ASCENT OF PIRONGIA.
Mount Pirongia--Geological features--The ascent--A fair prospect.
[Illustration: HATI WIRA TAKAHI.
(_Chief of the Ngapuhi Tribe._)]
The steep, rugged heights of Mount Pirongia are at all times an
attractive feature in the splendid landscape which stretches along
the course of the Waikato River and thence through the valley of the
Waipa to the very borders of the King Country. Rising to a height of
3146 feet above the level of the sea, the conical peaks of this grand
mountain stand boldly out against the sky as they change and shift,
as it were, with magical effect, when viewed from different points
of vantage, now assuming the form of gigantic pyramids, now swelling
into dome-shaped masses connected by long, sweeping ridges which lose
themselves in deep ravines, and rolling slopes whose precipitous sides
sometimes end in steep precipices, or open out into broad valleys
covered from base to summit by a thick mantle of vegetation. When
beheld from a distance, Pirongia appears to have been moulded by the
hand of nature into the most subdued and graceful proportions, over
which are constantly playing the most enchanting effects of light and
shade, and it is not until one stands at the base of this stupendous
mountain of eruptive rock that one fully realizes the bold features
of its rugged outline, as one contemplates in wonder the work of those
terrific subterranean forces which, at some period or another, caused
this volcanic giant to rear its rugged head above the surrounding
plains. Beneath the bright morning light, or when evening spreads
its mellow tints over the heavens, the mountain is seen to its best
advantage; but when the heavily laden clouds from the west sweep in
from the sea, they gather round the lofty summit of Pirongia in a thick
pall of vapoury mist, and then, bursting into a flood of rain, roll
down its steep sides to swell the current of the Waipa.
[Illustration: TAWHAO NGATUERE.
(_A Chief of the Ngatikahunu Tribe._)]
When viewed from a geological point of view, Pirongia formed evidently
at some remote period of its history the centre of an extended volcanic
action to which the extensive ranges stretching from this point in
many ramifications to the west coast, and thence in the direction of
Whaingaroa harbour in the north and Kawhia harbour in the south, owe
their origin. When standing upon the summit of the mountain, it may be
plainly seen that the Pirongia ranges diverge in all directions from
a common centre, formed by the most elevated portion of the volcanic
cone which constitutes the highest point of the mountain chain. For a
considerable distance to the north and south, and as far west as the
coast, this mountainous system extends in an almost continuous line,
and assumes an elevation which varies from nearly 2000 to 3000 feet
above the level of the sea, but it gradually diminishes in altitude
towards the east, in the form of low hills and undulating slopes which
finally merge into the broad plains which mark the upper and lower
valleys of the Waipa. Throughout these extensive ranges there is little
or no open country, but mountain top after mountain top, ridge after
ridge, ravine after ravine, stretch away as far as the eye can reach
in a confused rugged mass covered with a dense and almost impenetrable
vegetation. The summit or highest point of Pirongia, which assumes
the form of a large oval-shaped, though now much broken, crater, was
evidently the central point of eruption of the volcanic forces which
caused the various higher ranges and lower hills to radiate from this
point and assume their serrated and disjointed form, and it is here, as
well as in the numerous gullies and ravines which spring from it, that
the geological features of the various rocks may be more distinctly
traced. As in all formations of the kind in its vicinity, the igneous
rocks predominate, and of these trachyte is the most common; huge
masses of this rock cropping up everywhere above the surface of the
mountain. Scoria, obsidian, pumice, and other volcanic rocks likewise
occur, their gradual decomposition serving to form a dark rich soil,
which covers the sides of the mountain and gives life to its splendid
vegetation.
[Illustration: A CHIEF OF THE NGATIPROA TRIBE.]
When I made the ascent of Pirongia it was in the pleasant company of
Mr. F.J. Moss, Member of the House of Representatives. The country
around the eastern base of the mountain was composed of a series of
low, fern-clad hills, intersected by small swamps and watercourses fed
principally from the mountain springs.
[Illustration: PARATENE TE MANU.
(_A Chief of the Ngatiwai Tribe._)]
The moment we left the fern hills and entered the forest all the
varied beauties of its rich growth burst upon the view. The steep
ascent of the mountain began almost at once, and our path lay along
the precipitous ridges which sweep down on every side from its summit,
clothed with a thick growth of enormous trees, and rich in all the
wondrous creations of a primeval vegetation. Among the many giants of
the vegetable world was the _rata_, which, clothed with its curious
growth of parasitical plants, towered high above its compeers of the
forest. Many of these trees were of enormous size, especially when
they grew in the low, damp gullies, where they attained to a height
of considerably over a hundred feet, with a girth of from thirty to
forty feet at their base. A few of these giants were scattered about
the high ridges, but they appeared to thrive best, and to attain their
greatest girth, near the low, damp beds of the small watercourses,
which, bursting from the adamantine sides of the mountain, and leaping
along their rocky course, formed the only music that enlivened these
bush-bound solitudes.
[Illustration: TUKUKINO.
(_Head Chief of the Ngatitematera._)]
When we reached the summit of the mountain, we emerged from the thick
forest on to an open spot which commanded a delightful prospect.
Turning towards the west, we stood on the brink of a precipice which
fell in a clear descent of 1000 feet into the ravine below; here and
there a jutting mass of rock stood out in rugged grandeur from the
adamantine wall of stone, but otherwise a thick growth of matted scrub
covered the sides and bottom of this enormous fissure, and so dense
and entangled was the vegetation as we looked down upon it, that it
appeared quite possible to walk upon the tops of the trees without
falling to the ground. Far beyond this, mountain after mountain rolled
away in the distance, until the eye rested on the grand expanse of
Kawhia Harbour, dotted with its broad inlets and numerous headlands,
which rose in picturesque beauty above the deep-blue outline of the
distant sea. North-westerly from this point the bright waters of Aotea
Harbour lay embosomed in a semicircle of hills, and, beyond again,
Mount Karioi rose from the borders of the ocean to an altitude of 2300
feet. East and south of this the Whanga Ranges bounded the horizon,
and right opposite to Pirongia the bold peaks of Maungakawa and
Maungatautari rose into view. Between this wide area there were lower
hills which radiated from the mountain ranges, but it could be plainly
seen that the greater portion of the country was formed of level plains
dotted here and there with small lakes and extensive swamps, through
which the Waikato and the Waipa, with their numerous tributaries, could
be traced as they wound for miles away in the distance. Here and there
upon the cultivated flats the white houses of the settlers, embowered
amidst orchards and gardens, dotted the landscape, while Alexandra,
Kihikihi, Hamilton, and Cambridge, and numerous other settlements,
served to mark the spots where future cities may ere long grow into
existence, and add wealth and prosperity to this fertile land. It was,
however, when gazing in the direction of the south, where the King
Country lay stretched for miles before us in all the wide, rich beauty
of a virgin country, that the grandest natural scenery burst upon the
view, and charmed the imagination with the thought of a bright future.
The _aukati_ or boundary-line could be distinctly traced, on the one
side by farms and homesteads, and on the other by the huts of the
natives; but beyond these features there was nothing to denote that
the territory to the north was the abode of enlightenment, and that
the land to the south was a primeval wilderness still wrapped in the
darkness of primitive barbarism.
[Illustration: TE RAIA NGAKUTU TE TUMUHUIA.
(_Head Chief of the Ngatitematera tribe. Last of the New Zealand
Cannibals._)]
THE LAKE COUNTRY.