The sky was lit by great flashes of flame...' The 1886 eruption of Mt Tarawera obliterated the spectacular Pink and White Terraces, one of the world's scenic wonders, and buried a number of villages. The disaster was heralded by an apparition of a ghostly canoe on Lake Tarawera. Archival audio sourced from Radio New Zealand Sound Archives, http://www.soundarchives.co.nz/. Sound files may not be reused without permission from Radio New Zealand Sound Archives (Reference number sa-t-0224-su02-pm).

The southern hemisphere's biggest cheese factory is in the small Waikato town of Lichfield. Owned by the Fonterra dairy co-operative - New Zealand's largest company, responsible for a third of the world's international dairy trade - the Lichfield factory is the much larger descendant of the many small dairy factories that once dotted the New Zealand countryside.

New Zealanders struggled to make paper from rags, flax and grass in the 19th century, but were more successful later using wood waste from plantation forests. From the 1940s Tokoroa town was developed in a forestry area to house workers constructing - and then operating - the nearby Kinleith pulp and paper mill. Archival audio sourced from Radio New Zealand Sound Archives, http://www.soundarchives.co.nz/. Sound files may not be reused without permission from Radio New Zealand Sound Archives (Reference number sa-t-2338-su05-pm).

A distinctive rock by the side of State Highway One is significant to Māori for its role in the story of Hatupatu. He was taken prisoner by the fearsome bird-woman Kurangaituku, but managed to escape from her lair. Kurangaituku gave chase, but the rock magically opened to shelter Hatupatu. Some say that the bird-woman's claw marks are still visible on the rock.

When completed in 1963, Wairākei was one of just two geothermal power stations in the world. However, it has adversely affected the surrounding thermal area - tourist attractions such as the famous Wairākei geyser and Champagne Pool have come to a halt, and the land is sinking. A nearby prawn farm takes advantage of heat from the power station's waste water. Archival audio: Archives New Zealand - Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, http://www.archives.govt.nz/ People of the Waikato. National Film Unit, 1956.

At Huka Falls, up to 220,000 litres of water rush through a narrow gorge on the Waikato River each second. Just a handful of thrill-seeking kayakers have navigated the foaming turquoise waters of the falls, which were also the site of a 1989 murder investigation. Archival audio sourced from Radio New Zealand Sound Archives, http://www.soundarchives.co.nz/. Sound files may not be reused without permission from Radio New Zealand Sound Archives (Reference number C89020-7D).

Musicians Neil and Tim Finn are Te Awamutu's most famous sons. Tim's band Split Enz - a theatrically costumed arthouse ensemble - morphed into a successful pop group after 18-year-old Neil joined in the late 1970s. The brothers were later both part of the internationally successful Crowded House. Archival audio sourced from Radio New Zealand Sound Archives, http://www.soundarchives.co.nz/. Sound files may not be reused without permission from Radio New Zealand Sound Archives (Reference number 05/142/01).

Ōrākau, near Kihikihi, was the site of a Māori fighting pā (fortification) and a decisive 1864 battle between Māori and British troops. Although the Māori defenders, led by chief Rewi Maniapoto, lost the battle, they are remembered for their courage and their refusal to surrender.

The kiwi - a flightless, fast-running bird with many mammal-like features - is New Zealand's national bird, and New Zealanders are often known as Kiwis. Kiwi are prominent in Ōtorohanga, with three species on display at the kiwi house, and 'kiwiana' icons decorating the town.

The limestone Waitomo Caves attract over 400,000 visitors a year to their spectacular glow-worm grotto and caverns. The cave system was first explored in 1887, and from 1905 it was managed by the New Zealand government's Tourist Department. Today black-water rafting is popular with more adventurous visitors.