Our North Island Experience
“And some things that should have never been forgotten were lost. History became legend, legend became myth.”
J.R.R. Tolkien
Day 72 1/17/18
It’s our first full day on the North Island, we make our way to the Weta Workshop to start. Weta is an industry leader in special effects and props for big title movies like Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit Trilogy, District 9, Avatar, Mad Max: Fury Road and Blade Runner 2049 to name a few. We check out the props and watch a movie about the history and future of the company, I didn’t realize they had worked on so many great movies!
In the gift shop they sell THE Ring, the one to rule them all; precious. Or at least replicas made by Jans Hansen who made the real one too. There was a solid gold one for $1,200 NZD that I wanted, Cass wasn’t having any of that so we get some pics and move on.
After, we drive up Mt. Victoria which is supposed to have the best views of the city and it does. There are also walking paths and playgrounds, I monkey around a bit on the playgrounds and go down a fun slide several times that is built into the hillside.
Wellington is the busiest city we’ve been in since arriving to NZ and the pace of the city is quite different from the small towns of the South Island. Traffic is in effect today and it seems like the roads here are narrower than in the States. I hit a city bus with Hal. Then make our way to the botanical gardens. The Gardens are nice with a bunch of hilly sections….oh you want to know about the bus instead of some boring gardens? Ok…Soooo…
I am coming up to a busy intersection, there is a city bus on the left picking people up about 50 feet back from the light and I need to make a left. There is a line of cars in my lane and no cars in front of the bus with a small opening for me to switch into the left lane in front of the bus. I take the opening and as I turn in front of the bus my back left bumper grazes the front right bumper of the bus. Fuck! The bus honks at me and I can’t fathom how I hit him, I had enough space to fit! I think to myself he must have started moving forward as I started passing him, effectively closing my gap resulting in the collision. The light turns green and I bolt! Adios muchaco!
We pull up to the gardens and I get out to check the damage and there is none, other than a bright yellow streak on the bumper. I get a paper towel and water and rub most of it off to hide the evidence. I sit back in the car and Cass and I discuss the repercussions, perhaps the bus camera got my plate and now the 5-0 are looking for me, or maybe the camera shows the bus driver at fault and they don’t follow up on it. I am pondering all these things and gaze out the drivers door window and there is a cop, staring at me from his patrol car. My heart drops! Fuck that was fast I think. I nod his way nervously, he doesn’t nod back. He is in traffic and just so happen to be stuck right next to me. Hahaha, he drives on as the light turns green. The universe has a sick sense of humor fucking with me like that. My heart rate lowers to a normal level again and we walk the gardens for an hour or so, enjoying the afternoon.
Last thing we hit is the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa. Cass and I agree that this is the best museum to date and spend hours exploring. The exhibits are exemplary and give us great insight of New Zealand’s past history and the culture that makes it truly unique. The greatest part was the War Exibit on level one. Weta Workshop had a hand on this one creating enormous life like figures of war heroes.
New Zealand’s majority of casualties occured on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey during the 1st World War. This exhibit tells the story of the ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) offensive into the Ottomans forces. The battle rages on, the ANZAC hit a wall of bullets daily and trench warfare ensued for months gaining and losing ground daily. Eventually, the prospect of victory waned with casualties in the hundred thousands and the ANZAC pulled their troops off of the beaches. The battle was lost but the war would eventually be won. The Gallipli Campaign would become the foundation stone of New Zealand’s national identity. In both NZ and AUS they celebrate ANZAC day on April 25th to commemerate all the veterans who served and died in the line of duty. We Americans and Kiwis have more in common than differences and I look forward to learning more of this great countries history.
Day 73 1/18/18
This morning as Derek is walking to the bathroom he sees bushes of wild blackberries. He eats a few before returning to Hal but doesn’t mention them until we’re about to leave. I asked him why he was holding out on me?! I wanted to try some local wild berries too! We head down the trail to forage and we end up filling a whole bowl up. With our fingers stained purple we head out to the town of Masterton.
There’s a park there called Queen Elizabeth’s Park that we want to walk around. When we get there and take a look at the posted map we see there’s an area that says Deer Park and has a symbol of a deer. I tell Derek there must be deer there! He has doubts but agrees that why would they put that symbol there unless there were real deer. On our way to find Bambi we stop and have a go at a few of the playground rides.
Then we carry on, as we approach a large fenced area we spot a few does laying lazily underneath the trees. We then see the buck standing tall on top of a platform. It looked as though he were posing like a statue. His antlers were enormous, rigid and plentiful. We walk the barrier and find the fawns grazing and sticking their noses through the fence eating grass from some young children. We enjoy watching them for a while and Derek feeds them too. I capture some pictures and am amazed because I’ve never seen this many deer so close before.
We find it crazy that they’re here on display behind a fence. We’re used to only seeing them in the wild back home but the fact is that so far in New Zealand we’ve seen many deer farms just never this close. Usually dotted along the long stretches of country roads between the many sheep farms.
Our last stop of the day is at Pukaha Mount Bruce which is a giant walk-through aviary. The main attraction here is a White Kiwi named Manukura. She’s a very rare type because most of them are brown and it’s not that she’s albino but that both of her parents carried the recessive white feather gene! Kiwis are NZ’s national bird, they are flightless and nocturnal so spotting them in the wild is scarce. We’ve been wanting to see one since we got here so to be able to see a rare type was pretty cool.
Later, we meet the guest stars at Mount Bruce the Kaka’s; they are boisterous native parrots. A ranger comes out to feed them during their “circus hour” and gives an informative talk all about them. They are intelligent and love to socialize. In one legend, the noisy Kaka unwittingly plays a key role in the demise of the god Maui.
Legend has it that he was attempting to steal immortality from Hine-nui-te-po, the goddess of death, when the piwaiwaka (fantail) caught sight of his antics and started to laugh. The piwaiwaka’s laughter, in turn, made the loud Kaka roar with laughter, waking Hine-nui-te-po who killed Maui.
Day 74 1/19/18
Today we relax on the shores of the Manawatu River. Early in the morning Derek goes for a swim to wake up and get refreshed. Later, we realize that he has taken a bath in toxic river water! We didn’t see the sign until after his swim that alerts campers that the water may pose a health threat. Unfortunately, the sign wasn’t very big or in a clearly visible place to warn people. It said that there may be black algae present that hosts a toxic cyanobacteria that can cause skin irritation, potentially kill dogs and is unsafe for drinking even after boiling. Geez, we even washed our dishes in this water! Fortunately, after seeing the sign we went down to take a look and didn’t actually see any signs of the black algae. Which should have been easy to spot because the sign said to look for slimy black mats and/or a strong musty smell. Luckily, we found neither of these so figured we were in the clear, phew! The sad fact is that two-thirds of New Zealand’s fresh water rivers are too polluted to swim in and half of its lakes are irreversibly damaged! This pollution is due majorly in part to the farming industry.
In the afternoon, we hit up the Tui Brewery for some lunch and brews. Derek loves hoppy beers so he goes for their IPA and I prefer lagers so I try the Golden. We order some nachos and go sit outside enjoying the nice day. What we’ve noticed since being in NZ is the difference in service you get eating out compared to the US. Overall, it’s good service it’s just that every restaurant is different and at first you’re not sure if the server will come to your table to take your order or you have to go to the bar to order. We wished across the board it would be the same so you knew when you walk into a joint what you’re supposed to do! We’ve found that the rule of thumb is if there’s a hostess that seats you, you’ll get table-side service. If not, it’s up to you to get what you need. In the US servers seem to be a bit more attentive because they’re working hard for their tips, here the servers make such a high hourly rate and don’t rely on tips so service is hit or miss.
As we’re enjoying our lunch all of a sudden a helicopter is lowering down on the lot next to the brew house. I ask one of the servers what was going on and she laughs and says that the owner has a pilot license and is always taking friends and family out for a spin. Must be nice!
Day 75 1/20/18
As I have said, Derek is on a mission to hit every nude beach that he can on this trip. This time it was unbeknownst to me.. we arrive to Ocean Beach and have lunch (clothed) before we head down to the beach (wearing bathing suits). As we’re walking the beach I ask Derek numerous times, “How about this spot, this area looks good.” However, Derek wants to keep walking and walking and walking. I ask him why we have to go so far but he gives me the “come on” hand wave and we trek on. Finally, I start to see some nudies playing in the water and a few laying on their towels higher up in a grassy area. I dart my head towards Derek and say, “So this is why you wanted to keep walking all this way!?” He’s proud he got me all the way out here so we can frolick under the sun too; the way nature intended of course!
A bit later we go for a swim and I notice an older naturist man wading towards me. This of course is after Derek leaves me to go boogie boarding. Perfect timing, I’m sure he’s thinking! To swoop in and come chat me up! Ahhh, I don’t really want to talk to him but I’m friendly enough so I indulge him. Says he’s been coming to this beach nude for 50 years and that his parents were naturists too. Says it’s a way of life and some people get it and some don’t. He calls people who wear clothes “textiles”. I’m thinking, everyone wears clothes, at some point or another. I mean that is normal in today’s society. I try to understand the other side and the mentality of nudies. It is natural after all; all of our prehistoric ancestors were nude and there’s still lots of cultures that live that way today. We shouldn’t be ashamed of our human form. Our bodies are just vessels to carry us around on this mortal earth. Just skin and flesh, bones and blood vessels, nerves and cells. Besides, we’re all the same on a cellular level anyway. So I say, drop thy yarns and go free, soak up some Vitamin D and swim in the salty sea!
Being comfortable naked publicly I believe takes us one step closer to total freedom. Tyler Durden said “It’s only after we’ve lost everything that we are free to do anything”. I take this in two ways; materially and mentally. Getting rid of our attachment to things, stuff, material objects is one way to increase our freedom. Getting rid of the mental chains that were and are still being created through social conditioning is another. Social conditioning starts at birth and is ingrained in us by family, community and media. Social conditioning is important in that it passes on vital knowledge when we are young and inexperienced, like not touching a hot stove or not running with scissors. If we didn’t pass on our survival knowledge we’d have a bunch of burn victims with eye patches. However there are certain aspects that get passed on that are detrimental to freedoms, and these are the things that can hold someone captive in anxiety, fear, shame and insecurity.
