Day 10: Kaikoura

The past few days have been a blur, so let me see if I can recall the highlights….In Taupo, we did a little hike to check out the mighty Waikato River which, if I understand correctly, is the largest river in New Zealand. Many people come to Taupo to check out Huka Falls, which is understandable since it is the color turquoise blue that for some reason is so much prettier to look at than regular old blue. We then tried our luck at fishing for prawns. Sound strange? It is. Leave it to the New Zealanders to come up with such a thing. Apparently, the nearby geothermal plant discharges a lot of hot water, which is then piped over to the prawn farm, mixed with cold water from the Waikato, and is then channeled into a bunch of beds where they raise Malaysian Giant River Prawns, or something like that. After learning all about the life cycle of the river prawn and deciding that they are really a bunch of jerks, we were given a fishing rod and a cup of diced up ox heart for bait. The idea is that you hook your bait, drag it on the floor of the bed, wait for an unsuspecting prawn to grab it with his claws, then wait three minutes to be sure he or she has put the bait into their mouth, and then yank him or her up to the surface. Sounds easy enough, right? Well, the prawns are cheeky little things and proved able to take the bait off the hook with their claws, apparently. Andy did manage to catch one, and that was the extent of our success. The restaurant at the park will cook them up for you but it didn’t seem worth it for one prawn, so we pressed on. So much for my visions of a bountiful prawn lunch!

Our next stop was the Aratiatia Rapids, which is basically a gorge where the Waikato River used to run through in full force, but is now just a relative trickle since the river was dammed up. Four times a day, they open up the gates to let the dammed water run through, and the trickle is transformed into a gushing river. The action was a bit slow, since there are a few pools that need to fill up before the water really starts charging over the boulders. Pictures don’t do it justice, as is the trend with this country, but we are glad we got to see the show.

Before...

....After

  

After Taupo, we drove to Tongariro National Park. This park is home to what is touted as the best day hike in New Zealand, the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, and of course we had to do it. First off, let me set the scene—on August 6^th, Mt. Ruapehu erupted. The trail goes right through an active volcanic zone. Last week, there was a storm that caused a volcanic ash flow that took out a portion of the trail. Did any of this information deter us? No, but it certainly should have. The brochure pointed out two difficult stretches, and the rest was categorized as “easy”. We struggled on the easy parts and slowly crawled up the difficult parts, but the kicker was the snow. There were two craters that we passed through that were covered in slushy snow so that every step we took was like wading through mud. Then, the trail, hugging the side of the mountain and little more than a foot wide, was covered in snow. One false step would have sent us rolling down to the rocky ravine below. I might have preferred that to having to hike….. all…… the….. way….. down. I had said from the outset that I didn’t care how long it took, we were going to finish this hike. Little did I know we would literally be the last ones off the mountain. We got passed by everyone, even those that started well after us. I couldn’t believe these people just clipping along the trail like it was nothing. They were singing, chatting, smiling, while we were barely making it through. But, we made it and that’s all that matters. Sorry, no photos. My camera is barely working and Andy didn’t bring the cable for his to upload photos to the laptop. This stock photo will have to do for now.

Picture this, but with snow and frozen lakes. That's Mt. Doom in the middle (the cone shaped one).

 

After we finished the hike, we drove to Wellington, where we  learned why they call it windy Wellington. We thought the van might blow over with all the wind and rain but we were still upright in the morning. Yesterday, we did the all-day Lord of the Rings tour. None of the sets are still up, of course, but we got to visit at least a dozen filming sites and the guide helped us recreate certain scenes (again, sorry, no photos). It was surprising how many scenes are right in the city limits. The city is also in full Hobbit fever with the upcoming premier, so we also stopped by the Wellington airport to see the giant Gollum installation. I don’t know how big he is but the fish he’s trying to catch is at least three meters long. We checked out the Weta cave, which is a shop featuring a lot of props and such from the various movies Weta has done special effects for.  I managed to resist the urge to purchase a “the one” ring, but I couldn’t walk away empty handed so I bought a chain like the one Frodo wore to carry the ring.

This morning we took the ferry over to the south island, where we’ll be spending the majority of the remainder of the trip. Andy is still recovering from the hike so today I did some biking/wine tasting in the Marlborough region on my own. I picked up some really good bottles of Syrah and Sauvignon Blanc, and I promise to bring at least a couple home. We’re now relaxing in Kaikoura, enjoying a glass of wine (don't worry, it's from the grocery store) and doing a bit of gazing at the clear, starry sky, complete with full moon and snowy mountains in the background. This place just keeps getting better. Cheers!

Day 7: Lake Taupo

We’ve spent the last couple days exploring Rotorua, which seems to be a tourist hub due to the geothermal activity in the area. A couple nights ago we attended a traditional hangi dinner, which included an informative and interesting demonstration of Maori weapons, dancing, rituals, and music. There was some confusion as to where we were supposed to be sitting, but we ended up sitting with a nice Canadian couple that we had met earlier in the day at the Zorb. It sure was nice to have someone to talk to other than each other for a change :)

The highlight of the evening was after dinner when we got to go into the neighboring Rainbow Springs Wildlife Center, which is basically a zoo with only animals native to New Zealand. Since it was late, the nocturnal animals were very active. We saw more glowworms, eels, fish, and various birds, but the highlight was the kiwi birds. We were a bit disappointed that we didn’t get to see them in the kauri forest on our bush walk, but in the wildlife park we got to see three of them up close (New Zealand is very casual about barriers). The really are funny looking birds and they move so fast! A few interesting tidbits we learned: kiwi birds have marrow in their bones, which helps explain why they are flightless. They have whiskers on their face, and their nostrils are way at the end of their beak, which helps them root out bugs and worms from the ground. I think the most impressive fact is that they’re roughly about the size of a chicken but their eggs are the size of six chicken eggs! After the female lays the egg she’s outta there and leaves the male to incubate it for 2 and a half months. Such interesting animals – we feel lucky to have seen them.

