A Cheap Rural Ramble.

Te Aroha News, Volume IV, Issue 195, 19 March 1887, Page 7

A Cheap Rural Ramble.

(By an Overworked Aucklandek.)

How many pleaea&fc rambles with a cam panionable iuend— a kinds si spirit— one. might raako through thi * beautiful iTorthleland of ouxa at bub little cost if the facilities for travelling were greater than they are. At homo, at holiday time, and more particularly on the Saturday halfholiday, there are numerous cheap excursion trips, everywhere by land and water, bub hcreattheantipode3eveiythiagseem»topBy turvy (even the man in the moon stands on his head) Here, the railway authorities inttead of being tho aarvants of the people as in the old country, and trying to oblige the public w every way, are tha matters cf the situation. In the writer's rambles he bus moj dozens of personp, "hewers of wood and drawers of water, 1 * who seldom, ii ever, visit the towns, and there are doubtless many mow in the busy I towns who ecarcely know what the country* with its grand native bush and smiling pasture, ie like. He who is responsible for thig article was so delighted with a trip ho took one holiday lately that, with tho editor's permission, he has now the pleasure e»f relating the incidents of the ramble for the benefit of other Auckland business men who want a little fresh air and scenery now and then on the cheap. The writer left Auckland au 9 30 a.m. for Wairoa South. The day waß beautiful, and a fresh crisp breeze gave new vigour and energy to a body and mind eomewhat enervated by the close imprisonment of ai> Auckland office. Our little puffing steamer panted along close inshore, through tho blue waters of thig tno3t beautiful of harbours. So close were we to the shore that; ho who cared for the amutement could geologise by the way. Every description of Btrata°could be seen—horizontal, perpendicular, synclinal, anticlinal, contorted,, and lying at every angle to the horizor. 4 grand study for the student cf geology a (his coast line, and to the arvbt alto, with its background of high ranges of hilb, mostly of slate rock, wooded, and their summits. But even this view has to take a 83cond place in one's estimation when tho noble Coromandel llanges are fceen lifting their sublime forest heights, streaked hero. and there with lines of white vapour, above. the sunlit i3le and soa at their feet. To the landscape artist and the naturalist (and a true artist must be a lover of nature) sach ecenery gives ri3e to almost uncontrollable emotions, which, in a poet, would probably end in much p^oilei paper, and perhaps a good line or two* But to the writer, who is neither pce f » painter, nut naturalist —but perhaps a mixture of all three, to a certain extent— tha Wairoa River hag mo>t beauties. Hero the cool brown river glides silently beneath tho gloriously groan willows ; slowly winding its noble way ns if loth to leave tho trees' cool shade for the ardent ?ay-= of tbe burning sun outside. On both sides a* \ra progress, thick masses of soft willow foliage gracs tho picture, ths long trera§ bling fingers touching the surface of tho water, and thus combining with the reflection in the water, forming a hilf circle cf green. Mother ducks with greedy families are bobbing up and down cloeo in stream, and a few mulleS are jumping in tbe cantre cf tho river. One could almost expect to see the nympfca of oldon time, the Dryads, and other olveb of the woods and streams, and doubtfe=s if our steamer had not been co noisy a littlo machine we should have come upon some, trying their tresses upon the bank. After a voyage of four happy hours at a coat of only 2s, we feel that we_ mu-t replenish our inner man, for unlike Oscar Wilde and his apostle*, beauty as yet carig not satisfy our carnal cra\ing, and the breeze and ths Hauraki U a firsfc clasa appetizer. Dadley's Warrior Hotel is before us, and after a Blight repast, during whic^i wo have admired tho cloanUnes3 of tho hostelry, we light our pipes (dear friend and only comfort of the bachelor) and sally forth tj enjoy the scenery. There ia tho valley with it 3 numerous white houses and greon and yellow a trips of cultivation, its neitly-clipped live fences, and woll kept orchards ; a truly " happy va'lcy" wherein 500 souls have found as near approach to a garden of Eden as any on earth. There i* Mr Robert Waterton's, a nephew of the Waterlon (and who haa not read " Waterton'a Wanderings" with pleasure?) pretty piace, even where a 1 ! the places are pretty ; and a place that shows the experienced eye that it 3 owner is a man of energy. Three o'clock ; we must push onward, and we march along the valley, with its white road, and many memories of the past days when the 14ih Regiment and other soldiers found their work cut out for them in its than uncleared forest?. It is eight miles to Papakura, and we are glad a summer shower has laid the dust and cooled the air. The dearth of rain has not dried up the herbage in the valley, as one might have expected, yet the supply of food to cattle and other stock appeara to bs exercising the minds of tho fa<m«rs to some extent. The road id good to Papakura ; co good tint we did not mind going off the track to climb a wooded hid near tho half-way house for the view, which climb was well repaid by the scene before us. The Manukau Harbour and Efeads are on one side, on the other the glorious Huuraki Gulf, with tho castellated Coromandel hillf», fmd the still higher tops over against Karangahake. Balow Papakura, with its swamp and its numerous gum diggers, is the blue Hunua range. Far away one could see Bombay and the silver streak where the noble Waikato lay like a salmon river in the bonnie land at home. But "th** shade' of night." will soon make travelling difficult, and land* scape viewing impossible, besidps "hiarhtea" at Worley's Papakura Hotel is not to be missed for a few minutes' enjoyment of a view, and co we trudge on. A good tea, and then as the blue curls of fragrant Fmoko float upwards from an after meal pipe, ffB think over whut wo have eoen to-day, till "Gentlemen, tha Auckland trains leaves at 8 20 " arouse? v?, and we are again on the move. Finally, we reach home about 9. 50 Today, th«n, we have ppent 12 hours amidst healthy cc* br«ez33, placid river ecenee, and country flues for the sum of 4a lOd each (exclusive of refreshments, which we could have taken with us). Having now, through the Star's wellread pages, let the busy men of Auckland know what can ba done in the way of refreshing mind and body in twelve hours fcr a small sum, I close, with the determination of seeing if, at come future time, I shall not be ablg to beat even this record for the benefit of mv brothers of the officestooJ.—" Auckland Star."