Charm of Malborough Lies in Blue Waterways and Purple Hills.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18614, 16 November 1928, Page 12

Charm of Malborough Lies in Blue Waterways and Purple Hills.

Holiday Paradise has many Contrasts in Harvest of Sea and Plains.

BATHING, SWIMMING, FISHING, DEER-STALKING, HILL-CLIMBING, TENNIS OR CAMPING.

WRITERS have described Marlborough as “ the golden,” from its abundant harvests and fertile lands, but at times the country around Blenheim seems to reveal itself in harmonious contrasts of blue and gold. One cannot think of Marlborough without a peculiarly vivid and delightful picture of fields upon fields of ripe corn beside paddocks blue with borage, golden poplars stretching in long stately avenues down roads which invite one to follow far off to the cool blue mountains. Upon an autumn morning the shadows fall in the deep patches of water beneath the yellowing willows. In the evening, before the leisurely moons and slow twilights, the winds will fling the painted glory of the skv into heaped up splendour of gold and crimson behind the purpling hills. To the easy wanderer there is magic in the shimmer of the turning poplar leaf, in the flutter of the flocks of goldfinches as they rob the heavy ears, in the humming of the bees above the scented clover. He loves the wisps of hay in the gorse hedges, and every patch of gold, or rose, or green, or blue, that splash the countryside. There is a road which leads over- the hills to Piclon, or farther on still to Havelock, which, if you follow, will lead you far into the dewy dark of the bush, to where the clematis and rata climb away out of reach with their blossoms to the sun. There every'morning you may have a choice of “green days in forests ” or “ blue days at sea.” In the beautiful Queen Charlotte sound, round Endeavour Inlet, East Bay, and Tory Channel, you may explore or fish through long dreamy hours.

THE rich fertile lands of Marlborough have a reputation for high productivity. With the genial climate, freedom from bad seasons, and the prevalence of good soils, especially on the rich seaward borders of the Wairau Plain, good returns are always assured. There are 2,768,000 acres of land in the Marlborough Land District, and of this the largest single tract suitable for agricultural purposes is the Wairau Plain of 65,000 acres on which the town of Blenheim stands. This part of the province yields an average of thirty bushels of wheat to the acre, thirty-five of oats and barley, thirty of peas, and about one ton of potatoes per acre. Tt has been found that on the salt lands of the Wairau Bar, after lucerne has been grown, this land will yield heavy crops of oats, the returns from twenty-one acres, to quote one instance, amounting to £SOO. Nearly 2,000,000 acres of the . land district are used for grazing sheep and cattle. On the natural pasture land, where the rainfall is light the merino sheep are kept almost exclusively. There the land carries from a half to one sheep to the acre; but in the forest country, on the sown grasses, two to four cross-bred sheep arc carried. It is worth}’- of note that, owing to the dry, healthy climate, the Marlborough sheep are practically free from lungworm and footrot. The province pro duces the highest-priced wool in the Dominion, and possesses some very fine stud flocks, comprising the various leading breeds. On account of the location in relation to the markets, the sunny climate and the rich soils, Marlborough is destined to develop a fruitgrowing industry of importance. As yet, however, she contributes only a minor amount to the fruit markets of the Dominion. She is still waiting for the completion of the South Trunk Railway to open up the markets in the south and the West Coast. The Marlborough fruitgrower, with a properly-planted orchard, need never know a complete crop failure, for the district will grow practically every kind of fruit. Small fruit give good and quick returns, while the orchardist is waiting for his trees to come into bearing. The fruit-canning and jammaking industry is likely to grow and flourish, as more and more orchards are planted. The business of raising seeds of various kinds is important in the province. Not only in New Zealand but throughout the world, the seed of Marlborough is held in high esteem. Clover, lucerne and peas are big items, and Marlbor- 1 ough barley has taken prizes ’in England. Grass seed, including the West ern Wolths and Felarus, are also grown extensively and exported; but oats and other cereals are by far the most important crops grown in the district. Added cto these onion, mangold seed, and even sweet-pea seed, yield very good results to seed-raisers. Marlborough was the first place in New Zealand to thresh lucerne seed, and her yield of this seed is of such excellent quality that it has become a standard of quality throughout the Dominion. Lucerne grows well in the limestone lands between Kaikoura and Blenheim. Those who go in for beekeeping in the province find that the good honey is produced from the flower of the lucerne. It is now recognised that the planting of lucerne will turn poor farms into productive ones. The development of Marlborough’s industries will never be hindered by lack of water power, for the province is well endowed with good rivers, and just across the border, in the neighbouring province of Nelson, there are splendid sources of power in the Lakes Rotoroa and Rotoiti. The longest river in Marlborough is the Clarence, 125 miles long. The Wairau and its tributary, the Waihopai, is 105 miles over the total length, while the Awatere is seventy miles, the Pelorus forty miles, and the Conway thirty miles. From such sources Marlborough should be well supplied with water-power to drive her industries of the future and these, coupled with her easy facilities for shipping, should be great assets to her development.

