AN OASIS OF THE NORTH

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 16, 9 April 1927, Page 17

AN OASIS OF THE NORTH

(Written for THE SUN by Dr. E. B. Gunson)

Pandora is at Spirits Bay, the most northerly point accessible to motorcars in New Zealand. Its present approach is from Awanui by the Ninety-Mile Beach, 55 miles of which you traverse before turning off up a river bed which in the summer is quite negotiable by motor-cars. You then climb over the sand hills to Te Paki station, a large sheep and cattle run which originally embraced the whole of this Northland, but is now held in a number of separate estates. Pandora was “founded” by Mr. Keene, the manager of Te Paki, at the suggestion of the well-known writer, Hector Macquarrie, who was attracted to this oasis as an ideal spot in which to winter and complete a book he was engaged on. It is now a camp of eight huts, where the sojourner may find comfortable habitation. One is a large reception hut, with a dancing floor; another is used as a kitchen, a modern affair run by two Maori maids; and the remainder are nicely isolated for the use of visitors. The camp is beautifully situated in a valley leading up from Spirits Bay beach. The soil hereabouts is remarkably fertile. When the camp was formed a few months ago a patch, measuring 150 ft. by 100 ft., was turned over by the plough. In February it had tomato plants over sft. high, producing a marvellous crop, free from blight, while all kinds of vegetables were growing luxuriantly. In the last two months there has been formed a graded road from Te Paki to the hilltop, within a quarter of a mile of Pandora, and during the next two months it will be completed to the camp, so that Pandora will be accessible to motors. A NEW ZEALAND RIVIERA What most struck me about the place is its romantic environment. It is within walking distance of Cape Reinga, where stands yet the famous pohutukawa from the boughs of which, the Maoris have it, the spirits of their ancestors took their departure for the unknown. The atmosphere of the place is like nothing else in New Zealand. The intense blueness of the sea on a bright day, and the light which seems to reflect from the sea on to the hills and back again with a satiny shimmer, is reminiscent of the Riviera at its best. The whole landscape and seascape is very beautiful, a combination of sea, sky and rock, with the wonderful colouring of the sand hills capping all. I compare it with the Mediterranean Riviera and Egypt; there is no other place in New Zealand that can bring that comparison to your mind. Here it forces itself on you. From the point of view of climate, it may be stated that the rainfall is less than the average for New Zealand, and that the temperature is sub-tropical, even in winter, when the sun is shining. The new road which

Pandora at Spirits Bay. A Paradise for Tired Aucklanders. . .

is going to be formed inland will pass through Hohoura, which is becoming increasingly popular as a centre for deep-sea fishermen. It will pass through miles of desolate, sandy country until it reaches the land around Te Paki, some of which is bush-clad, but much of which is barren until the heights above Pandora are reached. There you obtain a magnificent panorama of Spirits Bay, Tom Bowling’s Bay and the ocean beyond. Its inaccessibility has in the past made this lovely spot impossible for the motorist to visit, but with the completion of the main highway to Whangarei there will be an almost complete metal surface as far as Awanui, and the sandy formation beyond Awanui will make the road passable right through for almost the •*vhole of the year. GREAT SCENIC VARIETY The charm about this trip North is

the contrasts of its scenery, including the wonderful Mangamuka Gorge, the fertile Victoria Valley, running from Mangonui to Kaitaia, with its many prosperous settlers, its alternating bush and barren country, its enormous sand hills, as large as those of the Sahara, and its fine coastal views, these completing a variety which in my opinion, is unobtainable anywhere else in New Zealand. The geological formations in this part of the North are unique. They

were recently explored by a number of geologists, who spent some weeks up there. One of them, a leading Australian scientist, is returning next year especially to study the formation of the sand hills, which he says are of great geological interest. The godwits are an interesting sight at Spirits Bay, where you may shoot them in season if you care to. The godwits come every year to spend the summer there and to breed, and at the end of the season they fly away to Siberia. They are good eating for those who fancy game, their flesli being of a flavour resembling a cross between a duck and a pheasant. WEALTH AWAITS THE SPADE On the road to Pandora you pass over thousands of acres of gum land 3 which are as yet unexploited. The kauri gum fields of the North have so far merely been scratched. There are millions of pounds worth of gum yet to be obtained —untold wealth. As soon as practical facilities are available for working the land on'a scientific basis, and as 30on as adequate marketing facilities, which are at present the subject of inquiry # by the Kauri Gumfields Commission, are pro-

; I vided, there will be a great source of • wealth laid open. i Many English syndicates are still in i touch with these possibilities, which ; ’ in the near future may quite easily ; be exploited to the financial advau- » j tage of the Dominion. Pandora is a snug oasis, full of \ charm and romance. The road to it j I offers an infinity of interest to the motorist, and as a place of recupera- • tion, in which real rest may be enr . joyed, it is unsurpassed.