Round Trip

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 328, 15 September 1932, Page 8

Round Trip

The famous Round Trip can be described as a summary of sigbts rangj ing from the most exquisite natural scenery to grim volcanic desolation, | and including the most historic area of thermal activity in New Zealand. Cars, in charge of thoroughly experienced drivers, leave Rotorua | daily, the first object of interest en route to Wairoa being the Government plantation, part of : a vast and successful afforestation I scheme by which the Government and private enterprise are redeeming and putting to profitable use many thousands of acres of pumice land, which, until comparatively recent tim'es, was believed to be sterile. The car, both on the outward and homeward j ourney passes the boundarles of 10,000 acres of rugged country covered with a variety of useful trees thrivirlg in volcanic soil, and a source of potential wealth - to New Zealand. The great earthj quake fissure formed after the erupj tion of 188G, follows the road for a distance of two miles; then comes j the Tilcitapu bush, almost instantly [ destroyed by the intense heat of the eruption, but now rapidly springing [ baclc into life and to its primeval magnificence. The car then reaehes the far-famed Blue (Tikitapu) Lake, and immediately afterwards the Green (Rotokakahi) Lake. Unique in colourings, especially when seen in the morning sun, the lakes present a scene of enchantment enhanced by their beautiful and picturesque setting. Wairoa Valley, containing the ruins of the villago destroyed in 1886, next comes into view, and well repays close inspection. The locality is of thrilling interest and of great educational value, and it was from this spot the terrors of the eruption were most vividly seen and experienced. Tarawera Mountain, across the waters of Tarawera Lake, presents a forbidding and threatening appearance; its desolate and gaunt outline recalling the tragic events of the fateful morning of June 10, 1886, when scientists contend a cubic mile of heated rock, lava, scoria, with flame and incandescent gases was ejectea, spreading desolation over thousands of square miles. The eruption is graphically described by the guide who escorts the tourist by launch across the seven I miles of lake. Superb views ar* obtained from the launch and many objeets of interest pointed out. Disembarking beneath the shadow of Tarawera Mountain, a short j ourney on foot over bleak volcanic country littered with debris cast out by the eruption, brings the traveller to Lake Rotomahana. Slumbering beneath this immense sheet of hot and boiling water are titanic forces that keep the lake in a state of uncanny suspense. From the cliffs to the right large volumes of steam escape from innumerable vents and fissures. The rocks are frequently shaken, and throughout the neighbourhood the thudding and oscillation caused by steam and water pressure in the depths beneath are plainly heard and felt. The launch, in charge of an experienced pilot, keeps to a safe course and passes high above the site where the two masterpieces of Nature, the Pink and White Terraces, formerly descended down the hillside. The launch lands its passengers at the foot of the wonderful Waimangu Valley. A walk of two miles through heat and thermal displays brings the traveller to the Waimangu Basin, and nearby, the formidable Waimangu Geyser, which when active, dwarfs every other geyser of which history has any record, in any part of the world. This perilous geyser, when active, throws a i column of steam, mud, and rock to j an unprecedented height of from • 1,500 to 2,000 feet. The eruptions and tragedies associated with this historic geyser are explained by the * guide. At the Accommodation House, cars are in readiness for the return j ourney, the route traversing Earthquake Flat, and the western boundary of the Government plantation ;■ ) while to the left is the country over which the early rival tribes fought | pitched battles, and where the re- j mains of primitive defences and Maori pahs are still in existence.