The Last Few Days

June 15, 2011

After our night in the marae we went to Rotorua.  Rotorua is known for it’s geo-thermal pools.  I just walked around the Government Gardens and along the lake.  When we got back on the bus we stopped at a really cool geo-thermal pool.  It was all muddy and boiling and bubbly.  All I can say is that it was incredibly fascinating to watch.  I could have stayed there for an hour just watching it bubble!

We also stopped at Huka Falls.  These waterfalls are so intense that they can fill up five olympic sized swimming pools in one minute.  That is the intensity and the amount of water that comes over the falls.

Soon we were in Lake Taupo, where many of the passengers were going to do their skydive.  I decided not to do it and instead go and relax in some free hot pools.  The pools are right on the cold river and are filled up with streams that are hot.  So you have this incredible feeling of hot water mixing with cool water.  We had a wonderful time there.  But I ended up cutting up the bottom of my right foot on the rocks.

Our night in Taupo was a big night for most of the people on the bus, but I was worn out from the previous night so I just did laundry and went to bed early.  In the morning we had a nice drive out to Blue Duck Lodge on Blue Duck Station.

Blue Duck Station is a very remote farm and conservation project.  We took a lengthy dirt road to get there along the river.  Once we arrived the owner Dan introduced us to the work he’s doing there.  Blue Ducks are one of the rarest ducks in the world and so he is working to protect them.

A few of us decided to do the farm tour/goat hunt.  One guy on the bus, Paul, wanted to hunt a goat and the rest of us just wanted to see the farm.  Goats are huge pest that destroy the natural flora and fauna so it’s good to hunt them.  

Dan loaded us up on a Polaris 4x4 along with his dogs and we headed into the hills.  Along the way we stopped to go kayaking in a calm stream.  We saw some blue ducks there and then we also saw them on the river a little later.  They are very shy so we had to be quiet.

We went even deeper in the hills where we got a 360 degree view of the mountains.  Paul went and did his goat hunt here and the rest of us just watched the sun go down. We came back on the 4x4 in the dark, but it was a fun ride.  Kind of like an amusement park ride!

For dinner we all had goat curry.  Goat just tastes like beef.  We had a big outdoor fire and nearly everyone had their go at throwing the axe.  They had a big target and people just threw an axe at it.  We also sang songs around the fire.  It was very nice.

We left Blue Duck Lodge early this morning so that those who wanted to do the Tongariro Crossing could get started in time.  The Tongariro Crossing is a seven hour hike in the mountains of National Park.  These mountains include Mt. Ruapehu, the tallest mountain on the North Island, and the mountain they used in Lord of the Rings as  Mt. Doom.

I had planned on doing the hike, but then I had second thoughts because of the cut I have on the bottom of my right foot.  So I backed out of it.  Those of us not doing the crossing drove around to the local ski field.  Unfortunately there is no snow here.  It’s very desolate looking with rocks everywhere.  I’ve never seen a ski field like this before!  We also visited some waterfalls used in Lord of the Rings.