noon
The rocky vine-clad cliffs on one side tower almost perpendicularly from their base to the height of at least fifteen hundred feet ; while across the vale -- in striking contrast to the scenery opposite -- grass-grown elevations rise one above another in blooming terraces . Hemmed in by these stupendous barriers , the valley would be altogether shut out from the rest of the world , were it not that it is accessible from the sea at one end , and by a narrow defile at the other . The impression produced upon the mind , when I first visited this beautiful glen , will never be obliterated . I had come from Nukuheva by water in the ship 's boat , and when we entered the bay of Tior it was high noon . The heat had been intense , as we had been floating upon the long smooth swell of the ocean , for there was but little wind . The sun 's rays had expended all their fury upon us ; and to add to our discomfort , we had omitted to supply ourselves with water previous to starting . What with heat and thirst together , I became so impatient to get ashore , that when at last we glided towards it , I stood up in the bow of the boat ready for a spring .