Walks.

All that has been written of the drives and excursions open to visitors will suggest many opportunities for tourists or citizens who prefer to see the country on foot. The Port Hills afford a delightful contrast to the monotony of the great plains; and they are largely utilised as an excursion ground by the townsfolk. The walk to Governor's Bay, across Dyer's Pass, provides ample variety of scenery, and there are still patches of bush in the gullies towards Tai Tapu and Gebbie's Valley, which recall the distant days when the Peninsula was heavily wooded country. Banks' Peninsula, with its alternations of hill and dale, its rocky peaks and well watered gullies, is an ideal resort for tourists. Starting from Little River, it is possible to walk all round the south coast, by the old whaling stations, past Piraki to Akaroa: thence along the east and north coasts by a splendid road, through valleys everywhere beautiful and rich with traditions of European and Maori history, to Port Levy; and so past the Head of the Bay (Lyttelton), over Dyer's Pass to Christchurch again. Such a walking tour will well repay the exertion. Less ambitious pedestrians are content with such walks as fall within the scope of a single day —to Sumner, to Taylor's Mistake, to the top of Mount Pleasant—affording the finest view to be obtained on the land side of Lyttelton Harbour; or to the lighthouse at Godley Head.

Of the long trips described under other heads, all are practicable for tourists on foot. Many scores of campers have done the West Coast trip, over the Otira Gorge on foot, with casual assistance from horse or dray at the worst fords. In favourable weather, and with reasonable care, the unbridged rivers are all fordable. But the great field for pedestrian excursion, of course, lies among the hills, and especially in the region of the snowclad Southern Alps. Much of the pioneer exploration of the Mount Cook district was done by Messrs Mannering, A. Harper, and M. Dixon, and the Alpine Club founded by these enthusiasts; had an active, though, unfortunately, a short life. Anyone interested in discovering what can be done by comparatively inexperienced mountain climbers should read “With Axe and Rope,” by Mr Mannering, or “Pioneer Work in the New Zealand Alps,” by Harper. It was the work done by these energetic young colonials which made possible the later achievements of Messrs Green, Fitzgerald and other distinguished strangers, Mountain climbing is now a well established summer recreation in Canterbury. At one time, when the hills at Springfield or at the mouth of the Rakaia Gorge were snow-clad, it was a common diversion for parties of young athletes to run up the Malvern line on Saturday afternoon and spend Sunday careering down the steep sides of Mount Torlesse or Mount Hutt. Even ladies were inspired with the passion for mountaineering, and many parties of Canterbury girls have made records on the Port Hills, and in the Peninsula, and in the hill country of North Canterbury, that no trained athlete would be ashamed to claim. Unfortunately, the excessive flatness of Christchurch and its vicinity does not encourage exertion of this sort: but those who have made the experiment can tell of delightful days spent, not only in the alpine regions of Mount Cook, but in the great river gorges, and in many a wild corner of North Canterbury between the Waimakariri and the Hurunui. It is commonly held that the surroundings of Christchurch are “pretty” but tame; and few know what a vast variety of picturesque and even grand scenery lies within easy reach of anyone able and willing to spend a week on foot among Canterbury gullies, rivers, and hills.