When the Roman and Greek empires were in their heyday there were community baths that everyone in town would bathe nude in. Somewhere along the line we’ve been conditioned to not be comfortable nude in front of others, to be ashamed and insecure of our bodies and ourselves. But why?
This social conditioning I think would be one of the hardest to overcome, but all that it takes is the nerve to take your clothes off. To be unaffected by what other think about your naked body and just enjoy yourself is a freedom that most wouldn’t dare to take advantage of. The social condition (aka the invisible chains) has most in such a hold that even the thought makes them nervous. Why are we to be ashamed? I say fuck it and try, if you can do it you are one step closer to complete freedom.
Caring what others think is the chains, and doing what you want to without a fuck to give is the key. Being nude in public is just one instance of this freedom, there are dozens that keep us from being free to do what we want. You want to put your hand on the hot stove? Go for it tiger! Obviously there are consequences to being THAT free…like burning yourself but the only consequences for barring it all are the ones you impose on yourself. And skin cancer… forgot about that! If you can be comfortable in your own skin then you will be more comfortable in other situations. That’s my thoughts on the subject and I’m sticking to it. Dicks out for Harambe!
Day 77 1/22/18
We go grocery shopping at New World, a place we frequent because it seems to have the best deals. A local starts walking by the front of Hal, glances at his grill and smirks. His curiosity peaks when he sees the sheep skull adorned as a hood ornament. In fact, a lot of locals end up talking with us over this skull. It’s actually been quite the conversation piece and I’m glad Derek thought to attach it on the grill! And this gentleman is no different; he sparks up a conversation with us and asks us where we got it, what type of skull it was then goes into asking us where we’re from and what sights we’ve been seeing. He tells us of this really cool waterfall that only the locals know about because it’s not widely advertised. It’s called Hell’s Hole and is unique because you can jump in these really deep dark black holes of water. Derek’s curiosity is peaked and he wants to go check Hell out. The local gives us the rundown on directions to get there and even though they seem spot on they’re still vague. Like: what you do is take the main road past the railroad crossing and turn left, then follow that down and take a right at the second large boulder, finally you head down a dirt road for about 10 to 15 minutes and you come upon a hill that has sheep and take another right… All jokes aside, we did find Hell’s Hole and it was pretty cool.
After, we head to the highlight of our day the Rere Rockslide. It’s a natural rock waterslide that is well known for the thrill of jumping on a boogie board and sliding down the steep face of the rock. We’re excited to take a ride down the slide because we’ve seen videos on YouTube of brave souls doing it and we definitely want that experience too. Derek prepares our digital camera to record the fun and with our boogie boards at our sides we walk over to the slide. Getting across the river to the best area was quite the challenge. The rocks are very slippery and even though the water at the top is only a few inches deep it’s rushing very quickly. Thinking about each placement of step methodically we make it across. We watch a few others go first to get a good idea of how it’s all done. There’s a young girl that gets in front of us but is spending her time contemplating whether or not she’s even going to do it. My anticipation is killing me, with things like this that look scary at first I just want to get in there and do it! So I ask her if she minds if I go, she doesn’t and I’ve beaten Derek to the punch. No big deal, he stays back to get a video of me going down first. What a ride, it was awesome, fast and scary but well worth all the hype!
Derek’s turn, he keeps the video running and captures himself going down. After he plunges in the pool below we’re ready and excited to go for a few more rides! Unfortunately though, on our way back up he notices a problem with the camera. He says it looks like there’s water in the lens and starts messing with it. After a minute or so he realizes that the one and only thing that actually makes the camera waterproof wasn’t closed in the lock position. Shit! There goes our $400 camera that we bought before we left for this trip!
We’re feeling pretty awful about the camera and we immediately head right back to the car to submerge it in rice. Fingers crossed that it helps but in the meantime we only got to go down the slide one time and it was so fun so how could we possibly stay in a sour mood over some material item?! We leave it behind in the car and head back out to enjoy ourselves. We each go about four or five more times and have thoroughly had our thrills fulfilled for the day. We ended up bringing Derek’s phone sealed in a waterproof case to capture some of the fun. He wants a video from the top of the waterfall of him going down so I oblige. Then he wants to capture a picture of me at the top with the plunge pool below. I start to carefully walk across the rocks again to give some distance for a good picture. I’ve already walked back and forth over these areas like ten times so I’m feeling pretty confident with my footing. Big mistake… I shouldn’t have let my guard down because before I even get the chance to turn around for the picture I lose my balance, slip on one foot with the other one not having time to make contact with the rock surface and I’m airborne. It all happened really fast and before I know it my body is falling backwards with nothing to grab onto. Then as if it couldn’t get any worse, it does. My head whips backwards with the pull of gravity and the back of my head slams down on the hard rock surface below. I lay there in shock! Derek didn’t even see it happen, instead he heard it. Even I remember the sound of my skull slamming against the rock. Very unpleasant. He rushes over to help me up and I’m one lucky girl because I’m able to get up immediately. He helps me out of the water to the side and I sit down. I reach behind my head to feel the back of my skull searching for a wound. I figured with how bad it sounded that I would see blood on my hand when I brought it back in front of my face, there was none! Derek pieces through my wet hair looking for any open wound, nothing. Thank god! I obviously didn’t lose consciousness, I wasn’t dizzy, I didn’t have a headache and I could speak fine. So I figured no concussion, just a really big goose egg to come. The fun is over and I’m ready to get back to the van where I knew copious amounts of ibuprofen and a baggie of ice would be waiting for me. What a day! It all started out so good but then ended up so horribly wrong, first the camera and then my clumsy injury.
Good days are plentiful so when the bad does emerge I feel it’s best to stay positive, keep your head up, not to dwell and look onward because sunny days are sure to come again. And that’s exactly what we did.
Day 78 1/23/18
With my head still a little achy and a huge knot at the back of my skull I’m ready for a day of relaxation. So Derek takes me to Morere Hot Springs, an establishment that has geothermal pools with a rainforest backdrop. Relaxation mode is in full swing and we soak for a couple hours.
We meet some other travelers; three friends camping around NZ for the last few weeks with their trip winding down. On their list of things to do for the day is the Rere Rockslide. I warn them right away of the dangers and tell them about my injury. One of them is from the Philippians and he starts telling us that his travel plans will take him to Nepal next. There he will be doing a guided hiking trip around Mt. Everest to one of the smaller mountains in the surrounding area and getting to stay at the first Everest base camp. Derek and I both look at each other and know that we’re both thinking the same thing; wow that is amazing but also crazy! It’s crazy to hear this because we just got done reading the book ‘Into Thin Air’. Which is the true story told by reporter Jon Krakauer about the events of the 1996 Mt. Everest expedition that took the lives of three guides and five climbers. It was quite the page-turner! One of the guides that lost his life was named Rob Hall and he was from New Zealand. We had even seen a display about his life at one of the museums we visited.
I think we both really liked the book because the elusiveness of Everest is so mystifying. We saw the 2015 movie Everest about the tragedy and Derek had downloaded the book on our IPad before we came on this trip. It was so sad what happened and made us realize what people are willing to put themselves through to accomplish their goals. People that want to summit Everest are nuts, they’re the epitome of the adventurous spirit and are true mountaineers. What I learned about the whole process of getting to the top is that by the time you finally make it up there you’re in no condition to actually enjoy the feat. It’s not about enjoyment though, it’s about the commitment to succeed. It seems as though the hard part isn’t even about making it up, the true test of success is making it down alive. Hats off to the climbers that push their minds and bodies through what would seem the single hardest thing on this planet!
We tell this Filipino gentleman about the book and he laughs because he has the very same book in his car. What are the odds?! He brought it along and planned to read it before he heads there himself. Derek and I also have a few inside jokes about the book.. Now I know it was a very sad story, one that even had me tearing up a few times but we just couldn’t help ourselves! They really aren’t all that bad, we just use people’s names from the expedition that stood out to us and say them when one of us is doing something similar in characteristic to what they did or what happened to them in real life. For example, on the day that Rob Hall’s team summited Everest there was supposed to be a strict turnaround time of 2pm no matter how far the climbers had gotten. Now there was lots of speculation of why Rob Hall broke his own rule, but he ended up proceeding to the top around 3:40 pm which ultimately cost him his life and some of the lives of his team. So now whenever Derek and I are doing anything ballsy or taking a risk; especially when playing dice we say, “What, are you Rob Hall’ing me?!” The other one has to do with a climber that was left for dead twice on this expedition and still survived! His name is Beck Weathers. So now whenever Derek or I leave one or another out of something or forget to do something for the other person we say, “Don’t Beck Weathers me!”
After we’re done soaking at the hot springs we head to Lake Waikaremoana and camp on Rosie Bay. It’s nice as! This is a new phrase we picked up on, people will say, “Sweet as…” or “Cool as..” and they don’t fill in the blank, basically indicating that whatever they’re referring to is the sweetest or the coolest. And Rosie Bay was the nicest bayside camping yet!
Day 79 1/24/18
Today we spend the entire day in Rosie Bay relaxing along the shores of Lake Waikaremoana. There is one of the Great Walks along this lake but we plan to do some shorter hikes in the area to see caves and waterfalls. There is also another smaller lake in the area called Waikareiti. We find out that the water there is supposedly pristine with sandy beaches. Also, on this lake there are multiple little islands and on one of the islands there’s actually a lake! We thought that was crazy.. so there’s a lake on an island on a lake on an island. Jeez, can NZ get anymore unique?!
