A WONDERFUL SIGHT.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 114, 6 February 1908, Page 9

A WONDERFUL SIGHT.

I ICE CAVES AND MOUNTAIN SCENERY. p.; . . '. (BY TsSOCUTION.j ,■ ■ ■ Chrtstohurciv February 5, ' t i ,It.has been left to :tho Rcr.O. H-' Moroi. land,, headmaster of . Christ's College, to makopublic.through ttiomedium of a'Tross'' interviewer,a district which: for tho niagniiicenco ; of its ccencry is probably unequalled m this Island, but which has so far apparently escaped tho notico of.tlio Toimst Department .and tho goneral public. Somo time, ago ,Mr., Moreland had a conversation ■with ,a,- surveyor , who- told i. him. of :.tho .existence .of.. certain • .very <•> wonderful, : icb. caves which ho had seen m the vicinity of- ' tho aspiring •' range to tho . north .'of ;Lak6' As a iqombcr. of. a riding party v' r 'V- |. orcl;intl recently made, a trip from •i'airlio- to Pembroke;'.'travelling .via the' Hindis 'Pass and> Morvciu Hilla, and from ,1 ou.broko .tho, party -for North-, west .Otago;, 'Iheymade for a '.dilapidated B helter ji'tiich "Was ;usod many years ago bv shepherds situatcd' pii: the sputli bank of • tho Alatukituki lliver ahpiit thirty miles from' I oihbrdke,' "Thoro. is a ,7 good driving track ?m r ' 0 first. twclvo /miles; from Peiribroko.ho hut is .'some• twolvo or.-fifteen miles on,' ijnd the' track .is an /old dray track' formerly■ used in' connection with -'sawmills, but now practically disused exccpfc b.v one settler; ' t An old abandoned homestead about four miles-further oji has the makings of a verv good-' hut,.'r said 1 -, Mr. • Moreland- "and' I undOi'standithnt the owner would dispose oi lfc to. tho louhst cDepartment. bit- conditions. ' iho scencry ovuryw;hero id very (striking. Tho Waciors you aco whilo goir»g : along tho oaut branch'of tho river mako u splendid scoitc, and thoir. iiiKjabcr. alono makes 1 them striking. - • ... '."'iTio finding of tiio Ico Caves, *' Mr. Moro- 1 land continued, "involved'a pretty hard dav. We were fortunate in: -getting.'-' hold of tie only settler tbatMs' up-.thoi'o, Mr. Macnher!son, who, though he liad never been, to tho • V Gs u " ou £>ht bo .'know-whore • tboy Vero • and offered to go with; ui. ,i First'of . all wfe had a four-hour ndo up; tho wost branch of tho Matukitu.ki, aiid that brought usito the beginning of- tho bush. There was' na track,. but Mr. Macphersou, who is. a splendid bushman, took;. us through: We had to cross - two .prottji steep .gullies', -and - aft,or- two hours. travelling wo emerged, on a moraino below a glacier. This brought-us to the lee Cayes, which are a wondorful sight Ihoro is an upper glacier at a 'lieipht of about 8000. feet, .and .from, it there descends a'-trepiondous waterfall, which must splash down several • thousand feet. Tho' water Strikes . another glacier -at the base, boresi wl° ■lt and tumblcs n 'sht through it. I . Whoro the water emorges. there is a splendid ; ice cave of hugo dimensions and sparkling 1 beauty.. From the samo glacier there is a smaller torrent .rushing down, and it passes under,two perfcct archways,,the ice forminc two carnago roads side by. sido over tho water. Iho . lower spurs of tho'.mountain, are bush clad, and then/the mountain goes up sheer to tho glaciers, which mako a picoipitous crown. I'rom overy point thoso big, waterfalls wore tumbling down. At one point wo counted lifteon large waterfalls and wo were told., that at flood tiino as many as forty liavo been counted from Mr M-ii> •phoroon's home. As far ,as mountain scenery ,goes; I' don't remember having seen before anything so imposing except perhaps tlio Cirque Do (Javani in tfyt Pyrenees." Mr. Moreland is quito satisfied that if these places were opened up they would bo visited by large numbers of people. )|' thoiv was an accommodation house near the site of tho homestead; arid a- truck cut through the bush the reEioiilwould be auitn ar-niwi<;M<v