The Manawatū Gorge () is a steep-sided gorge formed by the Manawatū River in the North Island of New Zealand. At long, the Manawatū Gorge divides the Ruahine and Tararua Ranges, linking the Manawatū and Tararua Districts. It lies to the northeast of Palmerston North. Its western end is near the small town of Ashhurst and its eastern end is close to the town of Woodville. As the one of the few links between the eastern and western North Island, the gorge is an important transport link, with the Palmerston North–Gisborne Line passing through the gorge, as well as State Highway 3; the road has been closed since 2017. Recreationally, the gorge is part of the Manawatū Gorge Scenic Reserve, with various walking tracks through the surrounding native bush. Like many important geographic features in New Zealand, the creation and exploration of Manawatū Gorge is an embedded part of traditional Māori history. According to tradition, the first Māori to discover the gorge was Whātonga, an explorer from the Kurahaupō canoe, who found the gorge in about the 12th century. Europeans began to traverse the Manawatū Gorge around the 1840s; in 1842 Bishop George Augustus Selwyn and Chief Justice William Martin passed through the gorge to reach the Wairarapa. Etymology The Manawatū Gorge takes its name from the river which cuts through it, the Manawatū River. The river's name, which means 'heart standing still', is derived from the words manawa, meaning heart, and tū, meaning coming to a halt. This comes from traditional Māori history, in which it is said that Haunui-a-nanaia uttered the phrase when he caught sight of the river in his search for his wife Wairaka. Te Āpiti is the Māori name for the gorge, which is usually translated to mean 'the narrowing', or 'the narrow passage'. The gorge was also sometimes given the name Te Au-rere-a-te-tonga. Geography The Manawatu Gorge is significant because, unlike most gorges, the Manawatu River is a water gap, that is it runs directly through the surrounding ranges from one side to the other. This was caused by the ranges moving upwards at the same time as the gorge was eroded by the river, instead of the more usual erosion of an already existing range. The Manawatu River is the only river in New Zealand that starts its journey in the Tararua District on one side of the main divide, and finishes it