But the pleasure of this paradise is not realised until you pack your swag and camp on one of the tiny coves so numerous that they go unnamed, yet so entrancing that there remains always some little haunting memory of the jolly times spent there. Some memory perhaps of how you boiled your fish and potatoes together in the old kerosene tin, and turned out a delicious lunch on an entree dish of fern or bracken leaves. The rippling words that ran through your dreams at , night were the sound of the sea upon the shore a few yards from your tent. The air in the morning seemed full of the music of some familiar pastora. as the white trailing mists were gath ered up in the skirts of day. Such quiet delights and sights a day and a night in any little cove along the sounds will offer you.

And in the full blaze of day, when the wind blows over the bracken ana tussock, each successive spur will lurt on the hardly hill climber, for eacl height attained will reveal new beau ties of mountain, sea and bay and for

Charm of the Sounds. The charm of the Sounds lies in th blue waterways that wind in and ou among steep hills, endless islands am oddly-shaped peninsulas, bays out on either side, the tiny coves sea' tered endlessly along the shores, an.

hundreds of beaches —little ones all to themselves. There are the hills, bushed or bare, gracefully moulded, the bush of the great forest reserves or the small patches where the settler has held his hand. It is a land of mirrored sunsets and sunrises, and far hilltop views over huge jumbles of land and water. There the wanderer finds tree ferns and nikau palms, rata and mistletoe and maidenhair. Sport and Such in the Sounds. There is plenty to do in the Sounds. It is a place which invites the swimmer, for here you may enjoy real swimming, not just surf-bathing, from the charming shelving beaches of fine gravel and sand. And who would not yield to the delicious joy of basking in the sun on the blood-warm sand at the bush edge! But in some parts it is as well to take care to provide

bathing shoes beforehand, for in patches the beaches are shingly, and it is just as well to be warned. Then of course there is the boating, for the holiday maker must have a boat, or the use of one. The calm bays are great places for little boats in which the young fry can knock abou f in safety. And for yachting and launches the Sounds are unsurpassed.

Many Diversions. On the Upper Pelorus and Rai Valley

there Is splendid deer stalking, but deer are also to be found on nearly all the high lands round Pelorus Sound. On the slopes facing the sea there are goats and wild pigs and quail and hares also in some parts; but guns must not be taken on to the scenic For those who care for it there is hill-climbing, picnicking and botanising, and plenty of good walks along the bridle-tracks which run to nearly all parts of the Sounds. At most of the accommodation-houses there is dancing, tennis and even golf. Ridinghorses may sometimes be had from the r armers. And of those who have ever been to this happy holiday ground, vho will forget the jolliness and fun—the gav laughter of boys and girls—nd older ones too —the jazz parties and merry games in the water, or the varns and songs around the camp-fire, n the evening, before the moon is up.

