.68005
• elevation	0 metres (0 ft)
Length	20 km (12 mi)
Basin features
Progression	Parapara River → Parapara Inlet → Golden Bay / Mohua → Tasman Sea
Tributaries
• left	Blue Creek, Greenwood Creek, Glen Gyle Creek, Raby Riley Gully
• right	Grueby Creek, Happy Valley Stream, Dam Creek, Washbourn Creek

The Parapara River is a river of the Tasman Region of New Zealand's South Island. It flows generally north from its watershed in the Kahurangi National Park, reaching Golden Bay at the small settlement of Parapara, 5 kilometres south of Collingwood.

In Māori tradition, the river is inhabited by a taniwha called Kaiwhakaruaki, who used to attack the people of Motueka and Tākaka. This tradition derives from Society Islands in Polynesia, where a monstrous shark called 'Aifa'arua'i (a cognate of Kaiwhakaruaki) is said to have lived in the Parapara Strait between Motue'a and Taha'a islands (cognates of Motueka and Tahaka).^[1]

• List of rivers of New Zealand

"Place name detail: Parapara River". New Zealand Gazetteer. New Zealand Geographic Board. Retrieved 12 July 2009.