MOTOR & CYCLING

Taranaki Daily News, 20 December 1930, Page 17 (Supplement)

MOTOR & CYCLING

WITH TENT AND MOTOR A BRIEF CHRISTMAS RUN. DAWSON FAULS AND MT. EGMONT.

(By

“Trip.”)

This is the final article before, Christmas, and deals with a brief holiday-that (takes in many beauty spots. Those ‘who 'have longer holidays can extend their ■stay at various places on the lines ,suggested. It is not in any sense-one of 'those holidays where; long distances •have to be made each day, but rather <a quiet and peaceful one, where most lof the time is 'spent at ’beaches ;or in the bush, and where the runs between the'Various places are short and .easily made over good roads. While Taratnaki is noted principally for . Mount Eginont, and the many beautiful ' bush drives in its vicinity, it also contains., isome wonderful beaches; in fact, >1 regard the New Plymouth beaches,; and ■the accommodation provided there" for campers, as being equal to the best in New Zealand. ''’■ ’ ’ ' WONDERFUL ROADS. Places to camp: Wanganui, choice of 'three grounds. Beet’ is at Arampho (Park. Tents can be hired there. "Waverley, in township and also at beach about 5 miles out. Hawera, good ground; also ground at beach near town. 'Dawson Falls, by the mountain house; (huts can be hired if wanted. Opunake, an township or at beach. Elthani; Stratford and Inglewood, camping grounds •handy to town. New Plymouth,; two grounds, one at beach, very welt equipiped. Mount Egmont (north side). Camp (near the mountain house. * ; .

What to see: Wanganui, run>Up the oriver, if time permits, art gallery and •museum; Calstlecliff beach, Cook’s gardens. Dawson .Falls, good walks through ■the bush and up the mountain, bpunake, great beach resort. North Egmont, New Plymouth, Pukekura . Park and beach.

At a , time when motorists in most districts were struggling.- over clay or badly metalled' roads, the fortunate Taranaki motorist was running smooth‘ly over the bitumen. Taranaki is noted ■for its excellent roads, and justly so, •but when you get well away from the' main roads you come across others equally as bad as those in any other district. However, the roads over .which the great majority of motor-campers pass■ are a sheer delight, making the journey doubly pleasant. Once you get near Hawera Egmont commences, to dominate the scene, arid in good weather there is an ever-changing view of the -snow-capped mountain, from there onwards to New Plymouth. . ■ ' . SPLENDID BEACHES. > • - ■ ' ’ • \ - Mount Egmont and Dawson Falls'dre, of course, the two things which 'draw most people to Taranaki, but for those, •who want the fxaadojiL of- beach We

there' is no better district in New Zealand, especially if you . move along the coast between Wanganui and New Plymouth,. Th® road from aM the small 'townships through which you pass roads lead off to different beaches. At some of these there are proper camping 'grounds, While at others you have to take pot luck. However, they have the (very great advantage of not being crowded, and as you are never more than a. few miles away from a township, supplies; offer no trouble. Another .fine little beach along this coast is at Opunake, where there is -good camping accommodation. Best of ally, however, is. the beach at New Plymouth, for the.' climate there lends itself to the outdoors life at.'this time of the year, the facilities are excellent, ■and the beach itself clean and safe. ■■’■.AROUND THE MOUNTAIN, .

For many Taranaki people Mount Egmont is the week-end run which they take year after year ‘both. in summer and winter, and no matter how often . •they go they always aeem to find fresh things to. interest, them. In winter, of course, the snow level is always changing/ offering . great, opportunities for mountain climbers —not however, without some dangers. In summer though there are safe walks all over the mountain side,' and even those who are no longer young can find many easy stretches. Personally, I like the Dawson Falls -side of the mountain best, for'it has all ' the., beauties of bush and mountain tracks, and in addition the falls them- | selves.. A walk which adds interest j to ai visit to -Mount Egmont, and which offers no serious difficulties, is that from the, Dawson Falls house to the Norta, Egmont house. The track is clearly defined, and the distance only about six miles, so that it is .an easy day’s journey; there and back. Naturally you get great panoramas here, for the track circles , the mountain at a height of about 3000 feet. Those who intend camping round the mountain! should be well prepared in the matter of blankets, for.; tire nights are clear and very cold, even in mid.-summer. . ■ j. ■' GOING FURTHER. With a little more time to spare it is possible to work in a visit to Tongariro from Taranaki, or else to go up to the Waitomo Caves and then across to the Chateau. The quickest route | through to Tongariro from this vicinity is the road out from- Stratfprd through Whangamomona to Taumarunui, but although this has been improved during the. last few years it is still by no means a good road,, and should be avoided during bad weather.' It has magnificent; scenery in places. i/Trom Tuumaru■nui . the run down to Waimarino and thence to the Chateau; is short. If the run to Waitomo Caves is being made, the safest and best route is on the main road to Te Kuiti, and thence down to Taumarunui. This latter road -has been greatly improved the last couple of seasons, and is now* in pretty ■good' order. For a . brief holiday Taranaki, offers many attractions; for a more lengthy visit it cannot be surpass-

