BREAKING THE GROUND 
intervals we could trace the trails of the sandalwood 
cutter. Not long after leaving Oofafa we found a 
rocky eminence, from which we enjoyed a lovely view 
of the entire Bioto Creek winding between a dense 
border of mangroves, the vivid green of which marked 
the course of the inlet, even when the shimmer of the 
water in the sunlight was entirely veiled by the over- 
hanging vegetation. Beyond lay the broader waters 
of Hall Sound, bounded by the wooded shores of Yule 
Island, and to the west we could descry Nicora, a small 
village on a hill of red clay. The vista was closed by 
the sea, and in the clear atmosphere the picture was 
one to be remembered. We then entered a flat tract, 
an apparent plateau, at a height of 1000 feet, and 
for a time travelling was over comparatively easy 
ground, but at Epa the forest and our difficulties 
began in earnest. Henceforward we had to depend 
on one or two trails very difficult to follow, and hills 
and valleys became continuous. Fifteen miles inland 
lay before us a line of rugged peaks, whither we were 
bound, but many more miles than fifteen would have 
to be covered before we reached them. Further off 
still towered Mount Yule, our first glimpse of the 
Papuan Alps. Passing Ekeikei we entered the region 
of ridges, often scarcely twelve inches wide, and afford- 
ing only the most precarious foothold. The path as 
we rose became still more rugged, and was crossed by 
numerous creeks. ‘Then the character of the forest 
changed, and we traversed damp and gloomy tracts, 
where the thick vegetation excluded the sunlight. 
The track at this point skirted vast and threatening 
precipices. At Madui we encountered peaty and 
29 
