Day 7
I start the day packing up my computer and a couple other things outside of the hostel on a picnic bench. I see Conner and Antje and we talk for awhile about different customs and beliefs in other cultures. I tell them the Spanish think that drinking cold things when you have a sore throat is bad. The Germans believe you should wear a scarf in the same circumstances. Conner and I laugh a bit. We decide to meet up at the same hostel (Black Currant) in Taupo the day after next. I walk to the bus station and wait for the bus to Taupo. It is about 10 minutes late, so I look over that the guy sitting next to me, and ask if he's waiting for the same bus. He says yes, and he informs me that the buses are always a little late. This is Kang from Korea and we talk the entire bus ride to Taupo. I tell him the hostel I'm headed to is cool, so we go together. The only room they have left is a double, so we become roommates for the next 2 days.
We decide to hike down the river to a waterfall, and then further to a volcanic area known as Craters of the Moon. It's a 12km hike. We wait until 4:30 and head out so it's not so hot. The water in the river is crystal clear. The first point of interest we come across is a bungee/swing platform. We actually hear the music radiating from it before we see it; Rhianna. When we get closer, we realize that the swing is in full operation. We watch a couple go together from a small pasture down on the river. The platform is way up on the mountain top. The operators pull the cord, and the people in the double harness go flying past us over 100 miles an hour, and there's a progression of "Oh my god!", followed by expletives, followed by laughing. This thing is crazy!
We continue on and hike to the top where the platform is. We stop to watch from the top this time. A guy gets clipped in, dangles over the edge of the platform, gets into a position where he is upside down looking at the water. The operator pulls the cord, and SNAP he goes flying down and then out over the river. My god! I decide I have unfinished business with the bungee/swing (in a couple weeks in Queenstown) and we move on. My adrenaline is going just writing this, and I might have a heart attack when my number comes up.
We walk past a stream with a little waterfall that is flowing into the river and see people swimming. It is a thermal spring (hot water) and we decide to test the waters on the way back when it's dark and after hiking all day. We meet an older couple from California who are walking with what looks to be a black bear. In reality it is some kind of St Bernard mix. He was huge. We talk to the couple for awhile and learn they became permanent residents because they liked the country so much. They tell us the South Island in even better than the one we are on. In the course of the conversation the bear shakes his head and slobber comes flying out of his mouth in all directions hitting the four of us. They apologize, we I brush it off telling them we are going to go swimming on the way back anyway.
We get to the waterfalls, which has the color of ice blue Gatorade. Kang and I agree that it is amazing, take some pictures, and move on to the Craters of the Moon. Upon arriving we realize the gates are closed, so we hike up a hill and get a birds eye view instead. It looks like something on another planet; the earth is steaming and it smells like sulpher. Fairly tired at this point, we decide to head back to the thermal stream. It starts to get dark and I pull out my headlamp, a necessary item in New Zealand. I tell Kang to pick one up.
We get to the stream, change into our bathing suits, and jump in. The water is really hot but not too hot. There are a couple other people there but the waterfall makes it too noisy to really talk. Everyone relaxes, enjoys the view, enjoys the warm waterfall/massage. The fact that it was all natural, dark, and outside of the town makes it really cool. I decide it is better than the spa from last night.
We head back to town fairly quickly so we can make it to the grocery store before it closes at 11pm. We get frozen pizzas and food for tomorrow (for hiking Mt. Doom), get back to the hostel and eat. No one else is awake.
It was the best day so far. Up in 5 hours to catch the bus to the park for Mt. Doom.
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| Seconds before dropping |
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| Huka Falls |
Day 8
Wake up at 4:45am and it's still dark outside. We are going to catch the bus to the Tongariro National Park where Mt Doom is. We are going to hike a 20 km track called the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. It's supposed to be the best day hike in New Zealand. I don't really have much to say about this hike, pictures are probably the way to go and the pictures really don't do it justice. It was the best hikes I've ever done. The scenery is ridiculous. We were completely exhausted at the end of the day. It's kind of funny when you reach the end of the trail. You emerge from the woods and see everyone sprawled out on the grass in the shade with their shoes off either sleeping or doing some serious resting. It's a tough hike, no doubt.
We decide that beers are in order for the evening to celebrate the conquest, so we grab a 12 pack of some type of New Zealand beer from the store and dinner (spicy noodles). Back at the hostel, we go to the kitchen to make dinner and find the rush has started for kitchen space. It looks like the kitchen in a restaurant around dinner time when everyone congregates to make dinner for the evening. Kang makes the noodles and I crack a beer, hand him one, and sit down. Some guy walks by with a big fish, Rainbow Trout, which he caught in the lake. Other people make salad and I begin to realize that everyone eats really healthy out here in the hostels.
Kang is concerned that he is the only Asian in the place, I tell him not to worry about it; nobody knows each other anyway. Eventually Conner and Antje get back from their biking adventure and join us at the table with a bottle of wine. We compare drinking games of America, Germany, and Korea. We try to play a game which involves saying “bunny bunny” and “carrot carrot”. The other group of Germans looks over with an equal mix of curiosity and ‘What the hell are you people doing’. It was actually pretty fun. At the end of the night the kitchen/family room begins to empty out. Everyone at the table realizes that we are all moving different directions tomorrow and will probably not cross paths again, however we decide to meet up in Wanaka on the south island for New Years if we can. We’ll see what happens.
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| We're gonna climb up that! Whoa. |
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| Still the beginning |
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| Green Lake on the way |
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| Snow in summertime. |
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