Cook Strait Swimmers.

In need of exercise after working indoors for the greater part of the week I have become a keen hiker, and have found a fine little walk from Wellington to the Terawhiti headland. Few Wellington residents know of the marvellous views to be seen from the hills which have been featured in several short stories by Will Lawson.

From the headland may be seen the hills in which gold was found many years ago, but the morning's walk is always made worthwhile by the view of the South Island with its snowcapped peaks.

On a fine day the South Island seems only a stone's throw away, and my hiking companion, formerly a well-known Taranaki distance swimmer, has often gazed across the narrow straits and remarked that his big regret is that he never had attempted to swim from one island to the other. It looks easy, but experienced fishermen can tell stories of the treacherous currents which make the crossing hazardous for swimmers, and it is significant that Miss Mercedes Gleitz, perhaps the greatest of distance swimmers, did not attempt to paddle her way across.

It is interesting, too, to recall that the first publicity received by “Lofty” Blomfield, New Zealand's outstanding wrestler, was when he arrived in Wellington as trainer to Webster who was anxious to swim Cook Strait—but never succeeded.