After figuring out how to physically move again after our long tramp to Tongariro, we headed north towards Lake Taupo and the vast thermal region surrounding Rotorua. Our first stop scared us immediately upon arrival when men with flags directed us where to park, and we thought we were at the grand opening of an IKEA store or Disney NZ. We clearly had arrived at the top local tourist attraction Wai-o-taupo and strangely, we were not at all disappointed because the place was amazing! Sinkholes, blowholes, bubbling mud, steaming vapor and geysers (we missed the big one which goes off at 10:15am daily), silica terraces, and the most magnificent glowing colored mineral pools. Walkways and natural brush made this viewing seem as natural as possible given the crowd (which thinned out once we reached the 3-4th display). We spent about 2 hours walking and enjoying what I hope was the best example of a natural thermal phenomenom as there are many to choose from, some of which force you to also watch tattooed Maori men stick out their tongues, bulge their eyes and dance crazy dances in front of you. Oh, did I mention the smell? Let's just say Rachele and I have been craving egg salad sandwiches ever since. We stopped in the city center and actually had a pleasant, hearty lunch at Henneseys, an historic Irish Bar. Chad had lamb shanks and mashed potatoes and peas, Rachele had beef shepperds pie and I had lamb Irish stew, celebrating part of NZs roots!
We arrived mid-afternoon at our only farmstay at Lakeside B&B, set on a bluff overlooking Lake Rotatua, and we were blessed with a stunning day (which seemed to be the exception in the North Island this week). Chad and I enjoyed rounding the barnyard with our host Alan during the evening feeding, getting up close finally to 22 of the 4,000,000 sheep we've passed grazing on every hillside in NZ, plus 3 goats, 3 alpaca, 2 pigs, and a dozen hens and roosters. FYI we ate farm fresh free range eggs again for breakfast (as we usually do at B&Bs) which have yolks of cad yellow, plus fresh picked fruits from the garden. What we didn't finish is tomorrow's pig dinner.
For sunset we walked along the deepest spring in NZ just minutes from our lodging and through a 100 year old North American redwood forest. Black swans and ducks, massive tall redwood trees, gorgeous fern lined banks of a crystal clear, freezing cold spring and river. And the smell of a forest at sunset! No hills and just a pleasant evening stroll before heading into Rotorua for a (mediocre) late dinner at Pig and Whistle (seen in Trip advisor but highly overrated).
We woke up 6 times this morning to a rooster crowing. We booked a last minute expedition which turned out to be an absolutely wonderful and completely unique experience just south of Rotorua with NZ Riverjets and doing "the squeeze". (FYI...this place is very close to Wai-o-taupo south of Rotorua on the way from Taupo and Tongariro...departures were at 11 am and 2 pm and reservations are required, so if you can do both these adventures the same day, you would save driving time from Rotorua and better to do them coming from the south.) After changing into our "bathers", we boarded a jet boat with 6 other guests for a leisurely hour boat ride on the clear Waikato River, the longest in NZ, lined with so much towering, overflowing greenery that the entire River valley seemed to glow green. Another LOR site! Our driver stopped and gave informative information about the area from time to time. Along the river we passed steaming geysers on the banks and saw Maori burial sites in the limestone caves and cliffs lining the shores. We moored the boat and got out into lukewarm water and started walking through a narrow passage or gorge into the forest, squeezing our bodies between boulders in a narrow hidden pass. We ended up in a crystal clear, warm pool surrounded by boulders 2 stories high with 2 high volume hot waterfalls flowing into the pool. Omg! So powerful was the force it untied Racheles bather top. You will get wet! You might want to bring a towel, but not necessary in summer because the water and air are warm. We were able to relax in the warm pools for about 45 minutes and it seemed private since there were only 9 of us. Then we returned to the boat for a typical high speed, spinning jet boat ride back. The whole experience took 3 hours and got us on the water, exploring the volcanic backcountry, relaxing in thermal springs and falls and fun jet boating.
Headed back to Rotorua for an early dinner on "Eat Streat" at an Italian eatery Nuvo and had a very tasty pasta dinner. Now we're planning tomorrow...heading west to Waitomo Caves to visit the glow worm caves and maybe do some "black water rafting". FYI...we waited too long to make reservations for the blackwater rafting and repelling!!!! Popular companies seen on Trip Advisor like "Legendary Black Water Rafting" and "Kiwi Cave" and "Spellbound" were all booked until 3:00 pm and we learned that when we got to Waitomo and we had to get on our way! We decided not to just do a "mass produced" viewing with lots of other tourists and will wait to see glow worms near Paihia. Must make early reservations. Tomorrow night, we head north towards Auckland to find lodging on our way to Paihia in the Bay of Islands in the north. Hoping for wifi...
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