At the camping area we meet a nice gentleman named John who considers himself a “British-Kiwi”. He’s really friendly and quickly becomes popular amongst the other campers because he lets them borrow his canoe to go out on the lake. We make conversation with him and find out that he sold his home and now travels full time in his RV. We comment that he’s got all the toys because we notice that he has a scooter too. He offers for us to borrow his canoe and jokingly calls it a “Canadian” canoe and says, “As long as we know how to use one.” Derek jokes back saying, “Yea, that means we paddle backwards!” He has a good laugh about that and tells us whenever we’re ready we can go for a spin.
We venture out on his bright orange canoe that he picked up for $200 NZ and we hope it’s sea-worthy. Sure enough, it’s a smooth ride in the sheltered bay. Two black swans lazily enjoy the calm waters as well, eating in the shallows and grooming themselves. We make it to the mouth of the bay and the waves build. Cass is laughing like a little school girl when water splashes up over the bow.
The water is clear and we can see well below the surface. The lake is surrounded in ancient forest and unique rock structures. We pull up alongside some big rocks at the bays’ point and I jump out to climb up and get a good view. There is a beacon up there to warn boats at night of it’s rocky shores. Thirty minutes fly by and I’m ready to take a dip in the refreshing water. We make our way back to camp, drop off the canoe and go for a swim. We swim the length of the northern bank and find a few big rocks to jump off of and I diddily do!
Later that evening as we go for another swim we see John out in the lake and we get to talking with him again. He wants to brush up on his US geography and starts asking us about Arizona. He’s never been to AZ but has always wanted to see the Grand Canyon. He likes western movies, John Wayne and Evil Kanival. He asks us if there’s lots of drugs there and we tell him about medical marijuana and how some states have it for recreational usage. His interest peaks so we indulge him about how the shops have such a variety with menus of all the different strains from Blue Dream to Purple Haze. He gets a kick out of this and says he’s got a good friend in California that he’d like to visit soon. We make our way back to camp to dry off and we sit to enjoy the views with the sun setting in the backdrop.
A few minutes later good ‘Ol John walks over to us and hands me a small baggie rolled up and says, “Here, this is for you guys” and before I can say thank you (to something I don’t even realize what it is yet) he walks away. There’s some yellow logo on the front of the bag which ends up being one of his tobacco bags and as I turn it over I see a bunch of little nugs at the bottom. By golly, good ‘Ol John just gave us marijuana! …For free nonetheless, haha! Now we know the real reason he’s so popular amongst the campers! All joking aside though, he was truly a genuine person and it seemed to us that he just wanted someone to talk to since he was a lone traveler. In the morning he was passing out coffee too and Derek and I laugh about how nice this guy is. Passing out free canoe rides, cups of coffee and now small baggies of weed!
Day 80 1/25/18
It’s another beautiful day on the lake and the morning greets us with the two black swans swimming in the calm waters. It appears that one is male and the other is female because they each have different size necks. John mentions that he knows swans pick mates for life and they stay a pair. How sweet!
Watching them over the last few days has been a treat, they seem to have their own unique personalities. They actually make the most commotion at dusk and their calls are loud and they playfully flap their wings as they glide just above the water.
We go hiking today to a nearby waterfall called Papkorito. While we are sitting and enjoying the awesome view a girl with dreads makes her way to the shore right in front of us. Then she proceeds to sing what sounds like a Maori prayer. It was a cool experience hearing her pay homage to her ancestors. She then sat down on a mat she brought and lit some sage and continued singing.
Next we go hiking to see Lake Waikareiti, the one we heard about yesterday. Before we start our walk I get to talking to this girl parked next to us and ask her if she’s just finished her hike to see what it was like but she says no that she was just about to start it. We learn that she’s from New Hampshire and has been traveling for the last two years. She was also camped last night at Rosie Bay and says that she noticed us and figured that we were Americans because we were listening to good music haha! Led Zeppelin! I start making us a packed lunch to take and she heads out down the trail. When we finally make it to Lake Waikareiti it doesn’t disappoint. It is hard to believe that this is fresh water and not salt water because it looked as though we were standing on the shores of a really nice beach along the ocean due to how crystal clear the water is and how white the sand.
We run into that same girl again after our swim and we end up hiking out with her. Her name is Laura and she’s been working in NZ for a while but her trip is coming to an end soon. She’s had the pleasure of doing quite a bit of traveling though and has been to Australia, Indonesia and Vietnam. She tells us about the small town she’s from and jokes that people from New Hampshire call people from Massachusetts “Massholes”! We get a kick out of this because we’ve met a few Massholes in our day!
Day 81 1/26/18
Heading up a dirt road, the old Odyssey handles itself fairly well. It’s a bright sunny day, windows are down so the free A/C is pumping in. We are venturing off to Shine Falls today. This is supposed to be one of the bigger and prettiest falls in the Hawkes Bay region. We park and start trekking. The trail meanders first through open pasture with dozen of sheep grazing about. Then the trail gets enclosed by trees and follows along a stream. The sign at the trailhead said the hike was 2 hours roundtrip, but it only took us 35 mins to get to the falls.
The falls are impressive, cascading into an inviting and gorgeous pool below. There are only a few people there that leave right as we get there. We put on our birthday suits and jump in! The water is brisk and refreshing after the hike in. I make my way to the falls and swim under to discover a little cave to sit in and enjoy the view from the other side. Cass gets close to the falls and is about to swim over when “WHACK”! A huge rock from 190 feet above had made it’s way over the crest and down right between us. Cass retreats back and yells something made inaudible by the crashing water. I decide to swim out back towards her and to safety. I full on free stroke as fast as I can through the turbulent waters and past the falls and as I get to the otherside I look back and up. A rock plummets, “WHACK”, only 10 feet behind me! Cass yells “are you ok, did you get hit?!” From her perspective back from the falls she thought it was right on top of me. I get up to the sand bar and stand, wipe the water out of my face and smile “that was close!” I exclaim thankfully.
With our nerves fully wrecked and the adrenaline pumping we decide to get out of dodge before anything else happens. We dry off, get dressed and hike out. Afterwards I thought maybe the Maori spirits that look over these falls didn’t particularly like nude light skinned folk frolicking in their waters. Luckily the spirits let us off with just a warning. The inherent danger of swimming under falls is always there, but this was the first time with such a first hand experience and one I won’t soon forget.
Day 83 1/28/18
We head out this morning towards Lake Taupo. We’re both impressed with how beautiful and vast it is. It is the largest lake in all of New Zealand and the town is situated on a geothermal hot bed. The result is steaming vents, bubbling craters and natural hot water springs. We take advantage of the healing benefits and head to the hot water beach which is right on the shore of the lake. You’re supposed to dig through the black volcanic sand until you feel a hot spot. Once you’ve struck heated water you make yourself a bath hole and soak it all in. It was such a cool experience and only three feet away you can go cool off in the lake if you get too hot.
Afterwards, we head to find camp at Reids Park Farm. On our way into the campground we run into Laura, the girl we just met at Lake Waikaremoana! She’s in her car and about to drive back to where she set her tent up. She offers us a spot right next to her because the park is starting to fill up and she has prime real estate on a nice patch of grass that’s not too crowded. We follow her over and set up all our camping gear. We had a fun night enjoying her company and getting to know her better. We share some good laughs, stories and beers. We teach her how to play Farkle and Derek proceeds to get pretty lit. All in all we’re so glad we ran into her again!
Day 84 1/29/18
We found out from Laura last night that her plans for today are similar to ours. We both also figured the best way to hold our campsite and be able to leave for the day is to take one car and leave one behind. She offers to drive us around since Hal is only setup for two people.
She takes us to a secluded location that she found out about along the Waikato River and downstream from the Aratiatia Dam. The dam is a point of interest in Taupo where people go to watch the dam gates open and let copious amounts of water surge down the river. Within minutes you get to see the flow of the water pick up speed until it’s racing by. The level raises to completely cover once easily visible massive boulders.
Afterwards, we go for a short hike to Arcadia Bay which is right on Lake Taupo and it’s a truly beautiful spot.
Good for relaxing, swimming and picnicking. That’s how we spend the remainder of the afternoon. It’s a nice and hot sunny day and I loved watching the sailboats pass by. We love lake time!
Day 87 2/1/18
Today we start our next and last Great Walk; the Tongariro northern circuit. It’s a four day and three night backpacking trip across volcanic, geothermal and alpine terrain with the main attraction being Mt. Ngauruhoe aka Mt. Doom from Lord of the Rings.
Unfortunately, we get really poor weather this first day and it’s raining the entire hike in. Takes us about 4 hours before we arrive to the Mangatepopo Campground and Hut. We pick the closest spot near the bathroom and hope that our tent can withstand the weather. The last time we used it at Abel Tasman it was no match for the torrential rain but since then Derek had used some water repellent spray. Fingers crossed!
It wasn’t enough; the wind gusts were unreal. Even though it wasn’t raining as bad as Abel Tasman it didn’t matter because the wind was just pushing the rain through the thin nylon fabric. We needed plan b and fast. It was cold, our gear was getting soaked and there was no way we’d last a night out here as puddles were already building inside within the first thirty minutes. Derek leaves me and the wet tent to go talk to the ranger about us staying in the hut for the night. After about five minutes he comes back and says it doesn’t look promising because supposedly the hut is booked and there was already another couple waiting to see if they could get a spot in case someone cancelled or no showed. Luckily for us while he was gone I was working the other end. I had phone service so I logged onto the DOC website and saw that there was in fact three spots available in the hut, I booked it immediately! We packed up all our stuff and headed to find warmth in the shelter. Later that evening the ranger decreed that everyone would be staying in the hut due to how bad the storm was, with lightning and flooding. So all the tenters stayed inside, but because I had payed for a spot we got an actual bed whereas the others had to sleep on their air mattresses on the ground for free. You’d think we would have been better off getting a bed but in actuality we were in the “snorers” room, the door to the room was actually labeled “snorers”! The snoring was bad but what was worse was on the top bunk there was three mattresses.. Derek, me and Gollum in the corner! An older gentleman who moved around endlessly and who turned out to be a night eater! Throughout the night we heard him rummaging through his bag and opening up plastic wrappers and loudly chewing, ugh!! Sweet dreams my ass!
