Friday, October 29, 2010
South Island
Spent last night and today in Wellington. Getting on a ferry to the South Island tonight! Its a 3 hour boat ride...
Tongariro Northern Circuit
Update after our hike.
Our hike ended up being 4 days instead of 5. The 3rd day was extremely short, and the 4th day was going to be also, so we ended up skipping the third hut and going straight to the 4th.
Day one.
We hiked from the ski village of Whakapapa to the Mangatepopo hut. The hike was supposed to take 3 hours, we took an hour and a half detour to see the Taranaki Waterfall.
This was definitely the highlight of the day, as the hike to the Mangatepopo hut was not very interesting. This day was mainly an approach day, getting closer to the volcanoes for the ascent the next day. The trail suffered from massive erosion, probably due to spring snow melt every year. This was my first experience with New Zealands “hut” system. I am used to “roughing it” while backpacking, sleeping in a bivy sack, or if I’m feeling high class, a tent. Was not sure what to expect from the huts. The Mangatepopo hut was quite nice, very basic mattresses set up in two bunk rooms. There were about a dozen mattresses per room (however the most that ever stayed while I was there was 4 plus Amber and me). The central room had a small kitchen, one sink and two gas stoves, a table and a gas heater.
This was luxury compared to what I am used to. Each hut has its own hut warden, ours was from Scotland. New Zealand is overran with invasive species, plants and animals. One of those is the “possum” from Australia (different from our US possum). The possum preys upon the young baby kiwi birds, and endangered species, which is also the national symbol. Wardens are awarded for capturing and killing possums. There just so happened to be one poking around a trap outside my window while at the Mangatepopo hut, the possum was obviously experienced with such traps, as it was reaching its hand in, eating the raisins, and not springing the trap. The warden and I spent several hours trying to kill the possum with rocks, never actually hitting it (hit it once but only its tail). It kept coming back, as if taunting us. I finally went to bed, as it did not come back for a long time. It was dead in the trap the next morning.
Day two
I woke up early on the second morning, to try and summit Mount Ngauruhoe. Amber was going to leave later in the morning and meet me at the base, as it was on the way to the next hut.
Fun fact: Tongariro National Park is a volcanic park, with a very bleak landscape. It was featured as Mordor in the Lord of the Rings movies. Mount Ngauruhoe was Mount Doom (I am not a LOTR fanatic, I found this out upon arriving). Rod I know you jealous.
The hike from the Mangetepopo hut to the second hut (Ketetahi hut) is also the famous day hike the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. The trail leaves the hut, and quickly began climbing to the South Crater, one of many volcanic craters in the area. The climb up to the South Crater is called the “devils staircase.” South Crater is quite large, the trek across it to the top of the other lip takes approximately 30 minutes. From South Crater (1600 meters), the route to the summit of Mount Ngauruhoe goes straight south. There is no marked route to the summit, and several large snowfields still remained. As I began the ascent, I realized it may be much more difficult than I had imagined. The volcano is very steep and covered in a very thick layer of volcanic ash volcanic rock. The rock has disintegrated to form a very unstable layer of sand-like substance on which lots of very loose volcanic rock sits. This was very tiring and frustrating to climb (imagine climbing a long steep mountain of sand). Trying to walk on the volcanic rock was impossible, as it sank into to the sand below it or slipped out from underneath and shot down the steep slope. I eventually decided the snowfields were the most efficient way to get up. I finally summited, kick-stepping my way up. The summit crater was very deep, and surrounded by several active fumeroles spurting toxic gases. There was, however, no bubbling lava sea as depicted in Lord of the Rings (how disappointing). The mountain has not erupted since 1975. Nearby Mount Ruapehu erupted in both 1995 and 96. I find this funny, because Ruapehu is home to the Whakapapa ski fields. There are signs everywhere telling you what to do if the volcano erupts while you are skiing. Clouds were rolling in quickly from the north, and I wanted to get down quickly before my decent was obscured by clouds. Amber had also just finished the devils staircase, and was waiting for me. I descended by sliding down the snowfields, using my ice axe to slow me and direct my slide. I’ve done this several times, but not for nearly this long (I descended about 800 meters in about 5 minutes). It works quite well as long as you have an ice axe, if you do not you will likely begin sliding much too fast and out of control, eventually smashing into rocks somewhere below you.
