CANNIBAL GORGE ROUTE.

Inangahua Times, Volume VIII, Issue 1300, 21 September 1883, Page 2

CANNIBAL GORGE ROUTE.

t A contributor, "LCr.G," whoacconi-, panied the Kailway Commission on their recent inspection of the different projected railway routes between Christchurch and the West Coast, furnishes the Press with the following description of the Lewis Pass route. There is an obvious tinge of hostility in the description which the writer gives of everything connected with the Cannibal Gorge lino. Aft or Jc-Sv-nbint^the

eastern assent of the dividing range lie orocce'ds.: : — By-and-bye the woods got thinner ; bhe. usual "Alpine plants began "to be seen, then w^ were on the top jn£ thfc ; pass.- This is called the Lewis >' i i J !as&: and is about 2oOOfi high. It is tho luweßt of -all' the .passes known between tlio the watershed of the East and West Coastsl Ilere we Tested, and partook ~of • -what refresments oorwalletii aff Jviled. Wotlien climbed a tvee, and Looked' down into a stupeniluo'ib chasm which appeared just below us, walled in by the roughest mountains we had yet seen, their sides scoured by slips of rock, and their tops covered with treacherous-looking patches of snow. This chasm ib called the Cannibal Gorge, so named from the circumstance of a party of Maoris, pursuing a band of their fugitive slaves, having overtaken and eaten them in this dismal ravine. Perohed on a tree branch, we gazed for a long time into this yawning abyss, perfectly fascinated 'by its wild grandure. The bottom of the gorge was slightly shrouded in mist, which made the depths seem greater than they really were. The gorge and the hill sides were clothed in dense birch scrub, which the shades of evening made to look unusually dark, while the naked rocks and snow of the mountain tops were bathed in the brightest sunlight. At what appeared a great depth below us, flocks of kakas were wheeling round the tree tops, making the gorge resound with their cries. Knowing that these birds were preparing for bed, we suddenly remembered that this was no place to camp, and, descending the tree with all convenient speed, we remounted and rode down the western slope of the Pass. The bush was thick and the track through it in places hard to find. Presently, it was too steep to ride, and finally too steep for the horses without riders. They refused to face the fearful descent, so tying up the others, we took one by the bridle and pushed and beat him down the hill. Soon this got dangerous, so we let him go, and with a number of falling stones he disappeared among the bushes. The others we served in the same fashion. They slid down the descent on their haunches, the forelegs projecting in front, and many times they dashed up against the trees, and rolled from side to side in their perilous descent. We followed on foot, remarking as we did that this was the steepest hill side we "had e\er descended. Arrived at the bottom we found the horses safe enough, but agitated by exertion and fright. Here, on a few yards of flat ground, and close to the roaring torrent, we discovered the remains of a former camp, and in the rushes round about were the evidences of the bill of fare of the wayfarers in the shape of old rusty tins. No delay was permitted by our guide, and we remounted and rode down the ned of the ravine. For about two miles this was the most disagreeable and perilous ride we had met with in these travels, and anyone who has ridden down the Cannibal Gorge will remem her it for a long time. The mountain sides, in places so steep .is fairly to be called precipitous, descended straight into the :<edof the creek, which isseldom wider than 60 r 80ft, and is a confused mass of great waterworn boulders and jagged rocks which have fallen down from the mountains. In places, the floods have piled the boulers. across the' : - -ravine, forming- falls many feet in height. The great risk of fording the ' creek ftinong such obstructions 'wfta/'su'ch as to make us hesitate frequently, but it, was useless to think about your safety, as you could not, remain behind, and it would be impossible to cross unless on horseliack, t.ecause you would be swept off your legs By the ' current. The only safeguard we could thiuk of was to hold our jaws tightly together, so that if -we fell off' among the rocks, we Should not bite our topgues. At last 7we arrived <-at a spot -where a great, slip, of rock had taken place, cempletely blocking up the riverbed. How the horses scrambled dvef and breaking ijheir fegs^^uns/'a.inystiery which, will never but after half ,, an Jptf«vppW in .urging, coaxing* ) dragging, tend! beating the poor frightened 4citeatures, they got thr6ugh^th lf^atiys6re falls «nd«le^s and fcnees tinned fend bleeding. FoV tu^atelyt-this rough gorge, veijy' i^^il^a^iit^wlfni^k we "came t<T" wlief*?- tire li^rfuia^rlver'Bqd opens , out,, and tjje. bdulders Decqmei smaller .,and;are replaced by shjpglfe ; an&shortly after this faint columns of i steam indicated where the hot spring ity beside which we were to camp. The principal attraction of the place at, which .we camped for lite night was the hot spring, and, scraping, a small pit in the shingladeep enough to receiye our bodies, we were enabled in turn to get a bath in the hot water, which was %k^euiiVgly pleasant : and Refreshing. We lay in the bath for half-an hour, and on getting out' wrapped ourselves in blankets aud returned to the tent to sit before a great fire of drift wood. It was very cold,, aiid everything was stuck together by ice,.but we kept warm by the fire till it was time to retire *fco our couch of birch twigs.! : ! '""' t '' ! The water of the hoY springs' issues out from under a tot the level of the riverbed, so that when there is a slight flood in the river it'is ( For continuation see foUHh'pdge.) ' .- - - t

