WITH TENT AND CAR

Evening Post, Volume CVII, Issue 10, 12 January 1929, Page 24

WITH TENT AND CAR

NAPIER TO GISBORNE

BEAUTIFUL WAIKAHti.UOAXA

• : (By "Trip.")/ ,■■:; (All Eights Reserved.) Napier, principal .town of Hawkes Bay, and port of one of the most prosperous pastoral districts in the Dominion, is a delightful placoj" and can with .•justification, lay claim to "being one of the sunniest.towns in.th'&'Dommion. The climate isr niild, and'in the summer months when, tho beaches arc thronged • from morning till night,'.it-'is a real holiday- town. "Unfortunately. Napier is.'a place over which the harbour building experts have disagreed,"-with tho result that twp Schemes, one for a"breakwater and one,for an inner harbour, have both been partially completed at considerable cost to. .the district. It' is,:however, more fortunate than Gisborne, towards' which "tho motorist, is making, for. hero" very-largo sums have, been expended without- . aiiy..., benefit, whatever;- *;;" ... '•■ .:/ -:-i -: \• ■' '},'. At Westshp.ro, a- few miles from. Napier itself, there, is! an ■excellent;, beach, with yachting, arid, launching, and safe swimming.'-Many interesting excursions can be made,' to I'places, like Taradalo and - the : Tarigoio' Falls, wliilo tsome-j thing unique, in New Zealand_may be seen >, at ,:Oape' Kidnappers, ■ where .tiro ganriets ,nesti '■ Cape -Kidnappers' is • easily accessible,; the. road, leading .-within a few-mile's of/: the'./ppiht,itself,; and as the sight is-one" seen in'few places throughout the world,; a'jpumey there is well worth the time and effort taken. The road between. Napier and Wairoa

is steep-and winding, but thcv-'.surfaccv throughout is good, and the" road is fairly wido all the way through..; As it is tho main highway between 'Napier and Gisbornc, and carries the whole of, tho overland traffic, the motorist has to watch all corners. It is passable at practically: all times, and although not beautiful, during the greater, part of the journey, is interesting in places. The first placo wlicro a stop can with profit bo made is at Tangoio Falls, the track to which leads off from the road, some little distance up the hill past Tangoio. itself. The road from Taugoio su.'Minit'downwards, aptly named the Devil's Elbow| is onn of the most difficult sections 'encountered on. the road, but a very line view is obtained in places. It.is,only a few miles further on that the road passes by Tutira, a homestead which has become famous in* New Zealand through its being a bird sanctuary. It is the home of Mr. Guthrie Smith, well known as one of our foremost naturalists, and the clear blue waters of Lake Tutira, by which the motorist passes, provide a fitting setting for the wealth of native birds found in this part of the district. . ' .'■ . ■ -„,'.

- '' . ■■ ONTO WAIKABE: ; -■■ '■•'■..;; Just. lieforo reaching the. Waikare". Gorge the motorist passes Waikare itself, and the road then runs on down to the Mohaka lliver. At one end of, tlie bridge there is a rabbit-proof gate which keeps the rabbits from getting into the Poverty Bay territory. The Mohaka River acts as a natural .bound-, ary .between; the two districts, and as there are no rabbits north of the Mohaka,-.; v^ry:-. elaborate precautions are taken- by^tW pas.toralists in Poverty Bay to keep this iricnace to production' right/out 'of the,"district. Another point of interest about tho Mohaka is that it is here .that the Mohaka viaduct will be built";on the Napier-Gisborne railway, and those motorists who stop at the bottom^andtlook backwards will gain a fair .idea-of the magnitude, of the task -awaiting the engineers when they .come to abridge the ominous-looking gap from one side'of the steep gorge to the "other. Between Mohaka and W.airoa there are a number of spots along the; road where, camp could easily be pitched, but at;Wairoa itself there is a very good camping/ground close to the town, on the river bank, Once a year, Wairoa. is properly, en fete, and as is often the ."• " r \ . •■ ■ . , '

case with small towns, tho residents make a job, of it. This gala week is usually -held during .the third week in January, so that, if any readers are : thinking of going there within the next week they will laiuWn,time for the carnival. Accommodation is always at a premium during this' period, but the motorist-camper .will not have to worry about that. .'■':' "■'■ . „