After summiting, I cooked lunch for Amber and I in South Crater. After this we crossed the South Crater, climbing up to the Mangatepopo Saddle, and eventually Red Crater. Red Crater is another volcanic crater, which, not surprisingly is a deep dark red. There are lots of fumeroles around it as well, and the entire area smelled of sulfur. Red crater descends to the Emerald Lakes. These were the highlight of the trip for me (besides perhaps the summit). The lakes have leached copper sulfate from the near by mountains, making them a very deep turquoise color. This color stands out sharply compared to the bleak browns and reds of the volcanic landscape. After seeing the Emerald lakes we descended down to the Central Crater, and climbed up to Blue Lake (frozen over), from here we descended to the Ketetahi hut for the night. I decided not to climb Mount Tongariro. First, it is not much of a climb, more a traverse. From the top of the Mangatepopo saddle (which we climbed), the trail goes north, gaining only 80 meters. The view would not be much different from the saddle, and not very challenging. Second, we were running short on time. The Ketetahi hut had and incredible view to the northwest. It looks out over Lake Rotoaira and further out, Lake Taupo. Lake Taupo is so huge it looks very much like you are seeing the ocean. The hut also overlooks the Ketetahi Hot Springs. A geothermally heated spring which is a Mauri (native people of New Zealand) religious icon, and is therefore closed to the public. The super heated water created billowing steam rising to form its own clouds in the cool air. We met three French backpackers and one American at our hut and played cards with them most of the night.
Third Day
The third day we backtracked back to the Emerald lakes and starting descending to the Oturere hut, this ended up being a very short hike. We sat at the hut for awhile and realized it would be a very boring day, as would the next (also a short day). The friends we had made were all staying at the next hut, Waihohonu, which was another 3 hours down the track. We decided to leave for the hut, rather than burn 2 days sitting in huts doing nothing. Rain was coming so we moved very quickly. Near the hut we finally left the desolate volcanic landscape we had been in for 3 days, and reentered the lush green forests. It was a welcome relief. The volcanic park was awesome, but we were both tired of the monotone volcanic rock (explains while it was a good setting for Mordor). We had a great time that night with the friends we had made and the Kiwi hut warden, who played cards with us. This hut had just been built and was quite fancy. Huge bay windows, a very large modern kitchen, even electric lights! In my opinion this is too much luxury, I think it cheapens the experience of backpacking.
Day 4
The last day was rather uneventful. Amber was especially ready to be back to civilization. We hiked quickly, and made it back to the carpark around noon.
The entire trip I was hungry. I should have brought extra food. All the backpacking meals I brought, supposedly serve 2 (I usually eat one by myself however). I began to read the nutrition facts, and was disturbed to find that the average meal was 400 calories a person. This means if I eat oatmeal for breakfast, a granola bar, and one dehydrated meal for lunch and dinner, I will be averaging around 1200 calories for a day. This is way to little, especially since I am burning a lot of extra calories hiking with a heavy bag for 5-6 hours. I decided I want to create my own for the next trip I do. I experimented with this a bit in the past. I have a dehydrator, and tried basic pasta meals. I realized dehydrated meat does not hydrated nearly as wells as freeze dried meat. I think the low pressure used in freeze drying keeps the meat from shriveling nearly as badly (think of beef jerky), this provides more space to absorb water. You can, however, by just freeze dried chicken or beef. I think I may do this and strive to create a more nutritionally complete backpacking meal.
Our hike ended up being 4 days instead of 5. The 3rd day was extremely short, and the 4th day was going to be also, so we ended up skipping the third hut and going straight to the 4th.
Day one.
We hiked from the ski village of Whakapapa to the Mangatepopo hut. The hike was supposed to take 3 hours, we took an hour and a half detour to see the Taranaki Waterfall.
This was definitely the highlight of the day, as the hike to the Mangatepopo hut was not very interesting. This day was mainly an approach day, getting closer to the volcanoes for the ascent the next day. The trail suffered from massive erosion, probably due to spring snow melt every year. This was my first experience with New Zealands “hut” system. I am used to “roughing it” while backpacking, sleeping in a bivy sack, or if I’m feeling high class, a tent. Was not sure what to expect from the huts. The Mangatepopo hut was quite nice, very basic mattresses set up in two bunk rooms. There were about a dozen mattresses per room (however the most that ever stayed while I was there was 4 plus Amber and me). The central room had a small kitchen, one sink and two gas stoves, a table and a gas heater.