MAXIMUM TYRE SERVICE. ALIGNMENT OF WHEELS. If maximum tyre service is to .be obtained it is essential, says the Dunlop Company, that the wheels of a motor-car or motor-truck should be in perfect alignment.- .Correct ‘ wheel, alignment means that when a vehicle is running all four wheels point in the same direction—-that is, parallel with the line of motion of the car. If they are not, one or more of-the wheels is pointing in one direction, but actually being forced to run in another. The result is the. grinding of the tyre tread against the road surface, with consequent rapid wear. With-most cars there is a camber and slight toe-in in the set of the' front wheels. Camber is the amount in inches or degrees that the front wheels are set outwards at’the top, so fjhat the greater part of the weight and thrust of the front end of the vehicle is taken by the larger inner- wheel bearings. Camber has a great influence on tyre wear if present - in , excessive amount, and the tyre- shows undue wear on, the outside of .the shoulders of the cover, whilst the centre ; of the tread shows very little wear?" Toe-in is the result ■of camber, and means that the ' wheels are .closer • together-j in front of the axle than, in the rear. Cambering wheels causes them

to-run out, whilst the toe-in is given to offset this tendency. When car owners find that undue wear is showing on their • front covers, it is wise to ■ take - their car to an up-to-date automobile engin- j eer and have the wheel alignment checked over. The settling of the front springs, or the fittirig of snubbers, and severe road shocks, as well as ordinary wear, can all affect the setting of the front wheels. Now that the touring season is near, any motorists whose front tyres are showing signs of excessive wear will save money by having any little irregularity in the front assembly adjusted'before doing any long i trips. *

SAFETY FIRST. HINTS FOR OWNER'S. If it were possible to carry out an examination of all vehicles on the road, which could be considered safe in every with the view to discovering those detail, it is to be feared that the number would be woefully small—-the word “vehicle” including everything on wheels that uses the. roads. In saying so it is not implied, of course, that the majority of vehicles are in a dangerous condition; but it i? suggested that if every detail bearing upon the question of safety in all its aspects were considered, large numbers of them would be found wanting. So far as cars are concerned every driver should make a point of seeing that his brakes are in good condition and sufficiently powerful to stop the. car in a reasonable distance, no matter at what speed it may, be travelling. A ear cannot be considered as absolutely safe if its brakes are in any way defective or if the brake linings have worn down excessively, when replacement should be undertaken immediately with friction fabric of reliable quality. All undue play in the steering mechanism should be taken up either by adjustment or by the substitution of new parts. Steering backlash may make it difficult to handle the car accurately when driving fast,. and, furthermore, i may give rise to wheel wobble. I Wheel alignment has a distinct bear- 1

ing upon the safety of the car, sin e« if the wheels are not correctly in liu? steering may be difficult and. tyre wea excessive. There is also the risk tlia a worn tyre will burst. A light, woode lath is quite convenient as a measuriu. instrument for wheel alignment. An engine which responds instantl, to the throttle is another requireiuen of “Safety First,” because it is sometimes necessary to be'-able to accfele. rate rapidly, and this cannot be don' if, qn. depressing the accelerator suu denly,' a , flat spot develops and th. < engine stalls. Every effort should bmade to tune the carburettor for snappy acceleration, although; there is no reasej to take advantage of this feature i( normal driving; In rainy weather a first-class screen ; wiper is. a. safety essential, and can should be taken to see. that tlie wiper is in good mechcanical order. The windscreen should be of safety glass for the driver’s and passengers’ pro tcction against injury due to' flying splinters in the of collision. The driving mirror should always be kept clean,, and be set at an angle which' enables the driver to see as much as possible of the road behind without shifting his position. And in this nection a point not always appreciated is that driving comfort plays a largepart in. safety. If the seating position is .uncomfortable, therefore, steps sjiould

be taken to .improve matters. Good driving visibility, of course, is essential, and for safety in night driving the lighting equipment, including ■ the battery should be regularly inspected and maintained at concert pitch. Dipping headlights benefit the driver of | a car to- which they‘ are fitted just as i much as they benefit other road-users, ; In cases where existing lamps cannot be converted ,it ie generally possible for alternative schemes to be adopted, in reference to which, however, it is a wiese policy to consult electrical experts. But when everything has been done to increase the car’s factor of safety, accidents are still liable to happen, which may be due to 1.0 fault of the driver’s but to the indiscretions or mistakes of others. The wise motorist covers himself against, this risk by insurance, in which connectiop there is a variety ef cover offering. WANGANUI RIVER CARNIVAL. NEW YEAR’S DAY ATTRACTION. Motorists’ attention is drawn to the Wanganui River carnival to be held on New Year’s Day. This annual function draws a large number of visitors from all parts of the Wellington, Hawke’s Bay and Taranaki provinces. The function is held at Sandy Hook, a beautiful spot on the banks of the Wanganui River, about four miles from the city and right alongside the city motorists’ camping ground. The New Zealand speed boat and Maori War canoe championships will be the chief features of the programme, and there will be interesting displays of Maori hakas, poi dances and canoe hurdle races. In addition there will be sculling, swimming and aquaplaning events and side-shows. The carnival is well worth a visit, and motorists should make a point of including it in their itinerary.