604 Transactions.— Miscellaneous. 



he able to see the crater-lakes, Pounamu and Eotoaira, that 

 nestle between Pihanga, an extinct volcano overlooking To- 

 kaanu, and Tongaviro, and where once stood, so the Maori 

 legend runs, the volcanic cone of Mount Egmont, now situ- 

 ated some eighty miles to the south-west. It must have 

 been a great disappointment to Hochstetter, as it was to Dief- 

 fenbach, to find himself so near to one of the most interesting 

 volcanic spots in the Southern Hemisphere, and yet unable to 

 traverse its slopes, where his great insight would have been of 

 special scientific value in interpreting the geological history of 

 so important a district. 



In 1869 the mana of Te Heuheu over the district was in a 

 measure broken, for colonial troops passed along the w^estern 

 side of the Tongariro Range when, in October of that year, the 

 power of the rebel chief Te Kooti was sha.ttered at Porere, a 

 stronghold situated almost under the shadow of the active 

 volcano Ngauruhoe. The district, however, was seldom or 

 never visited until the year of the Tarawera eruption. 



The earliest ascents of Ruapehu, as far as I can find, were 

 made by Messrs. Maxwell and Beetham in 1879, followed by 

 Mr. and Mrs. Birch, of Erehwon, in 1881, who crossed the 

 mountain from north to south ; but no account of either jour- 

 ney has hitherto been published. In the early part of 1886 

 Mr. Park, F.G.S., of the Geological Sm'vey, and subsequently 

 Mr. Cussen, of the Auckland Survey Departinent, reached 

 what is known as the southern peak of Ruapehu ; but neither 

 appears to have attempted to cross the mountain, as was done 

 by Mr. Birch's party, as the sequel will show. The accounts 

 given by Messrs. Park and Cussen will be found in vol. xix. 

 of the Transactions of the New Zealand Institute. In vol. 

 xxi. of the same Transactions there is a paper by Professor 

 Thomas on " The Geology of Tongariro and Taupo District," 

 in which an excellent description is given of the northern parts 

 of the Tongariro Range, illustrated by some capital pictures 

 and diagrams. Professor Thomas visited the Tongariro dis- 

 trict at the beginning of 1888, but he does not appear to have 

 ascended either Ngauruhoe or Ruapehu during his visit. As 

 far as I am aware, the only available information with regard 

 to the district under notice is to be gathered from the papers 

 referred to here. 



My own experience of the volcanic district extends over a 

 period of twelve years, during which time the entire district 

 from north to south has been visited by me, the southern 

 portion three times, and the central or Taupo district many 

 times. All the mountains or volcanic peaks belonging to the 

 Tongariro series have been ascended and crossed, and the 

 sources of the Whangaehu, Waikato, and Wanganui have been 

 explored. The following remarks are based upon the knowledge 