This was luxury compared to what I am used to. Each hut has its own hut warden, ours was from Scotland. New Zealand is overran with invasive species, plants and animals. One of those is the “possum” from Australia (different from our US possum). The possum preys upon the young baby kiwi birds, and endangered species, which is also the national symbol. Wardens are awarded for capturing and killing possums. There just so happened to be one poking around a trap outside my window while at the Mangatepopo hut, the possum was obviously experienced with such traps, as it was reaching its hand in, eating the raisins, and not springing the trap. The warden and I spent several hours trying to kill the possum with rocks, never actually hitting it (hit it once but only its tail). It kept coming back, as if taunting us. I finally went to bed, as it did not come back for a long time. It was dead in the trap the next morning.
Day two
I woke up early on the second morning, to try and summit Mount Ngauruhoe. Amber was going to leave later in the morning and meet me at the base, as it was on the way to the next hut.
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| Mt. Ngauruhoe |
Fun fact: Tongariro National Park is a volcanic park, with a very bleak landscape. It was featured as Mordor in the Lord of the Rings movies. Mount Ngauruhoe was Mount Doom (I am not a LOTR fanatic, I found this out upon arriving). Rod I know you jealous.
The hike from the Mangetepopo hut to the second hut (Ketetahi hut) is also the famous day hike the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. The trail leaves the hut, and quickly began climbing to the South Crater, one of many volcanic craters in the area. The climb up to the South Crater is called the “devils staircase.” South Crater is quite large, the trek across it to the top of the other lip takes approximately 30 minutes. From South Crater (1600 meters), the route to the summit of Mount Ngauruhoe goes straight south. There is no marked route to the summit, and several large snowfields still remained. As I began the ascent, I realized it may be much more difficult than I had imagined. The volcano is very steep and covered in a very thick layer of volcanic ash volcanic rock. The rock has disintegrated to form a very unstable layer of sand-like substance on which lots of very loose volcanic rock sits. This was very tiring and frustrating to climb (imagine climbing a long steep mountain of sand). Trying to walk on the volcanic rock was impossible, as it sank into to the sand below it or slipped out from underneath and shot down the steep slope. I eventually decided the snowfields were the most efficient way to get up. I finally summited, kick-stepping my way up. The summit crater was very deep, and surrounded by several active fumeroles spurting toxic gases. There was, however, no bubbling lava sea as depicted in Lord of the Rings (how disappointing). The mountain has not erupted since 1975. Nearby Mount Ruapehu erupted in both 1995 and 96. I find this funny, because Ruapehu is home to the Whakapapa ski fields. There are signs everywhere telling you what to do if the volcano erupts while you are skiing. Clouds were rolling in quickly from the north, and I wanted to get down quickly before my decent was obscured by clouds. Amber had also just finished the devils staircase, and was waiting for me. I descended by sliding down the snowfields, using my ice axe to slow me and direct my slide. I’ve done this several times, but not for nearly this long (I descended about 800 meters in about 5 minutes). It works quite well as long as you have an ice axe, if you do not you will likely begin sliding much too fast and out of control, eventually smashing into rocks somewhere below you.
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| Steepness of the volcano |
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| Over Mount Tongariro, South Crater, and the Mangatepopo Saddle |
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| Summit photo! |
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| Snow Field i descended |
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| Plus it smells gross |
After summiting, I cooked lunch for Amber and I in South Crater. After this we crossed the South Crater, climbing up to the Mangatepopo Saddle, and eventually Red Crater. Red Crater is another volcanic crater, which, not surprisingly is a deep dark red. There are lots of fumeroles around it as well, and the entire area smelled of sulfur. Red crater descends to the Emerald Lakes. These were the highlight of the trip for me (besides perhaps the summit). The lakes have leached copper sulfate from the near by mountains, making them a very deep turquoise color. This color stands out sharply compared to the bleak browns and reds of the volcanic landscape. After seeing the Emerald lakes we descended down to the Central Crater, and climbed up to Blue Lake (frozen over), from here we descended to the Ketetahi hut for the night. I decided not to climb Mount Tongariro. First, it is not much of a climb, more a traverse. From the top of the Mangatepopo saddle (which we climbed), the trail goes north, gaining only 80 meters. The view would not be much different from the saddle, and not very challenging. Second, we were running short on time. The Ketetahi hut had and incredible view to the northwest. It looks out over Lake Rotoaira and further out, Lake Taupo. Lake Taupo is so huge it looks very much like you are seeing the ocean. The hut also overlooks the Ketetahi Hot Springs. A geothermally heated spring which is a Mauri (native people of New Zealand) religious icon, and is therefore closed to the public. The super heated water created billowing steam rising to form its own clouds in the cool air. We met three French backpackers and one American at our hut and played cards with them most of the night.