'lamping. The Sounds are the camper’s paralise. Given a bit of a boat and a tent or two, you are “ master of your "ate,” you can pick your place or hange it as you will. If you tire of me tiny cove, you can load up the oat and off to another,, with its own each, creeklet, and patch of bush for rewood. Or if you haven’t a boat, •ou can order a hired launch to do .he moving. It is of course necessary-

first to get leave to camp from the owner of the land, but this is rarely refused. Supplies can be got from Picton or Havelock by the mail launches, or perhaps from a near-by farmhouse Accommodation. Besides the hotels in Picton and Havelock there are quite a number of accommodation houses kept by settlers and others in the Sounds, particularly in Ivenepuru Sound. Very pleasant places most of these are, and some surprisingly good. Nearly all have their own launches and boats, and most have telephones to Picton and Havelock.

Across Cook Strait. The lamahine, a seventeen-knot boat of 2000 tons, takes three trips a week each way across the fifty-two miles from Wellington to Picton. She does this generally in about three hours, and most of the trip is done in sheltered water. The Tamahine is fitted out with smoking-room, lounge and ladies’ room, and there are cabins, too, for those who want them, with stewards and a stewardess to look after the womenfolk. In the summer season the steamer runs an extra trip from Wellington to Picton on Saturday afternoons, and back on Sunday evenings, so that father can visit the family in camp.

NATURE has made a fairyland in Marlborough, a fairy land which attracted some of the first settlers to New Zealand, which enchanted Captain Cook on his visits to the north for sturdy whalers, the forevided happy hunting grounds of the South Island, and prorunners of the hardy pioneering stock which were to develop the rich resources of the virgin soil of Marlborough. The broken coast w-inds in a maze of deep bays which assume the dimensions of sounds. Queen Charlotte and Pelorus, he latter so named after a British brig of war, “ Pylorus,” which was on the coast in 1837 (the Maori name is Te Hoiere) have a combined coast line of more than five hundred miles. But there are various other well protected winding bays on the Marlborough coast, such as Port Gore, Admiralty Bay, Guards Bay and Port Underwood. Port Underwood, at the north end of Cloudy Bay, is a beautiful and safe harbour, land-locked from nearly all winds. It has a whaling history going back to the very early days before the establishment of British rule, or, in fact, any rule at all, in New Zealand. It provides refuge for vessels beset b} storms across Cook Strait, and is much frequented by holiday makers and yachtsmen from Wellington. It was at Ngahuta, six miles from Hakahaka at the head of Port Underwood, that the Rev Samuel Ironsides established a mission station ; n 1840, but the formerly large Maori population has dwindled until at present not one Maori resides at Port Underwood

Tory Channel is a point of interest on the Wellington Picton run (the Kura-te-au of the Maoris). Its European name was given it after the New Zealand Company's pioneer ship “ Tory ” which came out in 1839. Te Awaiti on this channel has been a whaling station for about ninety years. It is situated on Arapawa Island and was one of the first whaling stations established on the New Zealand coast. During the ’thirties it was the most important European town in the South Island, but at present it contains only a few families. The name “ Arapawa,” though now confined to the island which forms the north side of the Tory Channel, was formerly extended to the whole district, now designated the County of Sounds. According to Moriori tradition it was from Arapawa that , their ancestors first reached the Chatham Islands. In 1839 there were about forty shore whalers at Te Awaiti and thirty at Port Underwood. The whaling gangs were often supplemented or even wholly drawn from the neighbouring Maoris The whalers of those days, with a few exceptions, had Maori wives and half caste children. Now the modern oil launcher and harpoon guns have super seded the old style six-oar whale boat* and the primitive gear of the old-time whale chasers. It was at Ship Cove opposite Motuara Island that Cook first hoisted the British flag. Round the cove there is a large block of land that has been set aside as a scenic and historical reserve. The place has altered little since January lti, 1770. when Captain Cook entered in his journal his description : “ At two o’clock we anchored in a very snug cove, w’hich is on the north-east side of the bay, facing the south-west end of the island, in eleven fathoms soft ground, and moored with the stream anchor. By this time several of the natives had come off in their canoes, and after heaving a few stones at us, and having some conversation with Tupia, some of them ventured on board, where they made but a short stay before they entered into their canoes again, and soon after left us altogether. I then went ashore at the bottom of the cove, accompanied by most of the gentlemen on board. We found a fine stream of excellent water; and, as to the w r ood, the land (Continued on page 13.)