HASTINGS ENVIRONS

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 94, 7 May 1937, Page 43 (Supplement)

HASTINGS ENVIRONS

Easy Access to Delightful Resort

Good roads, and tbe level countryside, covered witb plantations of English trees, make tbe surroundings of Hastings a bappy hunting ground for motorists. Napier witb its barbouV activities and new business area, rebuilt after tbe eaTtbquake of 1931, is only tbirteen miles away and forms one of the attractions for visitors to Hawke 's Bay. Many Hastings people possess beacb houses at Westshore, where excellent surf-batbing is to be I had. - I Haumoana is a watering-place that has developed as a summer resort for Hastings townsfolk. I£ is situated eight miles from Hastings and has a post office, and stores-to supply all the household wants of residents. A concert hall was erected here some time ago by the Haumoana Beach Improvement Committeo, which has carried oul numerous works for the advancement of the resort. Both sea and river baths ing are available at Haumoana, and good fishing can be had at the river mouth. Further along the coast are Te Awanga and Clifton, two popular seaside picnicking grounds. Beyond Clifton a walk of six miles, along the sandy beach, flanked on one side by high cliffs and deep ravines, brings one to Cape Kifjnappers, where the nestingplaee of gannets provides a spectacle of absorbing intere'st. The cape can also be reaehed by motor-launch, which, for the less cnergetic, is an easier form of transpo*rt than walking or cycling. The birds build their nest? •in August and September, the chicks appearing about the third Week inYfovember. By the end of March most of the birds have left the nestingground and started on their long migration north. In the teight of the sea- ! son there a're more than 4000 adult birds and 2000 chicks at the cape. Waimarama is another seaside resort that is delightful to visit. It faces the^ open ; ocean.; and the wide .expanse of eand and the long sweep of the Pacific rollers make perfect surfing conditions. The view from the crest of the hill as the road approaches Waimarama ' is one of impressive beauty. A guest house and stores, together with numerous summer homes, have made Waimarama a considerable settlement. Nearer to Hastings, on the same road, da another popular picnicking ground, Ocean Beach, where 'excellent surfing can be had. In the immediate environs of Hastings numerous pleasant scenic drives can be made by motorists. A trip to Te Mata Peak pe'rmits a visitor to get an unexcelled view of the whole of the Heretaunga Plaine. From this point the 'beauty of the tree-studded countryside reaehed its full effect. The homes of Havelock and the schools placed on the slopes of hills provide many charming vistas for those who drive ronnd this delightful residential area.