A STRENUOUS TRAMP.

Thames Star, Volume LXII, Issue 17388, 28 March 1928, Page 5

A STRENUOUS TRAMP.

KAUAERANGA INSPECTED. LOCAL BODIES' TOUR. RAVAGES OF BLACKBERRY. Members of local bodies and others interested had a strenuous day's tramp yesterday when they visited the Kauri Timber Company's leases up the Kauaeranga River. Tire party consisted of Messrs. H. Lowe and £>• Courtney (chairman and member of the Thames County Council), 3. Higgins (County engineer), W. Bongard (Mayor.)., and J. E. Anderson (engineer), representing *the Thames Borough Council; C. Lockett, (Public Works Department), R. Self (Government Forest Ranger), and B. Faithfull (Kauri Timber Company). The object of the visit was to report upon the condition of the water ways and booms in connection with the proposed concellation of the Kauri Timber Company's booms and timber floating rights, it being necessary that the country and waterways be left in such a condition that no danger to either bridges by floating logs left behind nor to low-lying country by flooding, through backing up behind log-jams should be possible. The party left at an early hour by car and preceded as far up the Kauaeranga Road as possible, then transhipping to the steam tram which landed them at about the seven-mile peg (Mr. Welton Brown's homestead). Here it commenced to rain heavily, and for about three hours . the party plodded on through a torrential downpour. The trampers then.followed the route of the old tramline and found the going a bit rough. They took to the old-bed of the river and inspected the banks and also we lit up various creeks and streams, such as the Whanga-te-ringa and the Waikawa streams and finally got as far as the right-hand end of the country at the foot of Table Mountain. On the way they passed by the Billy Goat and then retraced their steps along the tram-line as far as the Hihi Stream, passing en route a series of magnificent waterfalls in one of which the Kauaeranga River makes six distinct leaps' from shelf to shelf. Here the grade up the Billy Goat is very stiff, Ift. in 2ft. 7in. The party followed the Hiki Stream up as far as the boom, a distance of some two miles through tangled scrub and underbrush. Retracing their steps they journyed to the Pirinui boom and inspected all the creeks en route. They then joined the tram again and finally the party arrived home after a solid day's foot-slogging over all sorts of country, pretty well satisfied with their day's exercise in the pouring rain. Describing the nature of the country Jo a "Thames Star" reporter one of the party said that after the Hihi Stream junction with the Kauaeranga River was passed, iaSi'S # wer 9 ajij amount of really fine looking flat and undulating country. "The trouble is, though," said he, "that although there is some fine land in there the whole countryside and the flats especially are a mass of blackberry. Why, in twelve months' time it will not be possible to get up either the old tram-line nor any of the tracks. The blackberry has taken complete charge up there. It's a shame, for there's some very promising looking land there, too." On the way back . some of the trampers, who had not, as one of them remarked, "done a foot-slog like that since the days when Wilhelm was suffering from aberrations," were beginning to feel a bit "tuckered out," and one resident up .the valley who owns a vineyard, came to light with a most • acceptable present of an enormous bowl of grapes, "and didn't they taste good," was his remark, as he dwelt reminiscently on. their lusciousness. "Yes," was the general verdict, "it was pretty hard going, especially -in the rain, but it was a great day. and well worth it."