MY SUMMER HOLIDAY

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLIV, Issue 20966, 19 February 1938, Page 15

MY SUMMER HOLIDAY

After the rush and bustle of Examinations, End of Year gaieties, and Christmas preparations, it was with a sigh of relief that we, Mother, Dad, Michael and I set out at three o’clock on Christmas Eve on the first stage jf our holiday. We went to Waikouaiti that evening to stay, as we wished to spend Christmas Day with my Grannie and Grandad. Christmas morning was of course full of surprises, as we received all our Christmas presents, and we had great fun opening our parcels. As the weather was not at its best we spent most of the day indoors, but nevertheless had a very happy time together. Next morning we were up bright and early and left Waikouaiti on our journey to Pembroke. The weather was not very promising when we left, but before we had gone far the clouds began to break and by the time we reached Pigrout Creek, where we

stopped for morning tea, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. After a short rest we set off once more. Not having been over this country before we found it very interesting, although the roads were not all they might have been. On we went, up hill and down dale, until we reached a shady spot near Beck’s where we stopped for lunch. By this time we had been joined by our friends from Timaru, who had overtaken us a few miles past Kyeburn and who were going with us on our trip. It was lovely to get out into the cool fresh air and sketch our legs—also to enjoy a good meal, as we were all very hungry. We spent an hour over our lunch and then pushed on as we still had a hundred miles to cover. After passing through Becks, Lauder and Omakau. we found the country very bleak and barren, with very little growth and miles and

miles of tailings, relics of the early gold mining days. As we were driving towards Clyde Mother told us of a talk given from 4YA recently by an old gentleman of ninety who had walked from Dunedin to Clyde carrying all his provisions to stake a claim at Dunstan, as Clyde was called in the early days. We wondered how long' he would take to walk all the distance which we had covered in a few hours. On we w’ent through the Cromwell Gorge where we saw a gold dredge floating in the Molyneux River. There was very little land under cultivation in this part of the country, although to our surprise, we occasionally saw a healthy little fruit farm with its neat rows of trees. Driving into Cromwell we saw a very pretty sight as the Clutha and the Kawarau Rivers meet—the Clutha being a beautiful deep blue and the Kawarau very dirty looking. After leaving Cromwell we passed through

Tarras and Luggate and at last, at about six or seven o'clock, to our great joy, we reached Pembroke. But was it Pembroke or was it Stafford Street, Timaru? There were cars and people in all directions!—Big cars, little cars, aristocratic cars, and others not so luxurious; but one and all appeared to be loaded up with camping gear and people off for a holiday. We drove | along to the Automobile Motor Camp I and, finding it very crowded, decided to go six miles further on to a place called Glendhu Bay. Driving along the road we kept a look out for a suitable camping spot and at last we seselected one right beside Lake Wanaka. I ven though we were all very tired when we got out of the car we could not help but gaze at the beauty of Lake Wanaka with Mount Aspiring in the distance and the lovely reflections

in the water. Pitching camp and preparing a meal were our next considerations. and after we had finished our tea we decided to go straight to bed. as we all were very tired. Great was our disappointment when we woke next morning to find it was raining; but nevertheless this gave us a chance to rest and we spent most of the day playing indoor games and reading. This was the only rain we had during our stay of eight days at Glendhu Bay. The weather was simply beautiful, and we spent most of our time in or on the water. When I say "on the water,” I mean we had a Li-Lo and a canoe to play with, both lent to us by kind friends. I could write pages about the lovely time we had at Glendhu Bay, and of Qur trips round the Lake in the canoe, but it would make my story too long. One outing I must tell you about was our trip to Queenstown for a day. We went up the Cardrona, crossing the Cardrona River twenty-two times, and over the Crown Range to Queenstown. The road was a series of twists and turns, with a steep uphill grade. At the highest part it is 3,676 feet above sea level, so you can imagine the glorious view' we got at the top. We had a good look round Queenstown, spending much of our time in the Gardens, as Lake Wakatipu was very rough that day and we did not venture out on the launches. The Pond in the Gardens was a mass of water lilies all in bloom and had a fountain at one end. This made a pretty sight, especially with the sun peeping through the trees. I am sure Queenstown must be a wonderful picture in winter time with the Remarkables covered in snow and their reflections showing in the blue waters of the Lake. Returning to Glendhu Bay we took the road that leads through the Kawaru Gorge, calling to see the Kawaru Dam on our way. We saw how that huge Lake can have its outlet blocked in a short time by modern machinery. The Kawaru Gorge is very rugged, the road winding round high mountains, the river flowing below'. At one point we saw a Hydro Electric Station with the water like a huge white veil rushing into the river below. Another pretty drive we had was to Lake Hawea, where we saw Wallabies playing about in the garden of Lake House. We were very sorry when the time came for us to pack up and leave Glendhu Bay with its beautiful lake, mountains and bush, but all good things come to an end sometime. Our journey now took us down through Alexandra, where we camped a night, to Roxborough, Lawrence, Milton, and on to the Automobile Camp at Tahuna Park, Dunedin. At Roxborough we saw acres and acres of beautiful fruit orchards and called at one to buy some of their lovely peaches. At that orchard all the fruit is graded and packed by machinery. We got a great thrill w'hen we reached Dunedin to find the Centaurus had arrived, so, after hurriedly pitching camp, we set off to see this wonderful flying boat. The following two days we spent in looking through the Museum, Art Gallery, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and going for a very pretty drive round the Peninsula. Once more we packed up and moved off. this time only to go as far as Waikouaiti, as we wanted to spend a night there to tell all our experiences to Grannie and Grandad. Finally, on Saturday, January 8, we set out in teeming rain for Timaru and Home. We did not mind the rain! We had enjoyed every moment of our wonderful holiday. (5 Marks and a Merit Card awarded to Dorothy Timmins, Timaru.)