Lake Karapiro is an artificial reservoir

Reservoir

A reservoir , artificial lake or dam is used to store water.Reservoirs may be created in river valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the ground or by conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete.The term reservoir may also be used to...

 lake on the Waikato River

Waikato River

The Waikato River is the longest river in New Zealand. In the North Island, it runs for 425 kilometres from the eastern slopes of Mount Ruapehu, joining the Tongariro River system and emptying into Lake Taupo, New Zealand's largest lake. It drains Taupo at the lake's northeastern edge, creates the...

 in the North Island

North Island

The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...

 of New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

. The lake, near Cambridge

Cambridge, New Zealand

Cambridge is a town in the Waikato region of the North Island of New Zealand. Situated 24 kilometres southeast of Hamilton, on the banks of the Waikato River, Cambridge is known as "The Town of Trees & Champions".In the 1840s Cambridge had a Maori population but in the 1850's missionaries and...

 and some 30 kilometres (18.6 mi) south-east of the city of Hamilton

Hamilton, New Zealand

Hamilton is the centre of New Zealand's fourth largest urban area, and Hamilton City is the country's fourth largest territorial authority. Hamilton is in the Waikato Region of the North Island, approximately south of Auckland...

, was created in 1947 to store water for the Karapiro Power Station

Karapiro Power Station

The Karapiro Power Station is a hydroelectric power station on Waikato River, in the North Island of New Zealand. The power station station lies on Lake Karapiro, upstream from the city of Hamilton...

, the last of the eight hydroelectric power stations on the Waikato River.

The lake, regarded as one of New Zealand's best rowing

Sport rowing

Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...

 venues, hosted the World Rowing Championships

World Rowing Championships

The World Rowing Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA . It is a week long event held at the end of the northern hemisphere summer and in non-Olympic years is the highlight of the international rowing calendar.The first event was held in Lucerne, Switzerland in 1962...

 in 1978 and the 1950 British Empire Games

1950 British Empire Games

The 1950 British Empire Games was the fourth edition of what is now called the Commonwealth Games. It was held in Auckland, New Zealand between the 4th and 11th of February 1950, after a 12-year gap from the 3rd edition of the games...

. The 2010 World Rowing Championships

2010 World Rowing Championships

The 39th 2010 World Rowing Championships were held at Lake Karapiro, near Cambridge, New Zealand between October 29 – November 7. The annual week-long rowing regatta was organised by FISA . Usually held at the end of the northern hemisphere summer, they were held later in the year in the southern...

 were held here.

"A FISA inspection panel had visited Lake Karapiro venue in March and said in its report that it was one of the fairest courses in the world they had seen and that the lake was one of the most picturesque in the world."

Etymology

'Kara' means stone, 'piro' means evil-smelling. According to legend, Karapiro was the stronghold of the chief O-Te-Ihingarangi, and was where the Ngati Haua and their Tauranga

Tauranga

Tauranga is the most populous city in the Bay of Plenty region, in the North Island of New Zealand.It was settled by Europeans in the early 19th century and was constituted as a city in 1963...

 allies made a defensive pact during the land wars

New Zealand land wars

The New Zealand Wars, sometimes called the Land Wars and also once called the Māori Wars, were a series of armed conflicts that took place in New Zealand between 1845 and 1872...

 of 1864.

Hydroelectric power

The dam for the Karapiro Power Station

Karapiro Power Station

The Karapiro Power Station is a hydroelectric power station on Waikato River, in the North Island of New Zealand. The power station station lies on Lake Karapiro, upstream from the city of Hamilton...

 forms the lake in the original path of the Waikato River. The Horahora Power Station

Horahora Power Station

Horahora Power Station was an early hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River in New Zealand. It was the country’s first large-scale power station, completed in 1913. Initially built to service a gold mine, the power station was expanded to supply a significant part of the North Island...

, part of an earlier hydroelectric power scheme, was flooded with the formation of Lake Karapiro.

External links

• Mighty River Power — Karapiro information page
• 2010 World Rowing Championships — Lake Karapiro — NZ Herald