Day 88 2/2/18
The rain stops in the morning but there’s a still a dense cloud covering, with dew and mist coming off the soaked ground we head out to start on our hardest hiking day yet.
This day is considered the most difficult due to the alpine crossing. A steep hike up that continues to get colder as you incline into elevation and the wind is notoriously relentless at the top. Sometimes wind speeds can exceed 80 mph! Of course they close the crossing when that occurs, in fact just yesterday it was closed because of the storm. However, in the morning before we leave we got the green light from the ranger that it was safe to cross. It was a tough climb; surely steep, wind that could knock you over, narrow paths and loose gravel underfoot. In one area there was chains to grip that helped you to hoist yourself up.
We got so lucky though because as we neared the top the sun started to peak through and we got magnificent views from the top looking down onto the Emerald Lakes, Red Crater, the Blue Lake and last but not least the famous Mt. Doom. What a treasure! Well worth all the hard work and hiking always seems to be that way. The end result; the views, are always worth every ounce of sweat and pain.
Coming down the other side of the alpine crossing of course was easier because it was downhill but challenging in its own right. The ground beneath your feet was loose volcanic rock that in some areas your shoe would dig in a few inches or worse slide forward and downwards tipping you off balance. And the pathway was still very thin with huge drops into the Red Crater on one side and acidic geothermal waters below that would turn you to mush if you were to fall in. Slow and steady I kept telling myself until finally I made it to level ground.
The rest of the way to Oturere Campground and Hut proved to be a breeze with a mostly flat or downhill track. Once to camp Derek and I were ready to go for a swim because we wanted to feel refreshed again. We had heard that most of the water throughout the Tongariro National Park was off limits because to the Maori people these were sacred and spiritual waters. However, for the simple fact that we always want to go swimming we had asked a representative at the DOC Visitor Center if there were any streams that we could go into. Sure enough at all the campgrounds there were areas that were open and safe to go into. So we take the stroll to the edge of the campground where the ground drops down ahead of us into a canyon that is continuously being carved out by stream and falls. The falls are gorgeous and we make our way towards them. The path takes us just above the falls where there are slow flowing pools we can wade in. I jump or should I say tip toe in to the frigid waters. I can only last a few moments but am able to completely submerge and clean away the sweat of the day. Derek follows and is quick in exiting the stream as well. Feeling refreshed we head back to camp.
We spend the evening keeping warm in the hut with fellow travellers. It’s nice because unlike the other Great Walks we’ve done, the huts on this track are open for the tenters to use until bedtime whereas the other tracks the hut facilities are off limits to the tenters. We had met a couple in the last hut the night before who were tenters as well and who were in the same foul weather situation we had been in. They were from Canada and named Lindsay and Steve, we got along with them swell! Derek noticed a chess board and immediately asked Steve if he plays. They end up playing 3 games; 3 for the USA team and nil for the Canadians. Derek would later tell me how well Steve played and that he’d actually been one of the toughest players he’d encountered in some time.
Day 89 2/3/18
Today we hike to our last campground of our Tongariro adventure. It’s the shortest hike we have to do along all of the Northern Circuit so we take our time in the morning and head out around ten or so. The campground ends up being my favorite out of all of them because it’s close to the stream, it has dense tree coverage and the hut is the newest and nicest!
We hang out in the hut again with Steve and Lindsay and this other couple from Australia. We invite them to play Farkle and as Derek’s telling them the rundown on the rules Steve realizes it’s a game he already knows but he knows it as 10,000. We compare play and we find out that the Canadians are cutthroat when it comes to games! They make it very hard to get ahead and another funny difference which I’m sure might just depend on house rules is that wherever the dice lands it’s in play, no matter what. So if it hits the floor and rolls under something, it counts! Where I come from the dice has to stay on the table or it’s rerolled! It was definitely an interesting night.
Another reason why this was my favorite campground was because of our experience in the hut with the ranger. He was the most informative, friendly and funny ranger yet! He told us the history of Tongariro and included Maori culture. Maori legend has it that:
Ngatoroirangi (a prominent priest) saw the summit of Tongariro and commenced to climb it. Before he left his followers, he bade them to fast until his return. When he was nearly at the top, his followers disobeyed him and Ngatoroirangi all but perished. Almost at his last gasp, he prayed to his gods in Hawaiki to send fire and produce a volcano in the mountain. His prayers were heard, and the gods sent fire which came to him by way of Whakaari, Moutohora, Okakaru, Rotorua, Tarawera, Paeroa, Orakeikorako, and Taupo (which all have or had geothermal activity). It travelled underground, spouting up at these places, and finally ascended to the top of Tongariro to revive him.
The ranger also told us about the local plant and wildlife and when he was all done he took us on a nature walk and we foraged for berries!
Day 90 2/4/18
Mt. Doom greets us this clear and crisp morning. It’s time to hike out from Waihohonu Campground back to where we started 3 days ago. We take our time getting ready for the day and are the last hikers to leave. We are pumped with the prospect of a cold beer and juicy burger at the finish line. We cinch up our packs and start out at a steady pace. It’s a great day to hike with the impressive Mt. Ruapehu in the distance to our left and Mt. Ngauruhoe to our immediate right in full view.
Within a short time we start passing the other hikers that headed out from the hut before us. About 3 hours in we catch up to Lindsay and Steve at the turn off for the Tama lakes. Steve mentions he thinks that they are hiking at 3.5 kms an hour and we are around 4 kms an hour. Sounds about right I thought even though I never really thought about it. The four of us walk and talk over to the Lower Tama Lake only about 10 minutes off the main trail. Pretty view, great spot to have lunch so Cass and I do while the Canadians continue on.
About an hour or so back on the trail we’re introduced to the stunning Taranaki Falls! It really is a sight, the only draw back is it is an easy hike from the Tongario Visitor Center so the place is packed with day tourists. The Maples are there having lunch and we talk with them about cold beer and the pub that is by the parking lot that is oh so close now. We move on and tell them we will meet them there. We kick it into overdrive and are back on concrete in no time.
We b-line for the Visitor Center to try and get a refund for the first nights hut stay. I go over the details with the manager and she seems sympathetic to our situation however there computers are down. She asks if we can come back in about an hour. That works for me, its beer:30! Before we leave we happen to see the local Sunday newspaper and the storm we hiked in our first day made the front cover! Obviously it was a bad one and caused disaster across the whole region.
We head to Tussock Tavern and the place is closed and no Linsey or Steve in sight. We figured at 3.5 kms an hour they would’ve been out and have seen the close sign and maybe moved on, bummer. The bar opens in about 30 minutes so we go the the car, unpack, pull out our camp chairs and crack open a Tui from the cooler. Surprisingly after 4 days they are still cold and go down easy. Just then we see Steve drive past on the road and wave him down and he parks near by and walks over.
The two bring their camp chairs with them and I hand them both a brew. We talk about the adventure we all just undertook and the convo continues on to the Tavern. We all order some even colder beer and burgs. Devour every morsel of food on the plate, damn it’s good. After we are fully satisfied we make the walk down to the Visitor Center. The Canuks come with as witnesses. The systems are still down but the manager states she will go ahead and process the refund as soon as the systems are back up so she takes down all our pertinent info. That’s a relief. We head back to the cars, exchange contact info and say our goodbyes. Those two were great single serving friends and we look forward to seeing their adventures.
Day 91 2/5/18
Super Bowl Monday! We went to Riverside Bar in Te Kuiti. A local pub that had a nice outdoor patio, pool tables, slot machines and the best part – a couch with our name on it right in front of a big screen TV. First order of business, we get the bartender to play NFL football for us. Luckily, we were practically the only patrons in the joint and nobody seemed to mind that they switched the TV’s to American fooseball instead of rugby.
Later, I was ordering my second drink and asked the bartender if she knew how to make a Long Island Iced Tea. She commented that they’re out of iced tea right now.. I told her the traditional way to make it doesn’t actually have tea in it! Then she says, “Well I don’t actually work here.” I’m like wait, what?! She had been serving us the whole time, she was the bartender, the cook and apparently maintenance as well because at one point she came over to us with a paint brush in hand and said if we needed anything she’d be in the other room painting! She was actually very friendly and took good care of us but she said truly she doesn’t work there, she works at another bar down the road hahaha! After a great game and the Eagles win we’re feeling real good!
It’s time to leave the comfy couch we had for the afternoon and do some exploring. We head to go see the Mangapohue Natural Bridge, which is part of the remains of an ancient cave system. The bridge is a 50 foot rock archway that was formed by the Mangapohue stream. The track winds through an expansive limestone gorge where you can see 25 million year old fossilised oysters! After, we go to Marokopa Falls, at 115 ft high it’s quite impressive! While we’re viewing this beauty we meet a friendly Canadian couple named Jim and MC and get to talking to them. We exchange travel adventures and upcoming plans with each other and Derek gives Jim some good tips on local points of interest. We say our goodbyes and wish each other luck on our trips.
Day 92 2/6/18
Today I plan to take us to Kawhia Hot Water Beach so we wake up early to catch low tide. At low tide on this particular beach you can dig a hole in the sand and hit warm geothermal water! From camp it’s only a 10 minute drive to the car park. The day prior Jim mentioned this area and said a few movies were filmed here, I can see why. There is a sand dune stretching the length of this coast that you first climb up then down to the beach below. Some kids beat us to the beach but it seems like they are having trouble finding a warm spot. I glance the sand’s surface and notice a thin layer of water coming out about 15 meters away from where the kids are digging. I wedge my foot into the sand and it’s hot! Cass and I dig a big reservoir big enough for the two us and slip into it. Ah yes!