v d.-r. .wut.r.. To sj, '"reflective mind st.- aiTgie- myVttVie's 6i the interior of the globe ar^suggqßt&(L^ by, £he of 1)0 libjj-hot ' wafier'l ic"Qnihig : f Out? "of a * pring ; it, ia, : ao. . m\nstial . tftat . it never iaJs to iiTe?t! dny'^ttenti^ This spring comes put amid 'niassHS of bluishblack mudi l!: l I he^water is hiiicli' too hot to put the^ haiid^iuto, but soon mixes witfc cd'l^Br'w^ter Sntil'thcr iieat is lost ! wSiMn V| n6BrMei- a whitey-yellow fungejd growth, which covei-s all the atidks ahd'fltoneS'over which it flows. The waterjbas a strong smell of sulphuretted hydrogen, . and has ito particular taste. It is a feeble little spring, as there is not enough water to till a 3in pipe. . .'•": •- Next morning, we started'at day light, and rode down the rive? fbed^of the Maruia, which is about half a mile wide, from ' 'which' tbeT nfotintains, covered with deuse birch> rise to great heights. Soon we came to the Maruia plains down which we rode for somedistance to look at the land. The plain is formed by the valley of the Maruia Eiver, it is about sixteen miles long and three-quarters of a mile wide. On the east side, the mountains, which' are of slate rock, descend steeply into the plain from the regions of snow. On the west, the hills rise from the plain in gentle slopes for about a mile, and then very steeply to great elevations, all clothed in birch. The hills on the west of the plain are granite. The plain, which contains about 10, 000 a<;@>B, has very good land at the tipper part, but iurtherdown it becomes nothing more than the usual style of the river bed. A few head of cattle are kept here, but no attempt is made, to cultivate English grass, and being 2700 ft high, it is too cold and rainy to be suitable for agriculture. The Grey liiver approaches the head of the plain within a mile or two, and a gentle undulation is all the summit that, divides the '(, waters of the Grey and Mariuia, After leaving the plain, we commenced to ascend the range of granite j mow tains i.that divides the Maruia Wm ' the Inangahua. The mountain is covered with dense bush, chiefly* birch, some of it of great size. As we climbed the long and weary ascent, we noticed in the creek beside the. road precipices and boulders of ■white granite. At last we reached the top at an elevation of 2200 ft Here •we unloaded the horses, and allowed them to pick up a few niouthfuls of rushes and moss, while we, seated on fallen togs, did not spare our cold provisions, thinking to reach Reefton that day, whiphp Jhowejver, we i failed to do. A f , siibrt, fesf inks all oar guide allowed, and then we Had a much .longer descent of the hill^hro^li p<;^ bushan^mud. At the crpssi^g'o'f the inangaliua lliver, w^ nprice'd'the novelty of granite shingle and 'boulders, in place of the blackishblue or slate color so well known in Canterbury. 5We stayed a little to look at this, which is jso. ' unusual, and then plodded on over nearly level country, densely Wooded with fine birch. We passed ' two very prety waterfalls,, where the Inangahua river pours over ledges of granite and plunges into deep pools. The ferns and bush surrounding the falls were wonderfully pretty. For twelve miles we ploughed through the mud and roots of the forest, until the horses were overcome with fatigue, and then, finding we could not reach Beef ton by daylight, we halted and pitched our tent in a charming glade of manuka scrub, beside the river, in which we ventured to bathe, although it was piercingly cold. But we relied on our blankets and our fire to recover our vital heat, and the bath had the eftect of dispelling all feeling of weariness ■which would otherwise have been caused by a long day's ride. At night we were surrounded by numbers of inquisitive wekas, and amused ourselves by feeding them with crumbs. Next morning we rose betimes, and cooked our breakfast. That is, we boiled a billy of tea and roasted the last remains of a leg of niutton on a stick planted before the fire- We enjoyed this ineal, .and were as well satisfied as we could possibly have been over the most sumptuous dejeuner a la foiirohett . - Our ride was istift through tbe birch fore's^ and w*v had to cross thrf river several times, but the granite boulders whicii pave, the bpttom are not so formidable as the blue boulders of the slate ranges. At last we came to fences and huts, with little gardens and potato grounds, and in one place noticed an extensive felling of the bush, as of someone determined to try and get his land into grass. It is easy to fell the bush, but by no means easy to burn it iv this sodden climate, and conse quently the: West Coast is remarkable for its absence of pasture. The luangahua Valley contains much good land, but as yet there are no signs of clearing and cultivation. ' : As we progressed down the river, the valley, previously wide and level contracts between the hills, and the road, which now begins to be well metalled, is formed on the hill side, at no great height over the river. Soon we heard a. deafening noise, and turning round a coiner came in sight of the village of Crushington, where a great water- • wheel was driving a battery of twentybead of stampers, the noise of which, at some distance, is like that of a great waterfall, and close by is almost distracting. The village is built along the roadside, under the slopes of the mountain, which contains in its bowels reefs of quartz aud seams of coal a'tnost side by side. Many reefs of quartz are worked on both sides of the valley, and coal is found in the gullies all round the neigh liorhood. Besumirg our route, we travelled about four miles down the gorge, until suddenly we came to a large plain on - which stands the town of Reefton in the midst of a dealing, and surrounded by lores ts of birch, (To be continued)