A SCENIC GEM

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 408, 17 December 1932, Page 12

A SCENIC GEM

beautiful ohope SEQUESTERED AND SHADED BAY OF SURPASSING BEAUTY nature's generous abundance As a rich cloak falls from the shoulders of a beautiful woman, so the gloriously verdant cliff sweeps down, sheer at first and then more gently until it finally runs into a broad hem of grass that melts into a sgently sloping beach and then the opalescent sea. Here in a generous mood, nature has clad mother earth in a raiment that is fairly drenched with beauty. Lights and shades of green that refresh the world weary eye, the lacy surf, the sea with a million scintillating jewels, playing in the rays of the sun.

In the distance, White Island, that inacfetquately name'd Jactive voicano with her crown of steam that steals away to mingle wtih the clouds that form la benevolent arraada sailing south-eastward to Cape Runaway. The whole forming a setting for the blaze of pohutukawa trees, ^undreds of th'em in the full glory of their scarlet beauty. iRound their base, the ground is red where their fallen petals carpet the ^ground. A blood sacrifice of living colour on the altar of the goddess of beauty. ! This is Ohope, most beautiful bay j of the hundreds of inlets of the great Bay of Plenty. Ohope, where the J weary find rest and the healthy may [ rejoice unfettered land free. Considering its outstanding merits, Ohope is comp-anatively little known in the Bay of Plenty and the Rotorua districts. It is only 3£ miles east from Whakatane by bridle path, but the road winds unnecessarily for seven miles. Some day soon a, shortar and straighter road will be opened to Ohope. It is even now under construction, and thens Ohope will cease to be the sequestered vale and will be j a popular and populous resort. j At Yantage Points. In the meantime, farseeing individuals lare building their cottages in vantage points. What to th'em that thousands eventually throng the bay! Sheltered behind the shade of the pohutukawas and manuka glades, they may dream their dreams and worship the sun as though' the hampering fetters of civilisation were a thousand miles away. Ohope presents that rare combination, a perfect beach, ab-

solutely safe, plenty of shade and grass to provide shelter from the sun and relief for the eye. Answering the urge that impels the inland dweller to seek the sea, many Rotorua and Waikato people 'are already establishing their week-end residences at Ohope, and summer finds the ubiquitous campers in ever increasing numbers. A Shorter Road. The shortening of the road will bring it within 60 miles, of Rotorua, and the advantages of the run to Whakatane, past jewel-like lakes, Rotorua, Rotoiti, Rotoehu and Rotoma, and over the rich Rangitaiki plains, and thence through Whakatane (and on to Ohope, is a motor run of scenic beauty unsurpassed in the world. For the spertsmen, there are lalready tennis courts established, land excellent deep-jisea fishing is available, but the ordinary citizen will find generous relaxation on the beautiful beach, in the limpid waters or quietly exploring the many walks that lead to vantage points opening up magnificent seascapes. As a final touch of super-benevo-lence, Nature causes fiowers and fruits and vegetables to grow here in tropical luxurianee, so that the cottager who takes the trouble may easily grow all his wants and enjoy them at a time when the frost is still on the ground at sunrise. If his wants run to grapefrujt, lemons, oranges or figs, he may even have these at Ohope. Here, indeed, is the place where the happy landholder may rest serene and wonder idly "why men dep'art to seek the Happy Isles."