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| Amber crossing South Crater |
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| At Red Crater |
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| Emerald Lakes. Active fumeroles to the right |
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| Ketetahi hot water springs, a sacred spring to Mauri. Can't get close to it. |
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| View from the hut in morning |
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| Amber crossing a snowfield |
Third Day
The third day we backtracked back to the Emerald lakes and starting descending to the Oturere hut, this ended up being a very short hike. We sat at the hut for awhile and realized it would be a very boring day, as would the next (also a short day). The friends we had made were all staying at the next hut, Waihohonu, which was another 3 hours down the track. We decided to leave for the hut, rather than burn 2 days sitting in huts doing nothing. Rain was coming so we moved very quickly. Near the hut we finally left the desolate volcanic landscape we had been in for 3 days, and reentered the lush green forests. It was a welcome relief. The volcanic park was awesome, but we were both tired of the monotone volcanic rock (explains while it was a good setting for Mordor). We had a great time that night with the friends we had made and the Kiwi hut warden, who played cards with us. This hut had just been built and was quite fancy. Huge bay windows, a very large modern kitchen, even electric lights! In my opinion this is too much luxury, I think it cheapens the experience of backpacking.
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| clouds dropping into North Crater |
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| Red crater with Mount Ngauruhoe in background. Emerald lakes are just below Red Crater (1st may be visible). |
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| Volcanic landscape |
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| New Zealand forest |
Day 4
The last day was rather uneventful. Amber was especially ready to be back to civilization. We hiked quickly, and made it back to the carpark around noon.
The entire trip I was hungry. I should have brought extra food. All the backpacking meals I brought, supposedly serve 2 (I usually eat one by myself however). I began to read the nutrition facts, and was disturbed to find that the average meal was 400 calories a person. This means if I eat oatmeal for breakfast, a granola bar, and one dehydrated meal for lunch and dinner, I will be averaging around 1200 calories for a day. This is way to little, especially since I am burning a lot of extra calories hiking with a heavy bag for 5-6 hours. I decided I want to create my own for the next trip I do. I experimented with this a bit in the past. I have a dehydrator, and tried basic pasta meals. I realized dehydrated meat does not hydrated nearly as wells as freeze dried meat. I think the low pressure used in freeze drying keeps the meat from shriveling nearly as badly (think of beef jerky), this provides more space to absorb water. You can, however, by just freeze dried chicken or beef. I think I may do this and strive to create a more nutritionally complete backpacking meal.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
The Northern Circuit
Leaving to start the Northern Circuit track. Will return evening of 29th. Trying to summit Mt Ngauruhoe tomorrow and Mt. Tongariro the next day (both active volcanoes).
Saturday, October 23, 2010
October 21-23rd
Sorry posts are infrequent, time is short, internet is expensive, and blogging takes awhile. I'll post a few days of posts now. Cannot get pictures to load. Will add them later
The second day in Auckland, we walked, and walked and walked. Only goal for the day was to find an affordable car we wanted to buy. We checked every hostel in the cities posting board (a lot of walking), and walked to a car auction place (which unbeknownst to us was only open on the weekends), and every online car listing place. There were a lot of possible cars. We looked at one car, but the WOF was about to run out, and we were unsure brakes were safe, etc. Owner didn’t want to renew it before he sold it. We called probably 5 other sellers, and left messages, but without a way for them to call us, it was slow going (I was calling from a pay phone). A couple did email (left my address), but cars were already sold, they were out of the area, or they were manuals. The 2 we were really interested in, we could not get ahold of. What we did do was walk, and a lot of it. As I mentioned before, pay phones here (even with phone cards) were extremely expensive (1.50 a minute), and monies were being burnt quickly. We elected to buy a cell phone, which are much cheaper per minute (pay as you go), and we could more easily contact sellers (and buyers when it comes time).
