The collection interweaves descriptive topography and geological explanation of the Port Hills with Māori poetic legends and local traditions gathered from Māori informants, notably a principal narrator from Rapaki. Chapters map place-names and walking routes, explain volcanic features such as dykes and crater-forms, and retell tales of Tamatea and his sacred fire, the patu-paiarehe fairylike beings, and other supernatural figures tied to particular crags, tracks, and villages. Illustrations and maps accompany the narrative, situating folklore within landscape, nomenclature, and communal memory.