UP TO THE LAKE. .There are not maiiy attractions round Wairoa itself, but 'within \ striking distance is La ko.Waikareniqana, to which a visit; should eertaihly.be paid. Somewhat off the beaten track, the lake is one of tho'inost beautiful places in Now Zealand. ■ Bush-fringed, with several other smaller lakes in the vicinity, it makes, an ideal holiday place, and for those who are strenuously inclined there aro tracks leading here and thero through .the bush —and oven off to the "Urewera, that mu:# magnificent virgin forest land. It i« said that tliis bush .track,', the-journey over which can be accomplished.either on foot or on horse- . back, rivals the Milford .Sound track. ■ On the. way to the lake tho extensive hydro-electric works will be seen, and a,very fair idea of the magnitude of the undertaking will be gained. The lake itself is 42 miles from Wairoa, and the road,'though steep, is fairly good, and is now passable at practically all times. There are several spots at which camp can be pitched, but to. enjoy, Waikaremoan'a properly, launch trips are. necessary. With its dense forest-clad hills rising sheer above the placid waters of the lake, Waikaremoana is an ever.--changing but ever-beautiful spot in which .ar-.week or -more .of constant, variety, caii be obtained. ' -."''. 'Some rday. the run through to Waikaremoana will be possible direct from Rotof.ua by road, -but at present the motorist'will have ''to make back to the main 'Napier;Gisborne road. There is an/alternative route running through Tiriiroto and \Hangaroa, now quite .a passable .road,' but as this cuts out Morere, the mbtprist-caniper should return direct to ■Wairoa, and from .thcro make northwards, " ;'.-

MORERE HOT SPRINGS ,: Those who have,expert knowledge of the mineral content', of hot springs in different parts of'the world assert that th hot springs at Morere, have excellent curative properties, and that they, will some, day, becQme famous. At present they, are visited very'largely by peopleliving in-the Poverty Bay _ district, and to a lesser extent by invalids. One of th principal reasons for their attractiveness lies in ..the very line native bush by .winch they, aro surrounded, and thu walk up to the bath" houses is. madethrough a beautiful. bush track which alone is : worth coming a long way-to see. ■ A very .fine, camping ground exists closo to a stream, only a few riiiu-

utes walk-away from ;the baths^ The road between Wairoa "and; Morerc, running through Nuhaka, is flat and uninteresting, but soon after leaving Morero the-motorist, ascends some very steep hills, careful driving being needed. From the tops of these some, wonderful views are obtained, firstly out over the Wairoa section, and.later across the bay towards Gisborne. "'"■.', When the Wharerata hill summit is reached the motorist Should stop and enjoy the wonderful panorama of Poverty Bay spread out before him. It is one of the finest coastal sweeps to be seen in New Zealand, more especially during the early summer, before the dry weather has browned the hills. ON TO GISBORNE.

From the foot of AVliarerata onwards the road leads close to several very iinc, but little, known beaches,, and a diversion at several points will take the motorist to'secluded'places, where camp can lie pitched if. necessary. The road runs on through -Muriwai,'Manutiiko and Alakaraku to Gisbbnie, the principal town of. Poverty; Bay—which, as the reader doubtless knows,, is. one of tho richest pastoral districts in the Dominion. For many years the district was helu back through the constant neglect of successive Governments to provide. „d' aeeess, but that to-day is a thing of -tn j past, and- no difficulty whatever will' be •eneounterel' on the road through. Unfortunately ther. arc many who think of Gisborno only as it was many years ago, before good road access was provided. If they will but make tho journey they will bo' agreeably surprised for as a summer holiday place, Gisborne is one of the most attractive of New Zealand's'provincial towns.