The one bright point of our day was the Auckland fish market. On our way to the car market, we found the Auckland fish market, a collect of fish fenders selling only the freshest fish. The market was located right on the wharf, the smell of fish was everywhere. The market had every fish imaginable, and all were for sale. There were several restaurants attached, using extremely fresh fish, ranging from fish and chips (or fush and chups as the kiwis say) to quite expensive. There is also a cooking school upstairs where you can learn how to cook your fresh purchase in authentic kiwi style. Amber and I elected to eat at a sushi vendor there, that purchased her fish from the attached market, IT WAS SO GOOD. We will definitely go back to purchase some fish and cook it at our hostel when we return to Auckland to leave.
After a frustrating day of not finding a car and no one returning our calls, amber and I booked an extra night at the Auckland hostel. As soon as we did this, one of the car sellers we were trying to contact called back, we set up a time to meet and look at the car. The car was in the shop to get new brake pads, to pass its WOF (Warranty of Fitness).
The next morning Amber and I got a late start. We were not planning on seeing the car until 1 pm, so we spent the morning wandering the streets of Auckland, going to the wharf, and shopping. We spent most of our time at a store called Kathmandu, a very cool outdoor store native to New Zealand (now in Australia and UK). I purchased some sweet base layer, and some gas to cook with. We also went to a thrift store (there were lots) and purchased some jeans (shorts were not cutting it this early in the spring). Ate some lamb kebabs at a small turkish cafe near by. We met the guy with the car at 1pm, he said the car needed a couple of more things (new rear tire, work on rear drum brakes), but he would need to up the price to cover it, and it would not be done until 3. Price was still very reasonable, and the guy was very helpful, so we agreed. We picked up the car (1995 mitsubishi gallant) later that afternoon. The seller rode with me for a couple of loops to give me tips for driving on the left, but soon I was on my own. After packing up we headed out for Wautoma (south). Driving on the left is a frightening thing if you are not used to it. Walking on the left was difficult for us, we were often running into others on sidewalks. The hardest part is learning to turn into the adjacent lane when turning left, and turning across traffic when you turn right. I learned fairly quickly with only one almost collision (amber was kind enough to let me know repeatedly in a very loud voice). Traffic was very bad heading south, but we soon got off onto a small coutry highway, and headed away from the cities.
The drive was among the prettiest I have every done. Green describes it very well, everything was very lush and green. Most the hills were very steep and rolling, covered in flocks of goats, sheep and cows. Amber quickly became annoyed that I stopped every 5 minutes for pictures. In contrast to the rolling green pastures there were very dense forests of tree ferns and thick brush, very pretty. I was thrilled with the car, seems so far to be a good purchase. We realized we would not make it to Waitomo tonight, since the car was done later than we were expecting. Instead we took some country gravel roads through very dense forests to go to a town called Raglan. There was another YHA hostel there (we’d planned on camping, but amber was not feeling great).
We arrived to Raglan late at night. I was driving the road to the hostel, but could not seem to find it. We kept passing the “Solscape eco-resort” where I thought the hostel should be. As it turns out this was the hostel. It was dark, and the hostel was hard to make out. It looked like a very disorganized group of buildings. The office was closed, I went to the kitchen and found the manager. I decided we would camp there (cheap, I could set up tent while amber cooked dinner inside the building), and we had access to showers etc. The hostel is very impressive, great kitchen, several standalone cabins (old railcars converted to rooms) for rent. It is directly on the beach, and definitely a “beach bum” hostel. The rent surf boards and give lessons. They also have chickens from which they harvest fresh eggs that are for sale. Pretty sure I will like this place. I sent up the tent in a very strong ocean breeze, it will be a windy night in the tent.
