Steeple Rock, Wellington Harbour (8237683870)

Steeple Rock/Te Aroaro-o-Kupe is a large rock off

Seatoun Seatoun, an eastern suburb of Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand, lies on the east coast of the Miramar Peninsula, close to the entrance to Wellington Harbour ( Port Nicholson), some seven kilometres southeast of the CBD. The suburb s ...

at the west of the entrance to Wellington Harbour, rising above sea level. The rock plays a role in warning ships off the coast. It is the location of a marine light and an unbeaconed trig station (‘Steeple Rock Light’, geodetic code B0XX). Its

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

name is Te Aroaro-o-Kupe (The front of Kupe or The presence of Kupe). The name was officially changed in 2009 from Te Ure-o-Kupe (The penis of Kupe).

Kupe Kupe ( ~1180-1320) was a legendary Polynesian explorer, navigator and great rangatira of Hawaiki, who is said to have been the first human to discover New Zealand. Whether Kupe existed historically is likely but difficult to confirm. He is g ...

, the legendary discoverer of Aotearoa, is said to have injured himself on the rock while swimming. In earlier times Steeple Rock was also known as Pinnacle Rock. This should not be confused with The Pinnacles, a group of rocks extending from the tip of Point Dorset, south of Steeple Rock. While Steeple Rock is not as much of a hazard to shipping as

Barrett Reef The cluster of rocks that is Barrett Reef (often known as ''Barrett's Reef'') is one of the most hazardous reefs in New Zealand. It lies on the western side of the entrance of Wellington Harbour, on the approaches to the city of Wellington, at c ...

to the south, several ships have got into trouble around the rock, for example: * 1844 ''Royal William'', sloop. Got stuck and had to be pulled off Steeple Rock. * 1874 ''Anne Melhuish'', barque. Got stuck at Steeple Rock. * 1889 ''Willie McLaren'', barque. Damaged when it hit a rock near Steeple Rock. Took on water, so the captain took the ship to

Worser Bay Worser Bay in Wellington, New Zealand is along the beach from Seatoun and over the hill from Miramar on the Miramar Peninsula. It has a calm sandy beach with a road running along the base of the Seatoun Heights hill. Houses run all along the ...

where it sank. * 1921 '' Rona'', barque. Ran aground on Steeple Rock. Refloated and repaired. * 1968 TEV ''Wahine'', inter-island passenger ferry. The ''Wahine'' struck Barrett Reef and then drifted north until she foundered near Steeple Rock. 53 lives lost.

References

Wellington Harbour Rock formations of the Wellington Region {{Wellington-geo-stub