Mount Pureora
{{Short description|Extinct volcano in the North Island of New Zealand}}
{{Use New Zealand English|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox mountain
| name = Mount Pureora
| photo = Titiraupenga from Pureora summit.jpg
| photo_caption = Titiraupenga from Pureora summit
| elevation_m = 1165
| elevation_ref = {{cite web|title=NZTopoMap:Pureora|url=https://www.topomap.co.nz/https://www.topomap.co.nz/NZTopoMap?v=2&ll=-38.551872,175.627846&z=15}}
| map = New Zealand North Island
| map_caption =
| label_position = right
| listing =
| location = Waikato, New Zealand
| coordinates = {{coord|38.551872 |S|175.627846|E|type:mountain_scale:100000|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| topo =
| type = Stratovolcano
| age = Pleistocene
| last_eruption = 1.60 ± 0.10 Ma.
| first_ascent =
| easiest_route = Te Araroa
| map_image ={{#tag:mapframe|[{{Wikipedia:Map data/Northern North Island Volcanics}},{ "type": "Feature", "properties": { "marker-size": "small", "marker-color": "#ff0000", "marker-symbol": "volcano", "title": "Mount Pureora" }, "geometry": {"type": "Point", "coordinates":[175.627846, -38.551872]} }]
| frameless =1
| align =center
|text=Map showing approximate {{legend-inline|#f4766f|basaltic andesite}} surface volcanic deposits around Mount Pureora (red marker). Mount Titiraupenga deposits are to the north west. Other surface deposits are as in fuller key while mixed erosive volcanic surface deposits are uncoloured.{{Wikipedia:Map data/Northern North Island Volcanics/key}}
|width=250
|height=250
|latitude=-38.551872
|longitude=175.627846
|icon=no
|zoom=11
}}
}}
Pureora (known more usually as Mount Pureora to avoid confusion with the township, locality and Forest Park) is an extinct {{Convert|1165|m}} high basaltic andesite stratovolcano{{cite journal|first1=Adrian |last1=Pittari |first2=Marlena L. |last2=Prentice |first3= Oliver E. |last3=McLeod |first4= Elham Yousef|last4=Zadeh |first5= Peter J. J. |last5=Kamp |first6= Martin |last6=Danišík |first7=Kirsty A. |last7=Vincent |year=2021 |title= Inception of the modern North Island (New Zealand) volcanic setting: spatio-temporal patterns of volcanism between 3.0 and 0.9 Ma |journal= New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics |volume=64 |issue=2-3 |pages= 250–272 | DOI=10.1080/00288306.2021.1915343|url=https://fl-nzgs-media.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2021/08/Ref.6C-c_North-Island-NZ-VolcanicSettingBetween3.00.9MaPittari-et-al.-2021_.pdf }} located in the Pureora Forest Park between Lake Taupō and Te Kūiti on the North Island Volcanic Plateau in New Zealand. The area of the mountain is in a scenic reserve that is "recognised as one of the finest rain forests in the world".{{Cite web |url= https://www.visitruapehu.com/see-do/walking-hiking/walks-in-pureora-forest |title=Walks in the Pureora Forest |publisher=Visit Ruapehu |access-date=23 November 2022}}
Geography
{{main|Pureora Forest Park}}
The mountain is covered in native forest and quite near the geographical centre of the North Island which is slightly to its west. It is located on the boundary of the Waikato and Manawatū-Whanganui regions.
=Geology=
Mount Pureora has a prominence above the surrounding countryside of about {{convert|450|m|abbr=on}} and a diameter of {{convert|5|km|abbr=on}}. It is to the south west of a smaller pleioscene stratovolcano, Mount Titiraupenga, and both are located to the south of the ancient Mangakino caldera on a basement of Waipapa composite terrane. The basaltic andesite lavas are made up of plagioclase, clinopyroxene and orthopyroxene, with rare olivine and hornblende phenocrysts with an age of 1.60 ± 0.10 Ma.
=Access=
The mountain top is accessed by several trails and has bike access. These include a portion of the Te Araroa trail{{cite web| title=Te Araroa - New Zealand Trail|url=https://www.teararoa.org.nz/ |access-date=2022-11-23}} which incorporates the Timber trail and a branch of this called the Toi Toi track accessible off State Highway 30 near the township of Pureora. The Mount Pureora track is accessible also from back roads off State Highway 32, which lies to the west of Lake Taupō.{{cite web|title=Pureora Forest Park |url=https://www.newzealand.com/int/feature/pureora-forest-park/|work=newzealand.com|publisher=New Zealand Tourism Board|accessdate=23 November 2022}}