It was a very very windy and rainy night sleeping out. I woke up early, mostly because there was several roosters forcing me awake. I got out of the tent and looked around. Probably the best ocean view I’ve ever seen. Went for a run down a short track to the beach, ran for an half hour on the beach. The track wound through thick forest of tree ferns, I love the Kiwi bush. It is entirely different from anything I have seen. The best part about this place is there is no one here. Super pretty, but deserted beach. I saw 1 person on my entire run. I decided that I wanted to try surfing here, and surf lessons were quite cheap (60 buck US for wetsuit rental, board rental, 2.5 hour lesson and transport to and from beach). When Amber finally woke up we walked some of what I ran that morning, and I got some pictures. We collected shells on the beach for awhile. Amber got some to use for the jewelry she makes. It was almost noon by then, so we had a quick snack and met my surf instructor, Andrew. Andrew is your typical kiwi surf bum, he was a super nice guy, and a good teacher. I don’t think I am a master of surfing, but I managed to get up on several waves, and rode a few out to the beach.
Later we headed into town to try some fish and chips, gurnard and hoki was on the menu. Fish and chips are typical kiwi fair, I do not think I will incorporate it into my daily diet. We wondered around the town of Raglan for an hour, buying a few supplies, and exploring. Soon after we headed to the town of Te Mata, to see the near by Bridal Veil Falls. 55 meters tall, incredible waterfall. It was a fairly short hike to and from the falls. I have been continually impressed by how well maintained hiking trails are in New Zealand.
We were hoping to also see the Waitomo Caves today (glow worrns, watch Planet Earth, they’re sweet), but we were running short on time, and instead drove all the way to Lake Taupo for the night. Hopefully we can see glow worms elsewhere, or on the way back up to Auckland. We did almost run out of gas on the way to Taupo, barely made it (apparently a lot of gas stations close by 6pm). Another thing I’ve noticed about New Zealand, the highway system is not nearly as convenient or well marked as in the US. The roads are very narrow and extremely windy. The landscape is very hilly and mountainous, the roads often feel more like a roller coaster. Despite the difficult driving conditions, Kiwis drive very very fast. I am not yet entirely used to driving on the left, but I am fairly well acclimated. I do not think I will every drive the same speed as the average Kiwi. Seems unwise.
The Taupo hostel was not nearly as impressive as other hostels. More what I expected a hostel to be, cramped beds, crowded dorm style rooms, and a bit smelly. The staff however, was quite helpful, and a large useful kitchen. However it is right on Lake Taupo, a huge lake, in a fairly mountainous region. It was a long weekend here, and the area is filled with trout fishers and other such lake dwellers. After chatting with the receptionist about things to do, Amber and I headed out to the local farmers market. This market was more goods than food, but some local farmers also. There were a lot of tents. Ended up buying some asparagus and a scone. Amber found a local artist that carved jewelery out of local shells, she bought a necklace. Every place we go we usually collect a painting from a local artist. After wondering a bit, we found an artist that made sand paintings with sand from the beaches. The sand on the west coast is black, east coast is white. She used these with a bit of glue to make some awesome paintings. Amber has been practicing her left side driving, which has been scary. Twice she turned into the wrong lane, so far we’ve survived.
After the market we headed to the Hot Water Springs, a neat area where some geothermally heated water comes out to for a spring and mixes with the river leaving Lake Taupe (). You can bathe in the springs, natural pools have formed for the hot water. The water straight out of the spring was quite hot, I would guess around 108-110 degrees. A bit hotter than your average whirlpool. It was quite nice to bathe in this part, but you got hot fairly quickly. Since the water mixes with the cold river, you could swim out ward to the cold river, or find a cooler temperature you preferred. As the hot mixes with the cold there is a temperature gradient, gradually cooling as you go out, pretty awesome. The water did not mix that quickly though, often the top 2-3 inches of water would be quite warm, while the bottom foot of water would be quite cold. The water here was incredibly clear and blue, even at the deepest point in the river you could easily see the bottom. The walking track that goes to these hot springs continues to the Huku waterfall. We walked this track, which followed the river, for about an hour to get there. The falls were not as impressively high as the Bridal Veil falls, but the sheer amount of water pouring through was impressive.
