From Otawhao to Ahuriri.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume I, Issue 9, 21 November 1857, Page 3

From Otawhao to Ahuriri.

( About 165 miles.) From Otawhao the road runs through a beautiful country to the settlements of Kihikihi, Orakau, and Maungatautari, by the old pah of Aratita to Te Taupaki, a native settlement, and on toArowhena, a distance of 27 miles. All the creeks and swamps have been bridged over, with four exceptions. It is a good level road, requiring only a trifling outlay for the repair and completion of the bridges. Beyond Arowhena it passes through about a mile and a half of bush,- to an open but very broken country, crossing three small creeks and one swamp to a steep descent to the Mangawhio river, which is about 30 feet wide, and from 2 to 3 feet deep, with a rocky bottom. On the opposite side is a steep ascent to an open i'ern country, crossing one small creek, and descending gradually to the Waipapa river, over a narrow and rocky pass, over which a bridge has been thrown for the convehience of foot passengers. The crossing place for horses is about 300 yards higher up, where the river is 30 yards wide, with a good sound gravelly bottom, about 4g feet deep. The road now ascends, for upwards of a mile, a very steep hill, to an open country, crossing the river Waititi twice and one small creek, after which it ascends a narrow neck of land, which in wet weather is very slippery, and rendered dangerous by the precipices on either side ; but this, I am of opinion, might be avoided by a slight deviation to the eastward. The road now gradually descends to the Mangakino river, 30 yards wide, and 4 feet deep, with a hard gravelly bottom, and continues on through a pleasant and open country, crossing one wide and deep swamp, [to where a road branches off to Taupo and Pukawa, the settlement of Te Heuheu,) and thence, but much more indistinctly, through a level country over 4 small creeks and 3 swamps, the latter deep and rather dangerous for horses, to the large but thinly populated settlement of Taurapaki, which is distant from. Arowhena about 30 miles. The country round Taurapaki is celebrated for its pigeons, which are sent as presents to all parts of the island. Hence the road passes through about a mile of forest, and opens on a fine grassy country, crossing four of the wildest and most dangerous swamps on the road ; these however may be avoided by making a long deviation to the westward ; thence to the populous pa of Otahanga by a long and steep ascent, and descending again through a mile of forest to the settlement of Oruanui. There is, I believe, a better, though circuitous path to Oruanui which avoids the ascent to, and the pa of Otahanga. The distance from Taurapaki to Otahanga is about 13 miles. From Oruanui the road makes a circuit, to avoid a dangerous swamp and landslip, through an open and level country to the crossing on die Waikato River, where "the latter enters the Taupo lake,

passing near several hot springs, and crossing three small creeks and two swamps. From the fact of there being no natives resident in the neighbourhood of the Waikato, it is necessary that one should be engaged at Otahanga to assist in ferrying across the river ; the best place for crossing is at a hot spring and creek, named Otumuake, which discharges itself into the Waikato, where the river is about 150 yards wide, and very deep, with numerous rapids. I may also mention that I found the natives of Otahanga obliging, and very willing to render assistance in crossing, at a reasonable rate. The distance from Otahanga to Waikato is twelve miles. From the Waikato for two miles beyond Paetaki, the road becomes dangerous from the numerous hot springs, fissures, andchas.s, which border on either side. In this neighbourhood is the mountain of Tawara, rising conspicuously out of the plain. A branch road runs from here to Rotorua and the lakes. Hence to Opepe it passes through a fine level country to the numerous small settlements situated on the skirts of the bush, remarkable alike for the fertility of the soil, and the absence of any springs or streams of water ; the natives principally depending upon rain water caught in the troughs made for the purpose. The distance from Waikato to Opepe is twelve miles. From Opepe the road continues through beautiful grassy plains to Rangitaiki, a small shallow stream, which flows through the plains and empties itself into the Whakatane Harbxmr. Thence to the settlement of Whaketu, crossing one small stream. Leaving Whaketu, a small piece of bush, two swamps close together, about a mile of broken and hilly country, and a very difficult piece of bush of two miles — with two dangerous and steep gullies in it — have to be crossed ; next come the Waiharuru River, 30 feet wide and 2 feet deep, with a rocky bottom, one narrow creek and three small gullies ; then the road is good for about three miles, until it arrives at the long, steep, and dangerous descent to Waipunga River, which is 50 feet wide, with a gravelly bottom ; this river has again to be crossed three times in the next four miles each crossing place being bad from the steep descent and ascent on either side. The road then passes five swamps, two creeks, and through three miles of bush to Tarawera, a large settlement of which the Rangihiroa is the chief. Leaving this Settlement, it runs through some fine grass land for nearly two iniles^— avoiding the road crossing the Waipunga (on account of its depth) it is best to follow the new track to the Westward up the hill and through the bush to a considerable distance higher up on the Waipunga, where the water is not more than 2 feet 6 inches deep. The rise to the mountains of Turangakurou commences immediately on crossing the river Waipunga, and is the longest, the most tedious, and the highest of all the hills on the road. Six small creeks are met with in the ascent. Descending the mountain, the road runs for about 6 miles through a very broken and hilly country, principally covered with fern, but intersected by small pieces ot bush, to a large bush about 2 miles long, through which the Natives have cleared a good road, and over 2 miles more of open fern land, and crossing 2 creeks to Haroto, a Native settlement. From here there are two roads to the Muhaka river, one for foot passengers, with numerous swamps, but only \\ mile in distance, the other 3 miles long, being circuitous in order to avoid the swamps and gullies. The Mohaka is far the most rapid river on this road. I found it at the crossing place only 2 feet deep, but so rapid and strong was the current as to necessitate two of my party being dragged across by ropes, it is about 30 yards wide, but liable to sudden and heavy freshes. From the Mohaka there is an open but very hilly road for 2| miles, crossing two small creeks, and 6 swamps to Titiokura, the point of the range where the road passes over it, and where the first view of the coast is obtained. After two miles more, through a level country, is a bush 2| miles long, through which a good open track has been cut by Mr. Gray, a settler living in the district. There are two muddy creeks in this Bush. Half a mile beyond it is the first Sheep Station (Te Pohue, Mr. Gray's.) From this place the road, I understood, was to be altered. I may remark that in the 20 miles to Petane from Te Pohue, there are 45 River crossings, 7 swamps, and one Mountain, Karongamaipapa, all of which will be avoided by the road proposed to be taken through Crown lands some few miles to the Southward, of the present line, which road ha 3 been explored by some of the Napier setI tiers.