Gallant Attempt Foiled by Floods

One of the major feats of exploration remaining in the North Island, a traverse on foot of the Motu River from Motu to the sea, was attempted by a party of four members of the Gisborne Canoe and Tramping Club during the Christmas holidays.

The river has been traversed before with the aid of canoes, but no man has yet walked its length.

The Gisborne party, led by Bill Peach, almost made it. Their attempt would no doubt have succeeded had not a sucsession of freshes in the river made crossings dangerous and difficult.

Eventually they reached an impasse about 10 miles from the river mouth, when the river rose following rain in the hills, and before they could make a break-out their time limit had elapsed and the search and rescue organisation went into action.

The party was located by A. N. Richardson in a plane piloted by G. Oman. The rescue party comprised W. B. Bishop, I. Openshaw, H. Hoten and C. Peach, with Constables T. J. Walker and D. Attewell.

They took rubber dinghies into the Motu via the Mangaotane stream, and picked up the stranded trampers, going on to meet civilisation at Haupoto in a blaze of publicity.

Members of the tramping party were Bill Peach, Jim Peach, Bill Brown and Dave Middlemiss.