INTO THE UREWERA

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LV, Issue 16914, 1 April 1929, Page 2

INTO THE UREWERA

TOURISTS ROUGH IT DAUGHTER STICKS PIGS "Off the beaten track," is (lie slogan 3f Mr. Charles ap Roger, an English .ourist who is paying his third visit to ihe Dominion and is at present in Auckland-, remarks the Auckland Hun. Accompanied by his daughter, who is 18 yeoEsof age, Mr. ap Roger has fished he North and goutq Islands, fought with the battling mako sharks of the 3ay of islands, and hunted tho wild hoar in the "depth of the untrodden Urewera. country. ;■ Miss ap Roger, who is possessed of greater courage than most of her sex, has crawled into thickets, there to administer "the knife blow that spells death 1 to the fierce tuskers. Mr. ap Roger told a Sun man something of his experiences tho other mornJ ing. He has just returned from n 10-day J trip to the Crewera. ; : "We left from Galatea," he said, "and [went into the bush between Minginui 1 and Heruiwi. We had eight horses, six dogs and guides, together with an old friend of mine and his daughter, who acted as cook." They had to cut a path through the dense' bush to get the packhorses through, and in some places banks had to be' cut through. They established a base camp where the tents were erected and from there they plunged into the bush around them, returning to the •amp after an absence of one or two days. ! Thev caught two big boars, the heads hof which are being mounted and will be I exhibited in England as examples of the 1 sporting delights of New Zealand. Miss ap Roger crawled into the scrub to stick Uhe pigs when the dogs bailed them up. ; "On one occasion the dogs bailed up fa wild bull," said Mr. ap Roger. "I weigh 16 stone, but when the bull •hargedi I was up a tree as quickly as my daughter. I kept wondering howstrong the tree was, however," The Urewera was wonderful country, he -said, the variety of trees and the unspoiled beauty making it one of the greatest attractions in the world for lovers of nature. Mr. ap Roger and his daughter have been in New Zealand since February, 1928, and have covered both islands thoroughly, travelling in the caravan stvle with tents and a motor-truck, which he maintains is tho proper way to travel. Miss ap Roger caught a fine swordfish at Russell—37llb—and her father landed a black marlin weighing 3911 b. "New Zealand will soon have 'a wonderful road system," said Mr. ap Roger, "and in my opinion it will be better than any country in Europe. Also, T. must say something about New Zealand service'car drivers. Thev are the most efficient, well-informed, safe and •hoerful fellows T know. They are wonderful and it. is a pleasure to travel with them at. any time."

It is Mr. ap Roger's intention to return to New Zealand within two years with his other daughter, who is now in England. This is his third visit to the Dominion. He was here in 1899 and again in 1907.