Mangatarere - and You Too

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"MANGATARERE - AND - YOU - TOO." The 17 - 19 of August was intended to be a serious week-end tramp but right from the word "go" I suspected it of being a pantomime, Have you met the Hutt Valleys?? Well just imagine a bunch of these combined with a bunch of T. 2 M.'s, put them in a truck driven by a nervous Dutchman and take them to Ba mister Hut al lready filled with a party from the Varsity tramping Club and-you will get the idea. However, joking aside you would go a long way before you found a better crowd of lassies and lads to share the same hut, Frankly, I am not very good at this writing, caper, but as Eth has asked me to write up the trip, I'll do me best. There were about eight people on the trip, at least eigbt came out in our party so,one or two here and there do not matter. The Manga tare... I Mangatare : the RIVER at that time of the year was very cold and, as at most other times, wet; - but with long swinging steps we got as far as Donne lly's Flats without stopping. From this point the track sidles theriver and we were too winded to even make goat noises at the goats whom we encountered. Davy Crockett ( alias B.Cropp) tested its temperature by lying in it, After the initial "wetting" as it were everyone in the party war keen to keep moving. Whoever selected the club colour did so wisely, because, like the Grenadices who wear red tunics so that their blood does, not show on them when wounded, it was difficult to tell that we were not vearinga nice shade of blue, About morning tea time we lit a fire and boiled the billy on Ted's primus, mainly to save burning the wet bush, and if everyou want a fire put out before leaving, I am not going to say that" where there's no sense there's no feeling", but you ask "Slatts" to sit on it. A further excursion up the river provided a diversion when Bob Falloon (Masterton Y.M.) became playful with a goat, carrying off as his prize the trotters in the event of our dying of starvation, : The view from the saddle on Pinnacle Ridge is magnificent. 'Tis true the mist was fairly dense but it is not every day that one gets a chance to view such THICK mist; so we put some in our packs to thicken the stew that evening, We left the saddle and fairly cas scaded down a creek to the Waingawa River, one un-named, member of the party was once again baptised, but this time upon her nether-end. (Note) Did you notice: that.clever bit about "cascading down a creek", well I could not very well say".we were right up the creek coming down" could I? but we were!

We did not think much of the"wet floor of Mitre Flats Hut, although it was much more acceptable after we'd had our stew in our eping bags. Hughie Tal lbot was there, and we all had a good"yak" about old times with the Club, Hugh is STILL hungry, by the way, but NO fatter. After fun and games over the high wire bridge over the Waingawa the next morning we made our way out to the Pines to connect with the truck, If anyone else is game enough to admit being on this trip, theyre we lcome to. . - Pete :