Te Puka (The Anchor Stone)

A 100-meter walk down the

Rakiura Track from the car park reveals a giant chain emerging from the tussock and sinking into the sand. This sculpture plays on the idea that Stewart Island (Rakiura) is physically connected to the South Island. There is a matching sculpture on the South Island at Bluff.

According to Māori folklore, the South Island was demigod Māui’s canoe (te waka a Māui) and Rakiura was the canoe’s anchor stone. The sculpture is formally known as

te puka

(the anchor stone).