We relax as several others groups come down with shovels in hand looking the strike it rich in the golden sand. Many dig and dig, the area around us is starting to look like Swiss cheese. Most leave disappointed while Cass and I enjoy our hot tub made for two. After about an hour of relaxation and people watching we get up to go, only the kids from earlier are left still eagerly searching for warmth. As we walk back up the dune I look back and one of the kids ventures into our oasis, “It’s HOT” he yells as he gestures to his friends to hurry over. They run and jump in ecstaticly. Good things come to those that wait, or in my case; those who know what they are looking for and don’t waste their fucking time!
Today we’re heading up to Raglan, the surfing capital of New Zealand. On our way we stop at Bridal Vail Falls, another gorgeous waterfall and one for the books definitely worth the stop.
Once in Raglan we need to shop for some groceries so stop at the first market we see. Out front of the market it looks like some locals are selling food, you know I got to check it out. There are tons of delicious options, but a dish I’m not familiar with intrigues me. Hangi. I ask the man running the show what it is and he says it’s a traditional New Zealand dish that is cooked in underground stoves that uses the geothermal heat. Lamb, mutton, chicken, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, squash, cabbage…I forget the rest. He had me at cooking with geothermals, so we get a plate! It’s bomb!
With happy stomachs we do our shopping, look around the main strip then head to Ngarunui Beach to relax the rest of the day. Down on the beach there is a truck with board and wet suit rentals. I’ve always wanted to surf and figure nows a good time to start. I get an hour rental and head out to give it a shot. I paddle into my first wave and hop up, and I’m surfing out the gate, ride it out for about 7 seconds or so and the wave looses stem. Beginners luck? Maybe. It is a thick long board which makes it way easier to stabilize. With years of wake, snow and indo boarding under my belt I felt confident going in. What I quickly learned is surfing is all about timing, learning the motion of the ocean so to speak. I proceed to fall and miss several waves due to bad timing. Over the hour I stand and ride a wave in only 4 or 5 times. I’ve got some practicing to do if I’m going to become a surf bum. I return the gear then head over to Cass for a beer. We relax on the beach drinking, I intently watch the other surfers and the waves to learn any insight I can. I’ve got to enhance my wave reading ability in order to maximize my success. Until next time ocean.
We’ve had a jammed pack day so we go to find camp and take showers. Derek finds a spot nearby that costs $30 NZ to park in a wide open grassy field. This might sound pricey but has been the going rate if you want a hot shower. While Derek sets up camp I head off to take a shower first. Once in the ladies room I pick one of the six open stalls and go to hang up my shower bag when something shiny, silver and gold catches my eye. What’s this?! A gold ring on a silver chain just hanging on one of the hooks and no one around to claim it. There was another woman in the next stall taking a shower so I try and do the right thing and ask if she maybe knew the person that was next to her or perhaps saw who she was. No luck. Then I think that I’ll leave it there and still use this stall that way if someone comes in looking for it, I’ll be able to return it to its rightful owner. I didn’t even really look that closely at it, I just noticed that the ring had writing on both sides of it in a different language. I go on with my shower and no one ever comes looking for it.
I head back to Hal and to show Derek what I had found. I tell him I have a secret surprise and to meet me in Hal behind closed doors. I’m thinking I’ll just show him what I found and then maybe we could go see if this camper park has a lost and found. I pull out the goods and after he examines it for a split second he exclaims, “You’ve found the one, the one true ring from Lord of the Rings.” The one ring to rule them all, the one to bind them!” I’m astonished, I had no idea because like I said I really didn’t look that closely. I was amazed that someone would leave such a treasure behind so carelessly. But Derek said maybe they could no longer bear the weight that the ring brings and that it was now our burden to carry. Our precious!
He spent the next few minutes looking up the value of the ring and we found out that it was from the Weta workshop and worth $200! What a souvenir! And just in time because we’re headed to Hobbiton in a few days! He said you can forget about a lost and found here, there’s no way the lady that checked us in wouldn’t just keep it for herself! It was a pretty podunk operation, the checkin was just a small wooden shack, doubtful there’d be a lost and found in there! What’s actually funny is that this whole trip we’ve been finding expensive things left behind by tourists. Derek got a $200 mini Bose speaker and I’ve found $100 pair of Marc Jacobs sunglasses. The list actually goes on but these were the most expensive ones, cha ching!
Day 94 2/8/18
We first head to Hamilton Gardens a beautiful display of all different types of gardens throughout history and over cultures. They have replicas of a Chinese Garden, Italian Renaissance Garden, Indian Char Bagh Gardens and Japanese Garden of Contemplation.
Each one has a unique feel and houses the types of flowers and plants you would see from that part of the world. Some are also architectural representations of that particular era with buildings and water fountains. Absolutely loved this place and it has rightfully become our favorite botanical garden in all of New Zealand!
Next, we have reserved tickets to go see Hobbiton!
This was on the top of both our lists to do on the North Island and we’re excited the day finally has come. The tour to this magical place is set up that you have to take a shuttle there and have a guided walk through. We wished we could have just driven right up, pay to get in and explore on our own. However, the demand is high; they shuffle hundreds of people through daily. So unfortunately, they can’t have hundreds of people lingering around enjoying the place because it’s really not all that big.. it is Hobbit size after all!
The downside of having to follow a tour guide around is that everything is very rushed, you get mere minutes to look around each section before the group is hurried on to the next. It was so cool being there though because we’re big LOTR fans so hearing the tour guide give specifics about movie scenes at various locations throughout Hobbiton was really special.
The tour guide tells us that there’s only one Hobbit Hole where the door will be open and we can take a photo inside. In reality there is no inside to the Hobbit Hole’s, filming of all the scenes that took place inside is at a different location. Here on the Alexander family farm is where The Shire is showcased. The guide offers to take photos of everyone’s party standing in the doorway and says whoever is able to show her a pose or do something funny that she’s never seen before will get an extra drink at The Green Dragon. We definitely want that extra drink so I’m trying to think of something cool we can do. The only thing I come up with is my signature yoga pose of course!
Score, it earns me my extra drink! Once at The Green Dragon we realize that everyone pretty much gets an extra drink, or for that matter how ever many drinks you can suck down in twenty minutes. Not feeling quite as special anymore haha! Oh well, all in all our Hobbiton experience was on point!
We head to find camp for the evening and it’s a stones throw away from Hobbiton. It’s a working family farm called Brocks that offers a parking area for campervan’s. The only rule is you must vacate at 10am sharp so the farm can do it’s business. The woman that checks us in and collects our money is hilarious. She starts being very jokey with us and when I hand her the money she has to go get us change. But when she comes back and Derek reaches out his hand to get our change she doesn’t let Derek take it. Instead she bypasses his hand and says to me, “Here’s your change Miss!” You can tell she’s a strong, independent woman who doesn’t take any crap from men. She says a few other funny remarks that has us both laughing. She’s super friendly and makes us feel right at home. We enjoy this spot for its beautiful views over The Shire and we get treated to an amazing sunset.
Day 96 2/10/18
We’re in Rotorua, a town that Derek and I were both excited to check out because it has a huge list of attractions. Unfortunately, while here we didn’t get the greatest of weather. It rains on and off the whole time! Luckily though, high on our list is to go check out all the different thermal hot pools and sitting in hot water with a little rain coming down doesn’t seem too bad of an idea. So we drive around to three different geothermal hot spots and soak a while. On our way into one area we’re greeted with a beware sign…
‘Beware there could be broken bottles, syringes, sanitary items, condoms and sharp objects in the stream’
Okay, what?!! Oh and I almost forgot there’s also a chance you could contract amoebic meningitis! Jeez, why isn’t this stream closed for toxic hazards! Well the fact of the matter is that in all geothermic hot pools lives these dangerous amoebas and the key thing is not to submerge your head under the water. Easy enough right? They can enter your brain via your nasal passages, so swimmer beware. Sure, no problem in all the hot water pools we’ve been careful but now there could be condoms or dirty syringes in this cesspool?! We figure, oh well when in Rome and take our chances.
We’re in there for a few minutes and start to make our way under the bridge when we run into Jim and MC bathing in the cesspool too! So funny that we keep running into the same people we’ve met before. It’s really nice though to be making connections and new friends. We talk a while and decide to get cleaned up and meet for dinner in town later. We all can’t wait to take showers after bathing in this stream because we smell like sulphur. In fact the entire town of Rotorua smells like rotten eggs so there’s no getting away from it!
We meet our new Canadian friends at Eat Street; a modern collaboration of fun and trendy restaurants that any foodie would be pleased with since there is such a culinary variety. We enjoy an evening over dinner and drinks and get to know them better. They both work as train conductors on the railways and that’s actually how they met each other. It’s really cool hearing all about their work and their lives as conductors. They tell me that I look like Alanis Morisette and wonder if I’ve heard that before. The answer is yes, many times actually!
Day 98 2/12/18
The rain has been coming down for the past few days, leading us to miss some things. Didn’t really get to enjoy the Taraunga area so we decided to head for the Coromandel region in hopes of clearer skies. Primary objective today is to see and hike around the Karangahake Gorge; an old mining area with great scenery and man-made mining marvels. The parking lot is packed and 2 giant tour busses stuffed to the gills with asian tourists just arrived. I always say to Cass, “If the Asians are here, it’s got to be good!” There are 2 main hikes here, the Tunnels Loop and the Windows Loop. We start out on the Tunnels which starts with crossing over 2 swinging bridges and pass by the old Woodstock Powerhouse and Battery. Some of the old buildings’ bones and body lay scattered around. The clouds are still out and mists of rain come on and off which makes the patina on the old remnants really pop.
The trail skirts along the Ohinemuri River for a bit then comes up to a steel truss bridge that spans the mighty river. At the end of the bridge is an impressive sight, the old rail tunnel! This tunnel is huge at almost a mile long and tall enough to fit a train.
As we walk in a pin hole of light glares at us in the distance. The air is damp and the entire tunnel is lit dimly by a row of orange lights along the ceiling. We start walking, and walking and the pin hole slowly increases in diameter. The walls are aged with some crumbling and graffiti artists have had a field day here as well. Cass says it feels like a horror movie set, I say it would be a perfect sceen for a killer to be chasing you down a never ending tunnel only to get to the end and run into a second killer! It is a pretty eerie space but that makes it a great time.
