observed few holes sunk anywhere, they probably limited their prospecting operations to the beaches along the stream. The Darran Mountains, which encircle the head of Milford Sound and form the west side of Kakapo Valley, have a striking appearance from this point, although from the profundity of the valley the higher peaks are completely shut out from view.

There is only one place where there is the slightest appearance of a gap in this range, but even there the saddle cannot be lower than 3000 feet. The high slopes above 5500 feet seem to be covered with perpetual snow, with glaciers of small size descending through steep ravines as low as three thousand feet above the sea level, but from the extent of bare rock from their lower extremity and the position of their terminal moraines, I am inclined to think that in some seasons they must descend about 500 feet lower. Indeed, every circumstance I have observed seems to indicate that there has been an unusually small snow fall on the mountains during the past winter.

Above the boulder rapid just mentioned, the fall of the stream is again comparatively slight for ten or twelve miles, at which place the valley is crossed by a second moraine, but in this part of its course, beside the frequent occurrence of shallows, its channel is much obstructed by drift wood, which is frequently piled to a height of ten feet by floods.

In some parts of the valley the flat land, which is of good quality and above the highest floods, is nearly two miles in width, and as the soil appears principally to be a deposit from a lake that once extended from side to side, and probably occupied the whole of this valley and its ramifications, it will have a more uniform character than is usual in valleys so closely hemmed by mountains. The forest which covers the flats is very open and free from underwood, and contains some fine timber trees, black birch, iron wood, remu and white pine being the most prevalent.

Above the second boulder rapid, the rounded shingle which lower down is confined to the bed of the principal stream and its tributaries, fills the valley from side to side, so that the useful land may be considered to terminate at that point, or about 18 miles from the south extremity of the Kakapo Lake.

It is extremely difficult to form any estimate of the extent of available land in the valley, but I do not think it can exceed 10,000 acres. Its quality is however excellent, the soil being generally a light friable loam containing a proportion of vegetable matter. In travelling up the valley we crossed the stream repeatedly, taking advantage of the shingle beaches, over which we could progress more rapidly than through the woods; but if this were impracticable from the flooded state of the river, the best road would be found along its west or left bank.

After losing four days by continued rain, which I was surprised to find only caused a rise of a few feet in the river, we reached a stream which descends from the saddle at the source of the Greenstone River on the morning of the 1st October, being then a distance of 25 miles from the Kakapo Lake, although by the route we had come, following all the bends of the river, we must have travelled 40 miles, as it occupied us eighteen hours exclusive of all delays.

I had furnished myself with an accurate mercurial barometer, and also with a small aneroid, and as I have assistants at present taking regular observations on both the east and west shores of the Province, I expected that the accurate section of the Island which I should thus be able to obtain, would prove one of the most interesting results of my journey from sea to sea. I was therefore much disappointed when notwithstanding the greatest care, both instruments became useless early in the journey, so that I am unable for the present to give more than an estimate of the elevations passed over. Another, and I trust a more successful attempt will be made, as I return with fresh instruments. In the meantime, I may state that the rise of the valley to this point I estimate at 400 feet, and thus far there would be no heavy gradients to be overcome in the construction of a road. After following up the Pass Creek for a short distance, and with an easy climb of two hours, we reached the top of a bald hill on the west side of the Greenstone Valley, being, I have no doubt, the same from which Messrs M’Kellar and Gun obtained their prospect of the western slope, when in search of new pastoral country.

We encamped near the top of the hill, which is over 3,000 feet above the sea level, and at least 1,400 feet above the highest point of the Greenstone Valley, or in other words, just so much higher than it was necessary for us to rise in order to strike the waters that flow to the East.

The bed of the stream which descends to the westward from the saddle is very precipitous, but on both sides of it there are spurs which lead easily down to the Kakapo Valley.

Two Lakes occupy the bottom of the valley where the water turns, separated by a mossy flat, the water from the northwest, which is half a mile in extent, forming the Paess Creek; while that of the South Lake, which is two miles long and half a mile wide, forms the Greenstone River that flows to the Wakatipu Lake.

From the top of the hill I obtained a view of a second and even deeper valley, which I suspect leads through to the Mavora Lakes and is the route which has been frequently traversed by the Maories, between the Wakatipu, Kundaku, and Riverton.