Contents

COVER : At the 1994 Ngaruawahia Regatta a young bailer (there are two or three in each canoe) wades out to his vessel. The annual regatta is now virtually the only time when the Waikato recaptures something of its former role as the “Mississippi of the Maori”.
CONTENTS - Features :
ROUTEBURN [Congestion on the more accessible high country tracks is threatening to under mine the quality of the wilderness experience that forms the basis of their attraction in the first place. How severe is the problem, and what measures are being taken to alleviate it];
AT THE BACH [Summer days at the beach, replete with fishing, salt air and sun, time to catch up on a spot of reading and enjoy a stroll along the shore at sunset, to have a good natter and set the last year - and a few before that - to rights. the basic Kiwi bach is all this and more];
WAIKATO - THE ROYAL RIVER [Despite being the North Island’s preeminent river - a centre of farming, energy production and Maoridom - the Waikato remains a things apart, tranquil, isolated, and for the most part neglected];
THE REMARKABLE WORLD OF BATS [Secretive, uncommon, distinctive, New Zealand’s two species of bat are infrequently seen, yet they are our only endemic land mammals. Scientific study is beginning to reveal that they have little in common with the repulsive myths of popular imagination];
MASOCHISM AND MAGIC - THE COAST TO COAST [Across the spine of the South Island in a day - or more commonly two - this legendary triathlon is so popular that entries fill within hours of opening each year. Is it magic or masochism that draws competitors back time and again to beat their bodies against the land?];
CONTENTS - Departments :
LETTERS; EDITOR’S COMMENTS; SPACE [secrets of the sundial]; WEATHER [how bad is our weather]; OPEN COUNTRY [the bushmen’s revenge]; GEONEWS [the new lake]; BOOKS; COMING UP [What’s in store]; MINI ADS;