The pin hole is now large enough to see out of and another steel truss bridge reaches out in front of us. This bridge crosses the highway, then a dirt track take us back to the parking lot after passing more mining infastructure.
After a quick lunch we start on the Windows Loop. It takes us into the old Talisman Battery ruins. The ruins of this multi-storied processing plant are larger than the Woodstock operation and take a while to explore. The building was constructed against a steep mountain and stairs take us up the hillside and the different levels of the structure. At the top there are old rail tracks and mining bucket cars on the tracks that use to haul paydirt to this plant.
The trail continues along the old track way into the mountain and a series of tunnels. There are “windows” that have been dug out of the side of the tunnel that give great viewing of the gorgeous gorge below. Some of the tunnels are blocked off in the mountain which only stirs my curiosity more, but alas I am no match for steel bars so we countinue on around the loop and back to the car.
We drive up the coast to the Oputere Coastal Campground which give access to Oputere Beach. This campground is fairly quiet and the beach is nearly empty. It is a clothing optional beach so the clothes come off and into the surf we go. It is still farely cloudy out so no opportunity to erase some tan lines today, maybe at the next nudey beach. It feels liberating and free.
Freedom is what it’s all about and I am trying everyday to release myself from the mental programming I’ve been subjected to for 32 years. Name one thing you’re afraid to do and do it! It will be nerve racking the first or even tenth time but it gets easier. What made it scary in the first place? Is it a logical cause or have you been conditioned by society or even yourself not to be confident? I used to be afraid of public speaking, in grade school I used to sit in the back and never raise my hand to answer questions. I was so concerned that I might say something stupid and I thought of what other people might think or say about me if I did. I was afraid of what others thought, gave them so much power that I was unwilling to say anything in front of large groups. This anxiety is still with me but I am working on it. At work, I had taken on a training role where I spoke on topics at length to dozens of people. It was nerve racking at first but it did get easier. A little while back my good friends asked me to officiate their marriage, a huge honor but also a huge test of my fear. Everytime I envisioned standing in front of the crowd of people all ears on me, my palms got sweaty and my heart sank in my chest. The night before the ceremony I hardly slept. The day of, hours before, minutes before I am nervous and it is multiplying. The whole time I am telling myself, “you got this” and “relax”. The ceremony is over in a blink and the weight is off my shoulders and I wonder why I got myself so worked up. Everyone said I did a good job, I’ll take it. I think I am getting to a point where giving a fuck is too nerve racking, so let the chips fall where they may and dgaf!
Day 99 2/13/18
We arrive to the Hot Water Beach, there are many hot water beaches in New Zealand but this is the most well known. We’ve been to two already and felt compelled to go to the “one” that all the guide books say is a must do. Spend about 10 minutes looking for parking. Tour buses full of Asians, check.
There is a cafe that is making a killing renting… I mean hiring out shovels to tourist to dig there own hole. We pass that up and start our way down the beach to the large glob of humans ahead. There has to be hundreds of people all vying for the best hot spot. There are probably an equal number of holes in the sand. Some holes with happy soakers, some with poor souls feverishly digging for a hot spot that will never come and probably half the holes have been abandoned by unlucky prospectors. There really is no need for a shovel as someone has already done all the work, you just need to find a decent temp hole thats vacant. Walking around we dip our toes into several holes that are all cold, we see some steam closer to the water line so we head over there. There are a few empties so we dunk a toe, Ouch! It is scoulding hot. We end up in the least scoulding of the scoulding holes and settle in.
The sceen here is quite hillarious. It seems the majority of people aren’t really relaxing and enjoying the beach. The majority are walking around looking for an empty hole, a bunch are fruitlessly digging in existing holes or creating new ones away from the hot spot. Surveying the beach it seemed there was really only 2 areas of heat and the rest of the beach was wasted digging time. Some in existing holes are open to share and some are stink eyeing anyone who dares step in their hard fought pool. There is a couple that are closer to the ocean that fight the waves more than they enjoy the hard work they are putting in. They are both sweating from taking turns at the shovel to reconstruct the forward wall every 5 minutes or so when it gets toppled by a small wave. The tide is coming in and it is a battle they can’t win. The tide comes in a bit and they give up. I can see it in the guys eyes a feeling of defeat as he walks away looking back at his pool. A family of Indians move into his castle made of sand quickly and his face beems with regret, as if he only tried a little harder maybe he and the misses could have got that relaxing and romantic moment he really wanted with her.
The Indian family continue on his great work in his absence. Building up the front wall as best they can. The waves are making their way up and the couple immediately in front of us decide to call it a day as their forward wall deteriorates. The Indian family quickly takes their hole and the higher ground. They reinforce the forward wall impressively to a decent height and then they settle in and finally get to relax…facing obliviously up the beach, away from the peaceful ocean that laps gently behind them. They seem like a well to do Indian family on holiday. The kids well behaved, the husband clean cut and the wife in full make up and hair done flawlessly. Without notice a rouge wave makes it’s way up the beach. I notice it and tell Cass to grab our stuff. Cass and I now prepared know what is coming and watch the show. The wave hits the forward wall of the happy families hole, sending a wave a foot or two over their heads! They all tuck there shoulders in and turtle neck at the same time, not sure why that is our human instinct in such a moment but it is of no help, they get absolutely soaked head to toe. Cass and I laughing hysterically walk away. This place is worthless as a relaxing day soaking at a beach but it more than makes up for it in it’s people watching opportunities. Never turn your back on the ocean.
We keep driving up the coast and enjoy a nice walk down to Cathedral Cove.
Here there are some amazing formations carved out of the coastline. Photo opps for days.
There is a cave tunnel you can go through to get to another beach. Once there the waves are fierce and the rips strong, so naturally I go in and body surf them for a while. Once I’m good and tired Cass and I make our way back up to the car park. Tomorrow I want to go to a secluded oasis called New Chums Beach so we drive up the coast a bit more to the closest town. There we make our way up a hill to Earl’s Paradise. On the surface this camper park isn’t much to write home about but the views are great. I meet the man himself Earl to square up payment for the nights stay but he doesn’t take credit card. I ask if there is an ATM in the town down the hill I can use and he says there isn’t an ATM within 45 minutes away. He says don’t worry about it and we’ll figure something out tomorrow. Huh, nice guys I think. There is a cold shower that we partake in to get the sand and salt off from the day. It is an open roofed enclosure of corregated steel. There is a scum lined window on one side that you can see out of onto the shorelines below, how cool I think and enjoy the view while I wash up. We get dinner together and crash shortly after.
Day 100 2/14/18
Today is day 100 and it’s also Valentines Day, feels like a great day to hit a milestone! A spectacular sight greets us this morning from up on the hill overlooking the coast. The sky is colorful and the air is fresh. The dog from Sandlot roams around the campsite. I walk to the can and on my way out run into Earl again. I say good morning and ask him how he proposes we settle up for the stay. He says, “don’t worry about it, just be a good person”. I tell him I will and he and I talk for the next hour. About the land, his family and his goals. He is doing all the work himself to make the camper park what it is. He gives me the tour, he points to an area he plans on adding a shower and toilet block. Below there is the house his son lives in with his family. Up the hill is a really nice house that his sister owns. In front of it there is a statue of a man with spear in hand looking stoic. I joke “is that you Earl?” He laughs and says it’s his grand father, who was Maori. He says he was a great warrior and the statue commemorates his legacy. He also introduces the giant dog thats been following us around all morning as the appropriately named Beast. Just like Sandlot he is a friendly giant and he takes a liking to me.
Earl is a man that shows his age in his face. I feel he has been through a lot of hard times in his life but his smile and calm demeanor cover it well. He seems to have found his happy place here on this hill, building up his park and meeting travellers. I think that is his biggest joy, meeting and talking with people. And he makes it so easy to talk to, we probably would gave gone on for another hour or so but he had to leave for a funeral. I introduce him to Cass, we say our goodbyes and I thank him again for his generosity. I tell him I will send as many people his way to make up for my free stay, he says again “no need Derek, just keep being a good person.” They don’t make too many Earl’s these days so if you are in the Coromandel region stop by!
After brekkie we head for New Chums Beach or it’s nickname Nude Bums Beach! It hasn’t been a nude beach in sometime however, the word got out of it’s beauty and too many tourist roam it’s shore these days. It’s a bit of a trek that starts on another beach and crosses an esturary that you can only be crossed 2 hours either side of low tide. Then hop from unstable boulder to unstable boulder until you finally get to a muddy trail that’s uphill over the saddle. Once at the top of the saddle rewarding views await.
Make it down the other side and you’re on one of the prettiest unspoiled white sand beaches in the world! We find a quiet spot, swim for a bit and sun a bit. No tour busses pulling up here and that’s just how I like it. After about 2 hours we head back to try and beat the tide.
Day 101 2/15/18
We awake this morning to a beautiful view out our bedroom window. The Te Kouma Harbour Cottages also known as “The Cozy Cottages” are just that; a slice of life, an inviting homestead turned campervan park. It’s situated on rolling green hills with tropical plants and flowers at the foreground and the stunning coastline in the distance.
We go for a walk around the property and the grounds have everything you need to host any event from small to large. There’s a massive open air deck area that has a gigantic wooden table made for twenty with a flat top barbecue in the middle. There’s a game room connected to it with a pool table. The lawn is wonderfully decorated with an archway for loving couples to say “I do”. The pathway winds down and around to a jetty (a dock) that extends out into the cove. You can rent canoes and kayaks to do some further exploring. However, we decide to move on after brekkie.
We head to Stu’s Pig Sanctuary where you can drive up and see the little oinkers roaming free. This is a sanctuary after all, not a farm so the pig’s here are friends not food!
There’s dozens from adults to piglets and they’re adorable to watch! We snap a few pictures and move on. We head to see some ancient Kauri trees. There’s a few short walks on nice boardwalk pathways that take you to the base for viewing of these giants.
