TALL TRAVELLING.

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume IX, Issue 909, 10 July 1880, Page 3

TALL TRAVELLING.

An instance of rapid travelling ha 3 come to our knowledge worth recording. A gentleman left Tauranga for Auckland r via the Waikato to catch the outgoing mail steamer!, accompanied by Mr George Grey, a guide residing here. They left Tauranga at 2 o'clock last Saturday afternoon, and reached Clark's Hotel before tea time. That night it rained, and on trying next day to get through the range between Katikati and Te Aroha found it impossible to cross the creeks. Starting at (5 o'clock on Monday morning, they reached O'Halloran's Hotel, at Te Aroha, at 9 o'clock, and after staying there two hours, crossed the Waihou at 11 o'clock. From that to Missen's Hotel, a distance of four miles, the road was simply abominable, the heavy traffic having cut it up to such an extent that at times the horses were up to their belHes in mud and slush. At 5 o'clock Hamilton was reached, the weather having been frightful all the way from Katikati, the wind, sleet, and rain being incessant. Arriving at Hamilton, they found it would be necessary to reach .Mercer, a distance of 55 miles further on, and catch the (j o'clock train for Auckland to be in time for the mail steamer. Procuring fresh horses here, our travellers started at 9 o'clock at night for Mercer, in the midst of a tempest of rain and wind, and along wet and slippery roads. Mercer was reached just ten minutes before the train started, and after four hours' rest Mr Grey left for Hamilton on the return journey, where he stayed that night. Leaving Hamilton at 9.30 next morning, with fine weather but'sloppy roads, Mr Grey reached Clark'a Hotel-at tea time, and afterwards came on to Tauranga the same evening, thus doing a journey of three hundred miles between Saturday afternoon and Wednesday night, in the depth of winter and over the sloppiest and muddiest of roads. . This is pretty tall travelling, when we recollect a day's time was lost at Katikati on account of the weather, and we may consider Mr Grey our champion traveller, as it will take some travelling to wipe this journey out. Mr Grey reports the track through the range at Katikati"to be far the best route to the Waikato, and would strongly urge anyone going through from here to take that way. There is also ample accommodation along the road at short stages, which prevents all fear of camping out or being benighted in the bush, a not infrequent contingency to parties travelling the other routes from here to Waikato.