A COUNTRY DRIVE

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23109, 6 August 1938, Page 8 (Supplement)

A COUNTRY DRIVE

Dear Anno Shirley,—l must tell you about our Sunday afternoon drive. There was not a breath of wind as we drove noiselessly along the quiet countryside. and in the distance the three mountains Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe and Tongariro gleamed pure white in the pale sunshine. The surrounding hills were of many colours, ranging from yellowy-green and greeny-grev of the near-at-hand to the royal blu.es and purples of the far-off bush-clad lulls. Along the river road the damp mossy banks were drip-dripping musically and the fat reddish buds of the willows were ready to burst into leaf. After a few more miles the air became gradually colder and Mount Ruapehu looked like a huge iceberg in a blue sea of bush-clad hills. The grass there was very scanty and almost grey, and the unnnals' coats were very thick and fuzzy to keep out the cold. Further on we went past rocky streams and over bridges till at last we were on the plains. A thick grey cloud had obscured the sun and we saw a blizzard raging on the mountains. A freezing wind sprang up, so there we turned and sped homeward into the glimmering west. We had driven nearly 120 miles, and why? Dad said, "Just for a breath of mountain air."—Yours sincerely, Hose Ralph (17), Taumarunui.