Yesterday we explored the Wai-o-tapu thermal area, which was pretty impressive. We saw the Lady Knox geyser, fumaroles (steam vents in the ground), boiling mud pools, and more. The whole place (really, all of Rotorua) stinks due to the hydrogen sulfide gas being emitted from the earth, but it’s really not bad unless the breeze sends a particularly smelly cloud your way when you’re not ready for it. Then it's gag, cough, gasp, cough, gag. We then headed towards our next destination, Lake Taupo. One great thing about having a camper is that you’re never at the mercy of what’s nearby. We can fix a hot lunch at whatever spot seems pretty, we always have a change of clothes if the weather turns bad, and if you need a nap, we’ve got our bed right behind us.  Last night we stayed in a proper hotel, however, which has its upside too (such a luxury to take a shower without wearing sandals). Anyway, Andy is finally awake and we're getting ready to check out the gorgeous Huka Falls. More to come!

 

 

At Craters of the Moon, a geothermal area caused by man's tinkering with geothermal power

Lady Knox Geyser hat

The Champagne Pool, named for the tiny bubbles

Day 5: Rotorua - Bruised Egos and Chicken Chips

48 hours. That’s how long it took for me to cause my first bit of damage to the campervan. Immediately prior to the incident, I was feeling pretty proud of myself, what with managing the left hand driving, stickshift, and maneuvering the largeness of the vehicle with relative ease. But, alas, my downfall has always been parking lots and driving in reverse and Monday was no exception. We were preparing to refill the water for the first time, and as I was backing into the stall I turned right into a wood post. The point of impact was the driver’s side door, which yes, should have been the least likely place I would run into something, but hey, when you’re busy worrying about your giant rear end, sometimes you forget to watch what’s right under your nose. The post was undamaged, the door survived with a somewhat minor dent, but it’s my pride that took the brunt of the impact. Perhaps the universe took note of my puffed up ego and decided to issue a swift correction.


Thank goodness for insurance



Our luck did not improve much the rest of the day, part of which was spent fighting the wind on a kayak in the Bay of Islands. We then headed on to Opononi to try boogie boarding down a giant sand dune into the bay, but arrived 40 minutes too late…no thanks to the guidebook or the company’s own website that made no mention of a last call. We finally made it to our campground which was GORGEOUS, and we thought our streak of misfortune was over. Situated in a verdant valley, surrounded on three sides by a river, and delightfully equipped (trampoline, zip line, etc.), we thought the day’s tribulations were all worth it to end up at such a lovely place. Andy, being the lover of lazy rivers that he is, thought he would seize the opportunity to tube down the river a bit, so I tagged along. Long story short, the river was shallow, fast and rocky and we were woefully unprepared for the rapids we encountered. We ended up almost losing the keys to the van, sacrificing my glasses to the river gods, and took home a variety of bumps and bruises. By then, the message was quite clear. The universe was telling us to sit down, enjoy a glass of wine, and tuck in for the day. Did we listen? No! Instead we did a nighttime guided bush walk in attempts to spot a wild kiwi bird. No such luck, but really at that point our hopes were pretty low. I’m just glad we both made it out without further injury.



Under a trickling waterfall at Cathedral Cove



We spent yesterday driving for over 12 hours over twisty coastal roads that were at times just wide enough to accommodate our width. The trip also included an extended stretch of gravel road, apparently not an uncommon thing here in New Zealand. And did I mention that it rained non-stop? The extended driving time was due in no small part to my insistence that we see Cathedral Cove. It did not disappoint, and I can see why it’s used in so many travel brochures. We made it to Rotorua just in time to spend a few minutes soaking in a thermal pool, which is filled with fresh water fed by a geothermal spring. We spent the night in the campground just outside the pool complex, so we were able to enjoy the pools properly early this morning before they opened to the public, so we had the complex all to ourselves.

Today, refreshed from our soak and a bit more wise from our troubles on Monday, we took in a show at the Agrodome, featuring sheep shearing and dog herding demonstrations. Andy even got called up on stage to bottle feed a 3 day old lamb. Too, too cute. We toured the working farm and got to hand feed sheep, alpaca, deer, and cows. We tried some kiwi fruit wine, fulfilled our recommended daily allotment of cuteness with all the tiny lambs, and then headed over to do the number one thing everyone has asked us about—the Zorb. Andy opted out, since he’s still recovering from his tumble down the river a couple days ago. I opted for the wet ride down the zig zag track. It really is fun, more fun than it looks.  We’re now just biding time until we get picked up for a traditional hangi dinner and show, similar to a Hawaiian luau, but for the Maori.

Delicious, I mean precious lambs and a baby goat trying to eat my shirt

We may have gotten off to a rocky start the first few days as we were finding our groove, but this trip is shaping up to be pretty special. Our first impressions of New Zealand— everything is green as far as the eye can see. New Zealanders are super friendly, and seem like genuinely happy people. Everything is expensive here. A single bag of microwave popcorn at the large chain grocery store was over $2. There seems to be very minimal safety precautions in this country and we are enjoying the lack of “please keep your hands and feet inside the vehicle” announcements. Kiwis love their chicken flavored chips, and so do we. We need these back home, for realsies. Until then, we will continue to enjoy this beautiful country!