A TRIP TO MOUNT STOKES (MARLBOROUGH).

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1248, 30 January 1896, Page 16

A TRIP TO MOUNT STOKES (MARLBOROUGH).

I By One of the Party. (Written for the New Zealand Mail.J It had been a much talked of, long promised trip, but we made up our minds at last that we would make the ascent of Mount Stokes, so we formed ourselves into a small party consisting of the Misses Henderson (2), of Kenepuru ; Williams (2), of Renwicktown ; and Messrs A. and I. Henderson; and we all left the homestead at Waifaria about a quarter to seven on Tuesday morning, the 14th instant, intending to walk over the Manaroa hill to Mr Wynn-Williams', Dolserau; a distance of eight miles, and commence the ! ascent from the back of his residence. It J was a beautiful clear morning when we j started, but as we proceeded over the hill ' a north-west wind sprang up and a heavy mist fell, and we hesitated some minutes as to whether we should turn back and await more favourable weather or push on in the hope of the weather clearing up as the morning advanced. We decided on the latter course, and accordingly walked on till we came to Mr Wynn-Williams' homestead, the hospitable owner of which kindly invited us to come in and partake of some refreshment, an invitation which we gladly accepted. We passed a pleasant half-hour with our hose, and then continued on our way. It was then about half-past nine o'clock, and by that time the weather had cleared up beautifully, and we went on our way in buoyant spirits, thinking gaily of the great treat in store for us when we should reach the summit of Mount Stokes. Our way lay through unbroken bush, and we had to pick out our own path as there was no track formed on that spur. It seemed a bit steep tc us at first, but we got on splendidly, and as we mounted higher and higher our attention was completely taken up by the fresh beauties of nature which were continually unfolding to our view, making us oblivious to the arduous part of our task. At first we had to wend our way through the inevitable supplejacks, > which rendered progress rather slow for a short distance, but after the first half-mile :>f the ascent our travelling was rendered much easier, for we had come to the aeautiful mosses which are a feature of \ T ew Zealand bush. Oh, how soft and cool it was to our feet, and how restful to the eye were the beautiful ferns which grew on every side. We made considerable progress for the next hour and a half, and b3' twelve o'clock the greater, though not the most difficult, part of our journey was accomplished. Our way was now getting more rocky and rugged, and we had to stop occasionally to gain breath and renew our energies, but we lost no more time than we could possibly help as we were anxious to get to the top of the spur where we knew that we should find water; for the day was hot and by this time we were getting very thirsty, as we did not carry any water up with us. However we pushed on till we came to a rock which jutted out from the rest of the bush, and we paused for a few moments ' to get a glimpse of the outside world, a glimpse which well repaid us for our hard work. There we were, away up the mountain side, with no other creatures within sight or sound of us, looking down =i r tl \r hil* *

an . away pon .e suriv jluv ...g s a:u gullies covered with bush to the water's edge. The scene was lovely and romantic, and the lines written by Thomas Campbell:—

" 'Tis distance lends enchantment to the view, And robes the mountain in it 3 azure hue,"

flashed through my mind. But we could not stay longer to gaze upon the panorama before us, time was fleeting and we were not yet at our journey's end. For the next half-hour conversation was almost at a standstill, for we had come to the stiffest part of our climb, and we had to devote all our energies to the task of forcing our way through the shrub called Tupari, which lay in a mass before us. It looked impregnable, but we were not to be beaten, and had, practically speaking, to fight our way through it. Jts gnarled and knotted branches seemed to block our way at every turn, but we went bravely oh and by half-past three o'clock we were through it, and had got to the coveted water. The water revived us wonderfully, and by four o'clock we were within half a mile of the summit, and in one of the jL?veliest spots that could possibly be imagiae/J. We called it our paradise, and indeed it looked it. Beneath our feet was a carpet closely resembling moss, the like of which I have never before seen ; it was fully nine inche? deep and of varying hues of green, and covered all over with pretty little white blossoms, while dotted here and there were lovely daisies and lilies which are to be found in no other part of New Zealand. We decided to

pamp here for the night, although we eoukj easily have gained the summit that but y/e hod plenty of time before us, and we wanted to see sunrise from the summit of Mount Stoker. The

first thing we did after deciding on outcamping ground was to boil the billy for tea, for our hard climb had made us feel

hungry, and while the boys got the wood and made the fire the girls set about getting tea ready? And. how we enjoyed our repast; the keen air had. sharpened our appetites, and the fact of our being away upon the mountain added to the enjoyment of the meal. After tea we sat round the fire and chatted for awhile, but the evening was chilly so we thought we would turn in for the night and get an

early start next morning. We* did not have much rest during the night, however, for it was too cold, and the wind blew in gusts, and about two a.m. it came on to rain, so it can easily be imagined how pleased we were when daylight came and we could look around us once more, although the outlook then was certainly not very cheering. We could not see a dozen yards in front of us for the mist which enveloped us. It was quite useless for us to make the summit while the weather continued so misty and foggy, as we would not be able to see the view, so we had breakfast and sat round the fire till about half-past seven, when the clouds lifted and we had a lovely morning. About half an hour's stiff climbing brought

.. us to the surnmit of Mount Stokes, 3990 ft I above the level of the sea. The atrnosI phere was beautifully clear, so that we ] obtained a splendid view of the Sounds, I Cook Strait, part of the West Coast of the North Island and Mount Egnaont. It was simply beautiful, and as one gazed round upon the scene before us one was filled with awe at the great and wonderful works of the Creator, and amidst such a scene one seemed to realise our own frailty. We rested for awhile and then wrote our names down on paper and placed them in the bottle found on the trig, station (the highest point), and then spent about an hour getting specimens of the various plants belonging to the locality to take home with us. A few minutes after nine o'clock we commenced the descent, gathering shrubs, ferns and mosses as we went. At twelve o'clock we halted and had lunch, getting another start about half-past twelve, descending by the same track that we ascended, and after sundry scratches and tumbles, which rather added to our amusement than otherwise, we once more emerged from the bush, coming out upon the clearing at the back of Mr Wynn-Williams' at three o'clock. Our party then divided, one half going to Mr Wynn-Williams' and the other half to Mr ! Edward Harvey's, Manaroa, where we were most hospitably entertained. We were now only eight miles from home, it was a lovely afternoon, and as we had plenty of time to get home before nightfall, we spent a leisure hour or two in Manaroa recounting our adventures on Mount Stokes. We left Manaroa about half-past five, and Mr Wynn-Williams having kindly lent us a horse to carry our specimens the remaining part of our journey, we were not encumbered with any baggage, and one and all thoroughly enjoyed the walk home over the hill in the cool of the evening, arriving at Waitaria about half-past seven a bit tired, but none the worse for our trip to Mount Stokes. The trip is really worth taking, the mountain not being nearly so difficult of access as many would suppose, and for those who are fond of a good climb the reward is all sufficient, the view from the summit of Mount Stokes being simply beautiful. I cannot speak too highly of the kindness and courtesy shown us by the settlers on our route ; we were met with gocd wishes and cheering words on every hand, and wish to thank all those who so kindly added to the enjoyment and comfort of our trip.