Canterbury and Westland. 187 



^Near it the sources of the Makaroa, falling into Lake Wanaka take 

 their rise, being formed by glacier streams of considerable size descending 

 from both sides of the Southern Alps. On the western side in Mount 

 Kinross, a fine dome-like peak, the latter continue to the southern 

 boundary of the Province as Mount Alba, Castor and Pollux, Glacier 

 Dome, and Mount Aspiring. They still rise to a considerable altitude, 

 covered with perpetual snow ; but it is very clear that the Alps south 

 of the Moorehouse range begin to lose their continuity, being now 

 broken into sharp pyramidical peaks, seldom attaining an altitude of 

 10,000 feet, with deep but generally inaccessible saddles between them. 

 The river Makaroa receives a considerable supply of water by the 

 Blue river, the Young, and the Wilkin, all of which drain the eastern 

 slopes of the Alps. Near the head of the Young, or of the north, 

 western sources of the Wilkin, a Pass exists well visible from the West 

 Coast, of which the Maoris gave me an account, but hitherto, as far as 

 I am aware, it has not been reached by any European explorer. 



Having now given a short outline of the orographical features of 

 the Southern Alps proper, I wish to say a few words concerning the 

 divergent chains, or secondary ridges starting from them and covering 

 a considerable portion of the province. Again, beginning in the north 

 at the Snowcup range, south of the Hurunui Pass, where the sources 

 of the two main branches of the Hurunni and of the PouHer, a con- 

 siderable branch of the Waimakariri, are situated, this mountain sends 

 a chain in a southerly direction to Ashley Head. Here it bifurcates, 

 the smaller branch, continuing the southern direction, terminates in 

 Mount Thomas, the main branch continuing south-south-west as Mount 

 Pember and the Puketeraki range to the gorge of the Waimakariri. 

 This range is still 6,000 to 7,000 feet high, well visible from Christ- 

 church, and abounds in splendid scenery, heightened by fine beech 

 forest vegetation. East of the Upper Ashley, the mountains have 

 more rounded outlines, they rise in the highest summits only to 3, COD or 

 4,000 feet, Mount Grey (3074 feet) being one of the most conspicuous. 

 Between the Waimakariri and Kakaia, the eastern continuation of 

 Mount Greenlaw, is called the Black range, and a'though of con- 

 siderable altitude, it does not reach the line of perpet ual snows. It is 

 separated from the Cragieburn range by a saddle named bale's Pass, 

 (after its discoverer, Professor Gr. Sale), leading from the sources of the 

 Harper into those of the Cass. The Cragieburn range, still rising to 

 about 7000 feet, is remarkable by being in its upper and middle portion 

 nearly devoid of vegetation, the whole sides loirning an almost con- 



