THE PIONEERS

Southland Times, Issue 20669, 15 December 1928, Page 13 (Supplement)

THE PIONEERS

SHADE’S BEACH (By Rambler.) 1 had been absent from Waikawa and had returned for a short holiday and although I had many friends to visit after the years of separation I could not resist the desire to spend a day or two in the forest and along the seashore. I suggested a trip to Shade’s Beach, and as my brother was willing to accompany me, we set about packing a quantity of provisions and one blanket. 1 do not recollect why the blanket roll was so small, but 1 presume, that we were actuated by the old-timer’s slogan, “Crack hardy and die young.” Not i that they died young in spite of the fact that they certainly did not pamper themselves on occasions such as this. On the j occasion in question I packed the provisions i and remember that I put two loaves of excellent home-made bread in with the other items. I reihember that bread because just before we set out my mother decided Io give us a cup of tea and discovered that her entire stock of bread had disappeared. Although mother was always ready to see us go off on an expedition she remarked on this occasion that she did not see why the rest of the household should be deprived of bread to please us and we had to divide the plunder. When we reached Waikawa we purchased a supply of biscuits- and a few pounds of steak and then crossed the river in a Hatbottomed boat, Clarence Macintosh obligingly officiating at the oars. We proceeded along the old tram line that leads to where Jack’s mill stood about forty-five years ago and beyond that we followed one of the old log tramways for some distance and then came to a track which was cut by the old-time beachcombers. This track was practically overgrown and we lost it on two occasions and lost a fair amount of time finding it again. Just as darkness came down we lost it for a third time and failed to find it no matter how we searched This did not trouble us greatly, however, for we could hear the roar of the sea and I knew that we could find the coast even | in the darkness. Fortunately we stumbled ■ on an old camp on a ridge above Shade’s i Reach and as we then knew where we were i we decided to make camp. While my ’ brother went in search of water I kindled the fire and placed the frying pan in position for the cooking of the steak, but mis- I fortune continued to dog us, for instead of , stepping around the fire, I upset the frying pan into it. I tried again and succeeded in cooking the steak, but accidentally stepped in the pan after I had lifted it from the fire. However, we ate that steak and were glad of it. We gathered a large quantity of dry fern fronds and spent a fairly comfortable night, although 1 did not sleep a great deal as I was the nearest the fire and had to get up to replenish it every time it died down. There was a fairly hard frost that j night and the following night and, with our single blanket, we» deemed a fire an absolute necessity. The morning broke beautifully fine and we were up early and away to Shade’s Beach and the boat-harbour. Shade’s Beach itself is very similar to many more beaches around our coast and does not require a great deal of description. It is about half a mile long and has a stream of good water running across it at one end. Its chief charm lies in the fact that the forest comes right down to the sand and so gives it a particularly wild beauty not found in the average sea beach. The remoteness of the spot may be gathered from the fact that the tracks of wild pigs are often found on the beach. There is a tiny clearing at one end of the beach—perhaps a-quarter of an acre —and wild parsnips and potatoes may be found growing there, although it must be over thirty years since the original vegetables were planted. When I gave this article the title “Shade’s Beach” I was thinking more of Shade’s Beach boat-harbour than of the beach alone. The boat-harbour lies beyond the beach and is accessible from the beach only, being guarded from the other side by high cliffs. We travelled along a narrow way from the beach to the boat-harbour and after climbing up a rocky path came upon it in all the glory of the morning sun. An artist might do justice to the scenes with his brush, a writer never. I have seen many of New Zealand’s beauty spots, but none that appeals more to me than this. A conglomerate reef runs parallel with the cliff and about three hundred yards from it and the boat-harbour lies between. The harbour is not a sheet of sheltered water, but is composed of several narrow waterways. There is a splendid land-locked pool near the land entrance where the visitor may take a plunge in perfect safety. At the foot of the cliffs is a narrow stony beach reaching for some distance and beyond this are two peculiarlyshaped rocks known to us as the pyramid and the sphinx. The pyramid is not a per feet pyramid, but rises to a very sharp apex. I climbed to the top of it and when seated there could look down on either side at the rocks below. I would not recommend this climb to any person not accustomed to cliffs or mountaineering for the narrowness of the top is liable to induce giddiness. On the seaward side of the sphinx is a large sandstone rock crowned with flax and with a small cave in its side. I do not think that this rock has ever been scaled, but for all I know to the contrary it may be possible to reach the top if the climber has sufficient nerve and resolution. The principal charm of the boat-harbour lies in the wealth of marine life to be found there. The shallow waters are full of brittle starfish, prickly starfish, sea urchins, pawas, and numerous other interesting things. Crayfish, butterfish, greenbone and blue cod can be caught in the deeper water and when we commenced to examine this wonderland we literally forgot to stop. We moved from one thing to another, and although we had partaken of breakfast at five that morning, we. were too interested in what we were discovering to think of our mid-day meal until one o’clock in the afternoon. We spent the afternoon in the forest and after spending the night in camp decided to return to Waikawa as the weather was looking threatening. We returned along the coast, and although many of the headlands are grassy and easily traversed, other parts of the coast are heavily wooded to the seashore and these we traversed along the seahsore at the foot of the cliffs. As this means of progression entailed a fair amount of difficult cliff climbing our progress was slow and we were forced to halt for lunch before we were half-way to Waikawa. The heavy walking caused a swelling on my ankle where I had been struck with a hockey stick during the previous winter and this did not improve matters. Rain commenced to fall early in the afternoon and as we came to a part of the coast where we were compelled to take to the forest ; we were soon exceedingly wet. We reached the Waikawa River at dusk and were rowed across by Mr J. Broadbent, and after that the two miles along the beach proved easy walking. A bath and a change into dry raiment made us feel equal to another trip into the wilds, but two months had passed before I finally removed the swell-

ing in my ankle although, apart from the bandages I had to wear, it did not inconvenience me in any way. The walk I have described, providing as it does some of the finest scenery in New Zealand, should be better known, but even now the facilities for reaching Shaded Beach are such that it would be sheer recklessness for anyone unacquainted with the bush to attempt it. Now that the road to Waikawa is in excellent order for motor

traffic no doubt some public-minded person will clear the track to the coast and so enable the visitor to enjoy this glorious walk. The distance from the Waikawa River to Shade’s Beach is six miles, and if the track were a good one, the trip there and back in one day would prove no hardship to any person fond of walking. The whole of the distance lies through the forest so that the walk is a very pleasant one even in the heat of lhe summer.