PEDALLING THROUGH PARADISE

Dominion, Volume 18, Issue 96, 18 January 1924, Page 8

PEDALLING THROUGH PARADISE

* (S IDEAL “PUSH-BIKE” HOLI- ' DAY THERMAL REGIONS LEISURELY EXPLORED i ———- Whatever may be done by the Tourst Department in the way of making the wonderlands of the Dominion easy of access to the favoured few to whom expense is of no moment, there will always be hundreds of New Zealanders who like to map out their own ways of seeing the thermal regions, , the Sounds, the West Coast, and other l scenic regions. It is very doubtful whether these .latter do not succeed in getting the most out of their holi--What could be more enjoyable than n trip such as was taken .over the New Year holiday period by Mr. RW. Shallcrass, of Wellington, and his family? They explored the Taupo and thermal region very thoroughly on bicyles and because they went off the beaten track, saw a good deal more than on the regular beats of the tripper. , Leaving Wellington on New lear s Day, they reached Waimana House shortly after midnight, and in the morning were delighted, with the crisp atmosphere of the 'Waimarino Plains, 3000 ft. above sea level, fringed by ■ beautiful bush and hills, with views of Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe, and Toncariro to the south and east, As they took the road, which makes for the foot of Ruapehu, the mists cleared, and fie mountain, covered with perpetual snow, stood out magnificently, soaring: 9175 ft. into tlie blue. The road passes the base of the mountain, and threads through pretty, bush-clad, river headwaters, and here the dependable cycles passed two disabled motorcars. The run to Lake Roto-Aira, passing the foot of Ngauruhoe, was over quite a good surface, but after the Maori pa at the edge of the lake had been left behind, it became very sandy and a large kowhai tree was availed of for a rest and lunch, from the 1 shade, of which. the Ketetahi springs were plainly visible, on the slopes of Tongariro. These springs are .still in the possession of the Natives, but an'effort is being made to include them in the National Park. These geysers are continuous, and are more active than any others in the thermal region. Twenty miles of bad road from this point onwards took the party six hours, a good deal of it being in sand, a dry, silty channel, through high manuka scrub, and it was growing dark when they reached Tokaanu, a primitive little settlement at the south end of Lake Taupo. Here they had to largely look after themselves, soft drinks and biscuits constituting tea and supper combined, while the girls of the party, who had a room up a creaky- staircase, shook the whole ricketty building whenever they moved about. ■ The key,, of the private bathhouse secured, they were guided tol the spot bv a friendly acquaintance with , a torch. “It was just as well,” said Mr. Shallcrass, to a Dominion represervative, “as the bath is situated in the centre of an almost pathless thermal activity, and every second person we met told us the story of the schoolmistress who took a short cut. arid fell into the boiling, pool, and of course died. The pool is beautifully warm, just the right termperature to remove the effects of a 44 mile ride.” Next morning, on a run to the lake, ' they saw two young Maoris with flax baskets round their necks, catching carp amongst the bulrushes. The one ' geyser at Tokaanu playa very quarter of an hour, and the blue pools were ' as beautiful as any they saw later. The springs have the advantage that they are quite undeveloped, but the taste of breakfast was rather spoilt by a notice that all meals were 4s. The road to Taupo,- after the first 10 miles, which was very bad, was good. It led along the sides of the lake, and lunch was. taken amongst a kowhai grove on a little promontory, the cloud reflections in the unruffled surface of New Zealand’s largest lake adding to the beauty of a panorama which. included the Karangahake cliffs, and, rising apparently from the water’s edge, the three great mountains passed .'♦!■ the commencement of the journey; while to the north lay the picturesque mountain of Tuahara. Steep climbs after lunch were rewarded by a. long coast down an interesting ravine to Waitakanui. Half a mile of rough road made the party late at Tailpo, but they received every consideration, and. slept, tired out. An early morning start gave the opportunity of spending some time at the Huka Falls, and taking a dip in the Fairy Pool before breakfast and looking round, Wairakei, which appeared a very fashionable resort to them in' the wilds. The geysers were very active, and all got wet through. This, and the fact that they were told it was only 16 miles to Waiotanu, whereas it proved to be 29 miles, made them delay starting till 2 p.m. It was 6 p.m. when they discovered they had 13 more miles to go. Showers, hills, wet roads, and a head wind kept them back, and the consequence was that thev were overtaken by the dark before they sighted Waiotapu. They could hear the dogs bark', but walkeil round the triangle of road that encloses the hotel, without finding a path to it, and there was the tale of the schoolmistress to deter short cuts. Eventually the hotel was discovered by a circuitous route with the aid of a resident. They greatly enjoyed the variety of sights at Waiotapu, the coloured clavs, sulphur terraces, and beautiful lakelets. The run to Rotorua was found to be pood going, 12 miles uphill and nine down. On Monday thev took the train to Tirau. to avoid a had stretch of road, and then cycled 21 miles to Cambridge, touching the Waikato near the HoroHoro works. Tuesday was spent'in invost’gating Hamilton, and early on Wednesday they left To Awamutn. reaching Otorohanga (18 miles) at 11 o’clock. The rest of tho going to the Waitomo caves was excellent. “I. have soon the Jenolan Caves.” said Mr. Shallcrass, “and I think the Aranui cave is as beautiful, if not so extensive, as anything, at Jenolan. It hag. moreover, exclusive and unequalled features You simply cannot describe the Glowworm Cave: it is too beautiful ” The run back to.Waimarino, though presenting no special features, proved interesting. “We saw more of the or untry. and of the sights themselves, owing +o our independence in the matater of time.” said Mr Shallcrass. ‘‘than we should have in any other wav. It, was an ide-l holiday, and the fact that one of the younger members of the partv was comparatively new to the cycle should make our timetable an easv one for all old hands.”