The boardwalks also act as a protective barrier from foot traffic and a thing called “Kauri Dieback Disease”. This disease is becoming quite the problem in New Zealand and doesn’t discriminate it can kill kauri of all sizes and of any age – from seedlings to giants that pre-date human settlement!
The pathogens of this disease live in the soil and so one major cause of the spread is the movement of soil from one location to the next on hikers footwear. It can be spread by just a pinhead of soil and soil doesn’t necessarily have to be left right by the tree because the pathogens can sense a kauri tree’s roots and swim towards them using a tail-like flagella! This mostly occurs during rainstorms when the flow of water also helps them to spread and move. Unfortunately, there’s no cure and the disease will kill most if not all the kauri it infects eventually causing extinction. However, there is something hikers can do to help so the Department of Conservation have installed footwear cleaning stations at the beginning of trails that have kauri present. These stations provide wire brushes and a cleaning solution to spray on the bottom of your boots. It’s not only important to clean prior to entering the trail but also upon exiting. This is because even the pathogens from this disease in its inactive state can survive for many years above ground and without a kauri anywhere nearby!
Day 103 2/17/18
In the afternoon today we head to check out the Mermaid Pools, a gorgeous rock outcropping that in low tide has accessible pools you can swim in. The pools are a beautiful shade of blue from the ocean water and green algae growing below. We pull up and find parking along a residential street. Start gathering our things, apply sunscreen and we each wear our Vibram five finger shoes to give some support and protect our feet when we walk along the rocky edges of the Mermaid Pools. We’re almost ready to head off when I hear Derek struggling with the driver’s side door, he’s trying to put his shoes on but because the car is at such an angle the door keeps closing on him. During this process he accidentally hits the lock button. Doesn’t think much of it and leaves it locked because we’re about to head off anyways. I’m ready to go and head to his side of the car. He’s got his shoes on and steps out just to turn back and grab our backpack on the driver’s seat. But before he can.. SLAM! The driver’s door closes shut still locked from earlier, shit our backpack is still on the seat and shit our only set of keys are in the backpack!!
Derek‘s only saving grace was that the door actually didn’t close all the way shut, there was a teensy tiny opening where one might be able to slide something in to unlock the door. The other lucky thing was that we weren’t in the middle of nowhere, we were on a residential street after all. So off goes Derek in search of a wire hanger! It just so happened that the house we parked in front of the people must have just got home from a shopping trip because all their car doors were open and they were going back and forth into the house. Good timing. Derek approaches the young girl and tells her our situation. She’s happy to help and says she’d go inside and see what she could find for us. Nice gal comes back with plastic hangers! Derek kindly says thanks but unfortunately that won’t do the trick. Then she says hang on, this is actually my grandfathers house and he must keep something in the garage for this sort of situation. Sure enough her grandpa had a plethora of wire coat hangers already taken apart and stretched long. The granddaughter says that he always liked to help and probably helped people unlock their cars on this street for years. Derek finagles with the hanger, door and lock for about fifteen minutes before voila it’s a success and we’ve got access again to Hal. I’m so relieved because I’m sure a locksmith in this town cost a fortune! I also joke with Derek that he’s one lucky guy that the door didn’t slam shut the entire way otherwise we would have been in trouble.
Finally, we can go enjoy the Mermaid Pools. The hike isn’t long but it’s difficult because it’s so steep. The incline has you face to face with the ground in front of you and each step you have to grab rocks or tree roots just to pull yourself up. It’s definitely worth all the trouble though because it’s such a beautiful spot.
As we swim around going from pool to pool we watch as the tide makes it’s way back in. It starts crashing hard against these rocks shooting copious amounts of water up and we feel the light spray of ocean mist. On our way back out we pause for a photo op and Derek sits on a randomly placed arm chair with the open water in the background. We’ll never know how in the world this chair got here but it made for a really cool picture in a unique setting!
Day 105 2/19/18
Today we booked an excursion with the Dune Rider Tour company. Which includes a stop at the beautiful Cape Reinga, a drive along 90 mile beach (a sand highway) and last but not least the opportunity to go sand boogie boarding! Our tour guide is named Buzz and he’s a local Maori gentleman with a good sense of humor. The drive along 90 mile beach is a smooth ride because our tour bus is made to be driven in the dunes! That was our first ever experience getting to drive along a coastline on the actual beach, it was so cool!
It drove along the beach for about 46km (25mi) to take us to Cape Reinga; the northern most point of the North Island. This area is known for it’s stunning views, the Cape Reinga lighthouse, and where the Pacific Ocean and the Tasman Sea collide.
There’s also a bay here called Kapo Wairua – Spirits Bay, Maori spirituality believes this to be the spot where your spirit takes its final journey to Hawaiki – the spiritual home. It’s name comes from the ancestor Tohe some 700 years ago, when he departed from this place on a journey. The storey goes:
Tohe was old and longed to visit his daughter far away. His people feared he might die before he returned. He said to them, “Kapohia taku wairua!” That is, if his wairua (spirit) passed that way on its final journey, his people should reach out and catch it, not let it go on.
On our trip we meet a couple that live in Auckland named “Lord” Dave and “Lady” Margaret. The Lord and Lady business is slightly a joke but also very real. Apparently, everyone has the opportunity to become a Lord or Lady of Glencoe in Scotland by buying a small piece of land online for only $40 US! Lord Dave had bought it for themselves as an anniversary gift, these two were adorable and hilarious! They’re both in their 70’s and good ‘Ol Dave isn’t shy about taking the boogie board for a spin down the sand dune either! When the trip comes to an end Lady Margaret hugs me and Lord Dave says slyly with a wink, “I’ll be taking one of those too!!” He also cozied up to me at lunchtime too when he wanted to sit right next to me at the picnic table haha! Like I said nice people, he was just being friendly.
After our awesome trip we head to see the largest and oldest Kauri tree in New Zealand known as “The Lord of the Forest”. It’s named Tane Mahuta and is approximately 2000 years old. Legend has it in Maori culture that:
Tane is the son of Ranginui (the sky father) and Papatuanuku (the earth mother). Tane tore his parents apart, breaking their primal embrace, to bring light, space and air, and allowing life to flourish. Tane is the life giver. All living creatures are his children.
Once we get to camp for the night Derek tells me there’s a trail nearby where Kiwi sightings are common at night. At first, I’m not feeling up to go for a hike but he convinces me because it would be so awesome to spot one in the wild. With our headlamps set to the red light setting we venture into the night to seek the rare little fluff balls amongst the forest brush. We see a few different couples on our walk and in whispers ask if they’ve seen a Kiwi yet, they all say they had no luck. That doesn’t discourage us, we keep on. Walking slowly, trying not to make a sound, pausing to listen hard. We hear wind, leaves dropping, possums rummaging and finally what sounds like kiwis grazing. We also hear one or two make calls in the distance. We know they’re here, it’s just hard to spot them because the underbrush of the forest is so dense and our view is blocked. As we’re waiting patiently we finally hear one getting closer. He’s only about 5 ft away so we kneel down and keep our eyes peeled. Finally, he emerges and we can make out the brown little fluff. It takes my breath away because spotting them can be so difficult that I’m amazed we got the opportunity. I’m not really superstitious but I take it as a sign of good luck! Luck that I feel we might need within the next coming week when we try and sell Hal.
Day 106 2/20
We wake up early and drive into Auckland leaving country life behind for awhile. It’s time to prepare Hal for sale and I’m feeling a bit anxious because time is running out before we leave for Australia. Derek takes us to a park with an awesome view of the whole city.
He’s not too concerned with time and still wants to tour and see every point of interest that’s still on his list. We spend the next couple hours cleaning and preparing Hal for showing, it reminded me of when we were showing our house and had to make everything look pristine. We figured selling a vehicle should be no different and we also wanted top dollar.
Afterwards, we head to the local library in town to print off for sale flyers. Then for the next four hours we proceeded to hit every local hostel to drop them off. We have a good system too, Derek drives and when I get out to go inside he sets up navigation for the next hostel in order so we don’t miss any. By the end of the afternoon we hit 23 hostels in all, no one can’t say we didn’t give it the old college try!
Day 107 2/21
The waiting game ensues as we cross our fingers for a speedy sale. We plan to spend every night inside our van until we sell him. So we park at a campground close enough to town for showings. Once he does sell we’ve decided to stay at a hostel closer to the airport until our flight to Australia.
As we’re biding our time at the campground we head into the lounge area and turn on the TV to watch some of the Olympics. We haven’t had the opportunity to see any of it yet and really wanted to. A little while later a young gentleman and his lady come in and sit on the couch across from us. Immediately after that we didn’t stop talking to them for about five days until we both had separate travel plans. They were going to Australia too but to Sydney first. A friendship occurred instantaneously and we stayed up until 1 am that evening chatting. They’re a young Danish couple named Camilla and Patrick. They also had some exciting news because they just got engaged! They talked all about Danish culture and then we compared our lives in the US to their lives in Denmark. It was quite funny learning all the differences from school, jobs, church, politics, weddings and traditions. Patrick’s English is a work in progress, he told us that he never really took the time to practice speaking it because he never really had the need to. However, he’s quite excited to learn and become more proficient especially now that they’re traveling for the next few months. Before we head to bed for the evening we make plans to meet them again in the lounge room tomorrow night and Patrick promises to bring some Tui’s to drink.
Day 108 2/22
Today we get our first response of someone interested in seeing Hal. We’re feeling ready to show him and it reminds us of when we were showing our house! Having to clean up and make everything look nice for the interested buyer. We feel that it was a good lead, the gentleman seemed genuinely interested so we had our fingers crossed. He said he had one more van that he would looking at later that evening and would let us know.
Later, we go to hang out with Patrick and Camilla again. This evening we’re in the mood to play some games so we teach them Farkle and they teach us how to play Danish Yatzy! He has his own scoresheet (of course written in Danish) and a cute collapsible travel dice cup.