After leaving the falls, we cooked lunch, slack lined with some aussies at the hostel, and left for National Park. National Park was not too long of drive from Taupo. National Park is a very small town, mostly a base for backpackers and skiers, as the near by Tongariro national park and Whakapapa ski fields attract both. Tongariro has several active volcanoes (Tongariro (1961m) and Ngauruhoe (2287m) being the tallest). Ngauruhoe is a very impressive mountain, the cone is very steep, it reminds me of how Kilimanjaro looks from a distance. Amber and I leave for the Northern Circuit hike in the morning (5 days, 4 nights). I intend to summit both peaks, however, the area just got a late season snow, ice axe and crampons are now required for Ngauruhoe, which I rented from the hostel. We dined at a small, somewhat upscale café called Elvins Off-piste Café and Bar. Almost everyone in town is either here for the last day of skiing (this weekend), or doing the Tongariro Crossing (a famous day hike). All the hostels are brimming with people.
The second day in Auckland, we walked, and walked and walked. Only goal for the day was to find an affordable car we wanted to buy. We checked every hostel in the cities posting board (a lot of walking), and walked to a car auction place (which unbeknownst to us was only open on the weekends), and every online car listing place. There were a lot of possible cars. We looked at one car, but the WOF was about to run out, and we were unsure brakes were safe, etc. Owner didn’t want to renew it before he sold it. We called probably 5 other sellers, and left messages, but without a way for them to call us, it was slow going (I was calling from a pay phone). A couple did email (left my address), but cars were already sold, they were out of the area, or they were manuals. The 2 we were really interested in, we could not get ahold of. What we did do was walk, and a lot of it. As I mentioned before, pay phones here (even with phone cards) were extremely expensive (1.50 a minute), and monies were being burnt quickly. We elected to buy a cell phone, which are much cheaper per minute (pay as you go), and we could more easily contact sellers (and buyers when it comes time).
The one bright point of our day was the Auckland fish market. On our way to the car market, we found the Auckland fish market, a collect of fish fenders selling only the freshest fish. The market was located right on the wharf, the smell of fish was everywhere. The market had every fish imaginable, and all were for sale. There were several restaurants attached, using extremely fresh fish, ranging from fish and chips (or fush and chups as the kiwis say) to quite expensive. There is also a cooking school upstairs where you can learn how to cook your fresh purchase in authentic kiwi style. Amber and I elected to eat at a sushi vendor there, that purchased her fish from the attached market, IT WAS SO GOOD. We will definitely go back to purchase some fish and cook it at our hostel when we return to Auckland to leave.
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| Freshest sushi money can buy |
After a frustrating day of not finding a car and no one returning our calls, amber and I booked an extra night at the Auckland hostel. As soon as we did this, one of the car sellers we were trying to contact called back, we set up a time to meet and look at the car. The car was in the shop to get new brake pads, to pass its WOF (Warranty of Fitness).
The next morning Amber and I got a late start. We were not planning on seeing the car until 1 pm, so we spent the morning wandering the streets of Auckland, going to the wharf, and shopping. We spent most of our time at a store called Kathmandu, a very cool outdoor store native to New Zealand (now in Australia and UK). I purchased some sweet base layer, and some gas to cook with. We also went to a thrift store (there were lots) and purchased some jeans (shorts were not cutting it this early in the spring). Ate some lamb kebabs at a small turkish cafe near by. We met the guy with the car at 1pm, he said the car needed a couple of more things (new rear tire, work on rear drum brakes), but he would need to up the price to cover it, and it would not be done until 3. Price was still very reasonable, and the guy was very helpful, so we agreed. We picked up the car (1995 mitsubishi gallant) later that afternoon. The seller rode with me for a couple of loops to give me tips for driving on the left, but soon I was on my own. After packing up we headed out for Wautoma (south). Driving on the left is a frightening thing if you are not used to it. Walking on the left was difficult for us, we were often running into others on sidewalks. The hardest part is learning to turn into the adjacent lane when turning left, and turning across traffic when you turn right. I learned fairly quickly with only one almost collision (amber was kind enough to let me know repeatedly in a very loud voice). Traffic was very bad heading south, but we soon got off onto a small coutry highway, and headed away from the cities.
