OVER VOLCANOES.

Waikato Times, Volume 99, Issue 16653, 19 November 1925, Page 5

OVER VOLCANOES.

BY AIRPLANE. A SENSATIONAL VOYAGE. Lcroy .letters. F.tt.G.S., writes in Im. Now York Times — This summer, when preparations were nearly completed for the navy's valiant attempt to reach Hawaii by air, the writer found himself at the Government dockyard at Pearl Harbour, near Honolulu. Here was an enormous dry dock for Hie largest ships ami repair shops of all description*, and here also was the hangley, aircraft carrier, whose high, Hat deck enables aviators to -land and to lake off wherever the ship may he a( sea.. 11l this extensive inland harbour, with its many locks, a convenienl Island is shared by the Government air forces, Commander M. B. McComb, of the naval air force. Invited me to fly with him over the sea on a visit 10 Hawaii, the largest island of the group, to get a bird's-eye view, for the topography or a region is seen at a glance from the aii 1 . Just as we climbed into our Yought YL-7F 'plane we were warned of dangerous air conditions by an aviator who had returned from a battle with storm winds and low temperature above. Immediately we were off, rising with ease and flying back and forth over a small area as we climbed upward. For days it had been rough weather on the ocean, and we found the air very "bumpy" up to 10,000 feet. There are dangerous waves in tfco air as well as on the sea, with ascending and descending currents that might easily prove extremely hazardous. Sixty-mile an hour gusts threatened to send our 'plane on a nose dive. i Entrancing Glimpses. For iOOO to 7000 feet white clouds iuvered over the mountains, and \vs passed through their sunlit mists. Frequently we had entrancing giimpses through these cloud-lands of verdant mountains and foamllecked sea. Then we soared above the clouds until the Island of Ohau grew small beneath us, and the others of the group seemed floating on a universe of sky ami sea, Wc were Hying at 100 miles an hour, and the force of the wind was S 3 etrong that one could scarcely hold his arm out against it; but at high elevation It was difficult to realise the speed. Looking upward from the ground an airplane is seen to move swiftly, but looking down on the earth from above one's progress appears far less rapid. Likewise, elevation Is often gained with sucli apparent ease that after a few thousand feet one may underestimate his true height. Conversation being' impossible on account of the noise i»f the engine and the. pressure of the. wind, instrumental readings were passed on by the pilot—• opening ami closing his hand to indicate "iOOO feet, showing each additional thousand with his fingers.

! Wc were far above the volcanoes of ! Haleakala, 10,032 feet, on Maui; j Mruma Loa, 13.G75 feet; and snowI crowned Mauna Koa, 13,825 feet, on j distant Hawaii. We were rising like J a bird, but far beyond the flight of any. The mountains on our island s-.'tmed but ridges on a relief map, and lo us the precipices of the Pali were but tiny. | From over the ancient crater of I Diamond Head wc looked down on Walklkl Beach. At this height the stieets and buildings of Honolulu merged in a general plan, but outlying areas of green indicated sugar cane, and those of red earth pineapple fields. We sped for many miles out across the Pacific, enjoying the green and white of the sea near the shore and the deep blue of its vast silent spaces beyond. Colling of the Sky. I had climbed many of Ihc highest peaks in the United States and the Canadian Rockies, but they do not exceed 14,500 feet, and we were climbing thousands of feet higher. The air grew chill; the things of earth lost their interest. We seemed apart from man, and felt as if we were a'.'Out to find freedom in another world of experience. Our 'plane almost reached ils "ceiling" at an election of nearly three and a- half miles. The pilot kissed his hand to the sky to indicate good-bye, and we fairly slid downward through the air. At this angle the landscape curiously seemed lo curve upward in a suddeu effort tta reach us. I have descended mountains rapidly, but this was falling for thousands of feet in a few seconds. After a time one noticed that wo were circling a little, for our ears had registered the sudden change in atmospheric pressure. As we reached the vicinity of the earth its heavier atmosphere and tropic heat were very apparent. At dinner we discussed previous flights. As wc talked an evening paper was delivered with an account of a thrilling rescue effected under direction of the commander on the previous night. He had received a telephone call asking that search be made for three men who had been lost at sea in a 20-foot launch. In ten minutes a seaplane started, and. in half an hour the men were located seven miles off Pearl Harbour, lashed to their boat, which threatened to overturn as it was swept by the seas. Their engine had refused to work, and they faced death for twelve hours in a forty-mile gale, while they watched the sharks play around their disabled craft. The aviator immediately notified a naval tug, which steamed out and brought the launch to harbour in safety. Interesting Honolulu. There is much of ihtercst in Honolulu and its vicinity. The streets arc lined with flowering trees, which arc bright with colour in July. Most striking are the royal poincianas. with their masses of brilliant scarlet bloom, the pink and golden shower trees, pi.rplc jacarandas, pink and white oleanders and many-coloured hibiscus flowers, of which Ihcre are over two thousand varieties. In the evening the night-blo6ming cereus opens its great creamy blossoms with golden centres.

Many beautiful valleys lead into the moutains, where they head in fern-hung walls with delicate waterfalls. The hills are covered with the light green of kukui trees and the darker green of crescent-leaved koas. On the lower slopes the Japanese have terraced their flower and vegetable gardens. In the broader valleys vast fields of sugarcane provide the leading commercial industry of the islands; while enormous areas of pineapples running over the foothills ore of almost equal importance. One of the most interesting drives is up a winding road to Mount Tantalus, 2013 feet. The eye wanders westward from Diamond Head across the city, hidden among its trees and flowers, to the gleaming locks of Pearl Harbour, over which the sun is setting. The sea blends with the sky in pink and lavender, without, visible horizon. Later, the view from Pacific Heights is a memorable one, fur it extends across the darkening valleys anrl over (lie city, now gleaming with a thousand lights. Back of us storm clouds are hovering anionic the mountain peaks, imf, the crescent , moon hanss high, and the Southern

Gross lies low upon the waters. All who visit Honolulu linger at its world-famed Waikiki Reach, which is four miles from the city. Here surf-bathing is enjoyed throughout the year, for Hie water remains at about 76 degrees. You may go in safely far out to Ihe coral reef which protects the beach from sharks and undertows. Then with surfboard of koa wood you start on a wave for the shore, travelling from twenty to thirty miles an hour. As you become expert you may stand erect for a considerable lime, but sooner or later you lose your balance amid the flying spray, and the wave goes on without you. _ ._ '