DUSK ON EGMONT

Taranaki Daily News, 23 November 1929, Page 17 (Supplement)

DUSK ON EGMONT

NIGHT CLIMB TO SUMMIT

(By

“Panitahi.”)

A thousand feet below me -the little < red roof<3-oF'Dawson Falls thrust them- . selves through : the . tousled- bush. A stray beam from the setting sun leiitto the homely -patch a brilliance ac- . cehtuated by the shadow of the mountain. And while.the sum con- _ . tinned painting a dusky 'bluish on ’ the. ' ‘ aloof western .face of Egm on t the moon 1 ' was smiling a Wan promise over the J frosty magenta girdle above the hills behind Eltham. On each side of.’thp scarred eastern slope the shades of-even- . inr» were choosing their resting places. How grand the stage;' how puny'the actor. Ah the hidden sun snuggled to rest the colours with which he had beguiled the last moments of day faded before the silver courtline«6 of the moon. There was no haste in thin calm approach of night. The distant hills slowly receded t into hazy oblivion, and as slowly emerged with the stars into the kindly sharpness of the moonlit scene. ' The green of the bush imperceptibly changed to black. The grey of the rock-strewn • scoria lost detail, and grew darker; the stones shone dimly in the delicate light. A little slash of snow far, far above was indistinct in the pretence of haze that-.gave Egmont the grace of a noble pm r, ss. Night had come. And such a night! Who could resist the invitation of the lovely peaks? I hastened toward the goal. I scrambled up the pathless scoria of Fantham’s Peak, up toward the starlit sky. On the. distant plains were the man-made stars, their garishness loot in the quiet night. The moon was riding high when I left Rangitoto Flat for the assault on the main. peak. The climb was a mere walk ( up the rocky couloir that pointed to. the goal. No blazing heat marred the serene air of the’ mountain-side, only a cool, breeze crept out of the west and whi<s|K‘rcd down the gorges. Soon the couloir merged into the scoria slope and I bore to the right to reach the foot of the giant stairway, the. Mackay Rocks, that lead to the crater. The summit of Egmont, always huge, at night loses its decisiveness nd / gains the all-encompassing homeliness the back lawn has for the very small child.

The guardian’ rocks encircling .the areat ice (which even the fiercest summer cannot move) loomed larger with each step into the moonlight. As they grew. Fantbam’s receded, becoming flatter and less obstrusive. But even in insignificance it was grand. To the west the great ridge that had its , climax in Bob's Bluff was less formidable; a more gracious partner for its eastern counterpart which divides the Manganui from' the Kapuni gorge. ■/' The giant Manganui leered from the dizzying depths. The almost sheer drop always makes one wonder with a shiver what would happen were a false step made here on Appolo’s road. I had conquered that long, slope when it wore its mantle of snow, but its smooth steepness still inspired awe and just the. faintest qualm. . . To the north-east the Stratford ridge plunged into the green 300 feet below. The upstanding shoulders of the Policeman were lost in the slope. Further yet across the moonlit mountainside, massive Warwick Castle wore a pinched look, its narrowness emphasised, ita tall buttresses dwarfed by distance, and height. Seen from the plains Tahuna a Tutawa (as the Maoris w&uld call the castle)' jutted into the sky like a Norman fastness; viewed from the heights the proud stronghold seemed, to acknowledge' the majesty of its mountain home. A wraith of mist crept up Fantham’s Peak into the shelter of Rangitoto Flat. The peak leaped away from the mountain, wore a becoming independence and like a little coquette flirted with its towering escort. • I lay on a couch of stone to rest.. No civilised interruption could- disturb me here. I, would sleep —just forty winks —in splendid isolation and not- a little risk. What if I' slept too long ? What if I rolled off my eerie. couch?. But a spice of danger makes slumbersweeter, and sleep I did —a sweet halfhour that refreshed me for the. climb. I turned again to the tepid rocks for the final thrust to the crater. The footholds provided by the weatherbeaten stone lent wings to my feet and soon I gazed across the crater at the Seven Sisters, gaunt now but plump when the heavy snows clung to their crags. A moment to climb down the crater wall—and the half-yielding snow was cooling my soles as I tramped blithely to the highest point, a mass of rock a'nd scoria in the north-east wall. At last I tasted the joy vouchsafed so few. Utter solitude was mine; no other human was here to disturb the cdthe-dral-like quiet of the mountain-top. The silence was as the dignified music of an organ. As nothing but an organ can express the solemnity of a church, so no sound can express so effectively as silence the spirit of the mountain. The dim light added its charm. The Pouakai Ranges were dark blotches against the light plains. The sea was serene, the breakers on the west coast giving it a tuft of white on its throat —just such a«s the kingly tui wears.? Like a silvery snake the Stony River twisted from the mountain to th® beach, reflecting the moonlight. The night was perfect. A smudge of light on the dim coast — that was New Plymouth. Closer lay a little heap of germs—lnglewood is prettiest seen from its lofty guardian. Far to the east a phantom mountain floated on gossamer haze —Ruapehu, regally calm. Stratford, nestling at the foot of Egmont, flaunted its brilliant streets in the frame of the black rocks of the crater wall. Far in tha confident greeting of a passing the southern night mists Hawera winked friend. Dawson Falls threw a steadfast beam from its bushy fastness. All was beautiful. And up the southern slope the thin mist climbed to greet me, to wrap me in ita comfortabl ecoolness, to be a companion in the lazy descent. Its faded green light would make visibility poor and the homeward journey longer; there would be a few more minutes of scramble on the heights. ■