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| Our new car! |
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| Lamb Kebabs |
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| Tree Fern Forests |
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| Rolling hills with sheep are everywhere |
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| Add caption |
We arrived to Raglan late at night. I was driving the road to the hostel, but could not seem to find it. We kept passing the “Solscape eco-resort” where I thought the hostel should be. As it turns out this was the hostel. It was dark, and the hostel was hard to make out. It looked like a very disorganized group of buildings. The office was closed, I went to the kitchen and found the manager. I decided we would camp there (cheap, I could set up tent while amber cooked dinner inside the building), and we had access to showers etc. The hostel is very impressive, great kitchen, several standalone cabins (old railcars converted to rooms) for rent. It is directly on the beach, and definitely a “beach bum” hostel. The rent surf boards and give lessons. They also have chickens from which they harvest fresh eggs that are for sale. Pretty sure I will like this place. I sent up the tent in a very strong ocean breeze, it will be a windy night in the tent.
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| Part of the kitchen |
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| View over ocean from the hostel |
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| Our tent site |
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| Solscape |
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| Solscape reception. Booked surf lesson here |
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| collection of old rail cars turned cabins |
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| Do it |
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| Sample of the local fauna |
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| Track to the beach |
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| Tree Fern forest, super cool |
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| Overlooking the beach by our hostel (surfed here) |
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| proof |
Later we headed into town to try some fish and chips, gurnard and hoki was on the menu. Fish and chips are typical kiwi fair, I do not think I will incorporate it into my daily diet. We wondered around the town of Raglan for an hour, buying a few supplies, and exploring. Soon after we headed to the town of Te Mata, to see the near by Bridal Veil Falls. 55 meters tall, incredible waterfall. It was a fairly short hike to and from the falls. I have been continually impressed by how well maintained hiking trails are in New Zealand.
We were hoping to also see the Waitomo Caves today (glow worrns, watch Planet Earth, they’re sweet), but we were running short on time, and instead drove all the way to Lake Taupo for the night. Hopefully we can see glow worms elsewhere, or on the way back up to Auckland. We did almost run out of gas on the way to Taupo, barely made it (apparently a lot of gas stations close by 6pm). Another thing I’ve noticed about New Zealand, the highway system is not nearly as convenient or well marked as in the US. The roads are very narrow and extremely windy. The landscape is very hilly and mountainous, the roads often feel more like a roller coaster. Despite the difficult driving conditions, Kiwis drive very very fast. I am not yet entirely used to driving on the left, but I am fairly well acclimated. I do not think I will every drive the same speed as the average Kiwi. Seems unwise.
The Taupo hostel was not nearly as impressive as other hostels. More what I expected a hostel to be, cramped beds, crowded dorm style rooms, and a bit smelly. The staff however, was quite helpful, and a large useful kitchen. However it is right on Lake Taupo, a huge lake, in a fairly mountainous region. It was a long weekend here, and the area is filled with trout fishers and other such lake dwellers. After chatting with the receptionist about things to do, Amber and I headed out to the local farmers market. This market was more goods than food, but some local farmers also. There were a lot of tents. Ended up buying some asparagus and a scone. Amber found a local artist that carved jewelery out of local shells, she bought a necklace. Every place we go we usually collect a painting from a local artist. After wondering a bit, we found an artist that made sand paintings with sand from the beaches. The sand on the west coast is black, east coast is white. She used these with a bit of glue to make some awesome paintings. Amber has been practicing her left side driving, which has been scary. Twice she turned into the wrong lane, so far we’ve survived.
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| View over lake Taupo. Mt Tongariro and Ruahupoe visible |
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| Lake from the Market |
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| small bit of the market |
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| Two of the New Zealand sand "paintings" |
After the market we headed to the Hot Water Springs, a neat area where some geothermally heated water comes out to for a spring and mixes with the river leaving Lake Taupe (). You can bathe in the springs, natural pools have formed for the hot water. The water straight out of the spring was quite hot, I would guess around 108-110 degrees. A bit hotter than your average whirlpool. It was quite nice to bathe in this part, but you got hot fairly quickly. Since the water mixes with the cold river, you could swim out ward to the cold river, or find a cooler temperature you preferred. As the hot mixes with the cold there is a temperature gradient, gradually cooling as you go out, pretty awesome. The water did not mix that quickly though, often the top 2-3 inches of water would be quite warm, while the bottom foot of water would be quite cold. The water here was incredibly clear and blue, even at the deepest point in the river you could easily see the bottom. The walking track that goes to these hot springs continues to the Huku waterfall. We walked this track, which followed the river, for about an hour to get there. The falls were not as impressively high as the Bridal Veil falls, but the sheer amount of water pouring through was impressive.
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