Contents

COVER : Eels have been a staple food for the Whanganui Maori for generations. Ben Potaka, pictured with two good-sized specimens he has just caught, is part of an ACCESS training scheme which teaches trditional Maori fishing methods to unemployed youth. Photo by Dennis Brett.
CONTENTS - Features :
THE OBSIDIAN ISLAND [Famous for its volcanic glass, Tuhua (Mayor Island) is a geologists’s paradise, a fisherman’s eldorado, and a tranquil jewel in the Bay of Plenty];
THE LIVING CARPET [a close-up look at the mosses, lichens and liverworts which carpet the ground in New Zealand’s native forests];
WAITATA - STILL CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS? [once the hippie capital of the South, Waitata still retains a vitality based on holistic lifestyle and idealism, laced with a little creative insanity];
BLUFF GOLD [the mouth-watering Bluff oyster, dredged from deep beds in Foveaux Strait for more than a century, has become a New Zealand legend];
THE CULTURED OYSTER [the recent arrival of the prolific Pacific oyster has brought about a revolution in oyster farming];
OPERATION THUNDERBOLT [a dramatic bid to rescue an injured climber trapped on Mt Everest];
LYDIA - ONE WOMAN, ONE MOUNTAIN [Lydia’s story of how she climbed Mt Everest solo and without the benefit of supplementary oxygen];
RIVER OF GREAT WAITING [what price a river? the debate goes on over rights to the waters of the Whanganui River];
CONTENTS - Departments : FROM THE PUBLISHER; LETTERS; GEONEWS [Brothers tuatara may be separate species; chemicals give pests a fright]; BOOKS [Reviews of Wild South and Jungle Stories]; PLACE NAMES [How Canterbury’s towns and streets were named]; WEATHER [how do tornadoes form?]; SPACE [the greatest show off earth]; MUSEUMS [Len Southward’s wonderful world of wheels]; SALUTE [credit where credit’s due]; MINI ADS; COMING UP [articles to look forward to];