The rules are quite similar except that they have additional scoring for rolls. And Patrick has a strange way of rolling, he shakes the cup then proceeds to slam it straight down and lift it straight back up. What this does though most of the time is leave some dice right on top of others and in that case he doesn’t just roll the one on top again he rolls ALL of them again! We were like, “What the french toast is going on?!” We thought that was quite a strange way to roll especially because he kept having to reroll the dice over and over within the same turn until they all landed flat! Interesting to see how people from other countries play games haha!
Day 109 2/23
We get an email early this morning off our TradeMe ad. TradeMe is NZ’s Craigslist. It’s from a girl and her boyfriend interested in Hal. I eagerly respond and it’s set up that we’ll meet them at their Air BNB to show him. We meet Deanna and Jamie, they’re from Massachusetts and she’s here in NZ to finish up her schooling in veterinary medicine. Jamie plans to visit her here when she has breaks from school. We click right away with them because they’re so friendly and they also like Hal right away and want to buy him! The selling point for her is the skull hood ornament! Since she has such a love and bond with animals she said that the skull really spoke to her! We weren’t even sure if we were going to leave it attached when we sold him because we thought some people might be weirded out by it and now we find Deanna who wants to buy Hal all because of the skull!
So glad we found the perfect buyers and the sale went so smoothly. Once they were sure they were buying it they actually hopped on the bed in the back and we drove them to take care of the paperwork at the local post office. After that we went out to lunch with them to celebrate! Since we no longer had a vehicle after lunch, they said they didn’t mind riding in the back again if we wanted to drive to the campground we were staying at. So we did, and once we collected all our personals and said our goodbyes they were off in Hal. Phew, so glad they weren’t a couple of those “Massholes” Laura told us about!
Day 110 2/24
We’re car-less now but since we’ve made some great friends with Camilla and Patrick they graciously offered to drive us in to town today to do some touring. We hop in their rented Jucy campervan and head to downtown Auckland to check out the Volvo Race Village. This Village showcases a variety of experiences for the public to see and to learn all about the Volvo Ocean Race. We get to see a life size version of the Volvo Ocean 65 Boat which is a replica of what the sailors race on.
We watch an intense thirty minute movie that shows information on topics ranging from what the race is, how the sailors live on board, an inside look at their obsession and what the teams are doing to conserve the ocean from pollution. It’s eye opening to see what detrimental affects plastics have had on our oceans. It is said that there are more microscopic pieces of plastic floating in the ocean then there are stars! This affects everything and everyone no matter how big or small.. microscopic organisms living in the ocean are eating microscopic pieces of plastic! Then bigger fish eat them and we eat those bigger fish, so now something that never degrades is floating around in us too. The affects of plastic are horrific and quite sad for future generations if something isn’t done to bring about mass changes and irradicate the damage that has already been done, if that’s even possible.
Well getting back to the Volvo Ocean Race, we had never even knew about such an event so it was really interesting to check it out. It’s a seven month race around the world and one of the stops just happens to be Auckland. It would have been so cool to watch the boats come in but it would still be a couple days until their arrival. We walk around the boardwalk of the marina and each race team has their headquarters setup so we browse through learning more about the teams. Then we head into the Volvo building which has cars on display and more information including some interactive displays. We huddle in a photo booth to capture a picture of us all… look how much taller our new Danish friends are hehe!
This next picture was meant to be because if you look closely at the back of the boat, Camilla and I are each standing next to our owns country’s flag! ❤️ 🇩🇰 🇺🇸
After a fun afternoon walking around Patrick is feeling like it’s time to relax and smoke some hookah. There’s lots of little hookah shops throughout the city so it’s not hard to fulfill his need. He orders us blueberry mint flavored seesha and we puff away for the next couple hours until it’s time to go back to camp for dinner.
Day 112 2/26
Our last day in NZ! Sad to be leaving but also excited for what’s in store ahead of us. A new country and a brand new experience. We have six months in Australia and although that may seem like a lot, the size of Australia can be compared to the entire US! Derek has a lot of stars on his google map that he wants to see, so we believe that we’ll need this amount of time to do a decent tour of the land down under. We also plan to do some volunteer work while we’re there on organic farms. I’m looking forward to this experience and to learn new things.
We said goodbye to Patrick and Camilla last night over a delicious meal of pizza! After, we went to smoke hookah again at the same shop as last time. Such a great couple, we’re excited to watch their travels online because they’re going to a lot of the same countries we are. They will be moving a bit faster though because they only have four months before they have head back to Denmark and their lives there. Patrick is a salesman at a sporting goods shop and we learned that in Denmark you have to go to school to be a salesman, at least if you want to move up the latter and make a decent living they told us. Apparently, you have to go to school for all sorts of jobs including being a waiter/waitress! Camilla is a server and had to go through service training. Kind of funny, what we consider easy jobs to get for young people or people that have no college degree the Danish treat with high importance and respect.
This map shows our journey across NZ, we saw so much that it’s still sinking in! Funny thing is, if you were to zoom in closer on the map 10x more ❤️’s would show up! We went as far north and as far south as you could possibly go. We hiked five out of the nine Great Walks across this great country and we’ve swam in two new bodies of water – the Tasman Sea and the Southern Pacific Ocean.
New Zealand Travel Statistics:
Total time there: 90 days
Total distance hiked on trails: 125 miles
Total amount of steps taken: 863,216+ (this was what Derek’s phone recorded only while being carried, so likely more than that!)
Total # of lakes visited: 15
Total # of books read: 5
Reflection:
We’d all be lucky in life if we had the chance to experience an adventure in a far away land, then to make our way back safely to a place of comfort when it all comes to an end. Sometimes the only way we can appreciate our home and the simple happiness it has to offer is to be away from it for a while. What I’ve realized being gone is that a home doesn’t have to be a structure. When you’re with the one you love, home can be a moment of time in your life. A moment of familiarity regardless of where you are. We’ve only been in New Zealand for three months but during that short time it has become a place we call home. We’ve become accustomed to this lifestyle; our home has wheels and an ever changing backyard. We enjoyed our time here so much that we utilized our three month visa to the exact day! We loved the array of the land, we valued the exposure to the Maori culture and we made some connections with fellow travellers that we now call friends. Now it’s time to find home in another country, until next time NZ!
Patong Beach, Phuket, Thailand
Vang Vieng, Laos
Napali Coastline
Kalalau Trail
Mount Ngauruhoe – Lord of the Rings Mount Doom
Emerald Lake, Tongariro National Park
Grampians National Park, Australia
We ❤️ Waterfalls!
Marokopa Falls, New Zealand 
Bridal Veil Falls, New Zealand
Wat Huay Pla Kang, Chiang Rai Thailand
Prambanan Temple, Java Indonesia 
Wat Rong Seur Ten, Chiang Rai Thailand
Batu Cave, Malaysia
Wat Chai Watthanaram, Ayutthaya Thailand 
Borobudur Temple, Java Indonesia
The Grand Palace, Bangkok Thailand
Big Buddha, Pai Thailand
Hooker Valley Track, New Zealand 
Lake McKenzie, Fraser Island, Australia
Grampians National Park, Australia 
Lake Taupo, New Zealand
Ha Long Bay, Vietnam
Fox Glacier, New Zealand
Fraser Island, Australia 
Doi Inthanon National Park, Northern Thailand 
Russell Lupines on the South Island of New Zealand
Twelve Apostles, Great Ocean Road, Australia 
Besakih Temple, Bali, Indonesia
Mount Ijen, Java, Indonesia 
Cape Reinga, New Zealand
Waimea Canyon, Kauai, Hawaii 
Koh Tao, Thailand 
Lanikai Beach, O’ahu, Hawaii
Mount Bromo, Java, Indonesia 
Whangapoua, New Zealand 
Lake Wanaka, New Zealand
Witsunday Islands, Australia
Singapore
Three Sisters, Blue Mountains, Australia
Milford Sound, New Zealand
Koh Samui, Thailand
Cao Bang, Vietnam
Victoria, Australia
Andy forging for lotus stems to make lotus soup
I could always find my two favorite furry friends lounging in the dining hall!
Learning some Thai vegan recipes!
Crystal’s hair studio 
Andy’s got the bananas!! 🍌
We’ve been on foreign soil for the last nine months, but we haven’t truly felt like we were all that far from home until we stepped foot in Bali, Indonesia. Only then did we know that we finally made it to a far away land. The sights, sounds and smells are all such a welcomed unfamiliar experience for the senses. We were on a dreamer’s mission to leave our comfort zone behind and have an immersive experience. And as far as that goes we’ve finally met our match.
Their form of a gas station! 
We stayed at a free campground in Gordanvale, a small sleepy town thirty minutes outside of Cairns. There was a sugarcane processing plant nearby that filled the whole town with a strong unpleasant and unmistakable smell. The towns’ only redemption was a little pie shop called Piefection and they had the best meat pies we’ve ever tried! The campground was nothing special, on the way in there’s a sign that says “No Camping” but there were dozens and dozens of campervans all lined up. We usually try to get off the beaten path and therefore we looked for a spot further away from everyone down by the river. The only problem was that down by the river there’s signs everywhere pointing out that the water may or may not be infested with crocs. …Can’t beat free!
The next morning when I wake up, I look over to Cass and say, “Let me tell you about the crazy ass dream I just had!”
Day 114 2/28
We leave Lake Ohau on the 8 and connect to the 83 and drive for about 2 hours. A leisurely jaunt through beautiful country, honestly it’s all beautiful country, every drive, every road. This stretch meanders past several scenic lakes, Aviemore, Waitaki, Ruataniwha, I can’t pronounce any of them. Elephant Rocks are massive rock formations that rise out of seemingly nowhere in some poor farmers land taking up prime sheep grazing acreage. There are several rock climbers in the quarry going at it with pad and chalk, I climb all the big rocks freestyle as quickly as I can, jumping from one to another where I can. If we’re not hiking I’m going to break a sweat somehow. Take a few pics and head off.
getaway gods 