The Hawaiian gazette., 1917-05-11

HlLO, May I--Circling the Island OF
Hawaii in two-day trip, The Adver.
tiser Pilot Car has completed prelimi.
nary exploration Of the main road sys,
tenn Of the Big Island.
For the purpose Of compiling road
guide TO the belt road and to familiar,
ize themselves with distances and road
conditions for later tours, the members
of the party made straightaway run
the distance Of the belt road without
stops for side trips. t q.
Leaving Friday morning from Hilo
for Kealakekua by way of the Volcano
Road and the Kau district and return,
ing Saturday from Kona by way Of
Waimea and the Hamaltua coast road,
the pilot ear traversed scenic drive of
Incompatible natural beauty and
grandeur. u.s.. ..
For two hundred and thirty four
miles Hawaii's belt road winds won
lrous way through mountain and for.
est, over lava flows, through wide ex-
panses Of grazing lands, between fer
tile sugar plantation Lands, along I'M
urpassed coast.line and cliff-side drives,
through coffee and tobacco lands and
jvef desert volcanic country Unfold
ing each hour of the drive an ever
hanging panorama of marvels, the cir.
lie drive of the island is itself an at
raction TO motoring tourists that has
Few equals among the many scenic
lrives advertised 10 the American tour.
ist a. -
Many Side TRIPS ,
In addition, along this belt route are
scores Of side trips, as yet unexplored
~ the pilot car, as well as the drive
nto North Kohala and the one over the
ranch road from Olaa into the Puma
district. All Of these but add TO the
attractions offered by Hawaii to the
motoring tourist, attractions that com
zine in profusion, scenic beauty, typical,
Hawaiian scenes, places of legendary
and historical associations and, above
al, Kilauea and the volcano country.
Yesterday the pilot ear toured one Of
shese branch roads--the drive from
lilo BY way Of Olaa to Pahoa, Kala-
pana and Kapoho.
In touring the belt road Friday and
saturday, a rough check on the time
was kept in order to test the work Of
he Dodge Brothers motor ear that has
,erved so we'll as The Advertiser Pilot
Car thus far on the four islands tour.
The Dodge car negotiated the 234
niles of belt road in fourteen hours of
running time during the two days. Two
hours of this fourteen-hour period were
spent in halts on the road-one hour in
4 mudhole and the balance in stops to
,hange tires and to take on gasoline, oil
and water. 55 ,a. 3D.. ia.
Roads In Good Shape ILL.,.
Hawaii's mueh-maligned roads were
found 10 be in far better condition than
reports have them. Except for a ten.
mile stretch between the Keaumoku
Gate and Waimea, no part Of the belt
road Is such as to hinder comfortable
irving. Though there are few poor
stretches, by far the larger part of the
BELT road IL in good condition and in
many places Is an excellent highway for
long distances. h+ fG' t'tL
The ADVERTISER Dodge Pilot Car left
Hilo Friday morning and travelling by
way Of the Volcano, the Kau desert and
Pahala, negotiated the seventy miles to
Waiohinu In three hours. Here stop
was made for lunch. 7. 49,. E.Ssf..s5.
The forty seven miles from Waiohinu
to Kealakekua was made iH two and
three quarter hours. The party stopped
at Kealakekua over night and Saturday
,pent FIVE hours covering the fifty three
miles to Waimea. After a stop for
lunch at Waimea, the sixty-four miles
to Hilo over fine stretch of road was
negotiated in three and quarter hours.
Caught In the Mud e..
The two day drive was not without
the inevitable bit of adventure that has
been encountered by The Advertiser
Pilot Car both on Maui and Kauai.
The one really bad piece of Hawaii 3
belt road was met about twelve miles
before reaching Waimea, where a dirt
road over the open plains has been
washed out and cut up by rain storms
Automobiles are daily negotiating
this distance, driving around or speed
ing through the long deep mud puddles
that have formed in the wheelruts in
| the road. &
In attempting to pass through one of
these DOGGY holes, one more deceptive
than the rest, the pilot car was caught
up to the wheel hubs in mud. An hour
Of work, building firm base on boards
and rocks under the wheels of the car,
similar to the method used in climbing
Haleakala, brought the machine out Of
the difficulty just in time to escape
being caught in this hole in q heavy
| rainstOrm.
Leaving Waimea, the pilot car was
/ forced for the first time in five weeks