Taupo

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We arrived in Taupo with Amy having a skydive booked. Aaaah! We didn't think it was going to go ahead, however, as it was very cloudy, and apparently it has to be really clear with perfect weather to be able to do it. Fortunately it had cleared by mid-afternoon and the bus came to pick us both up. We were briefed on the different heights of jump (Amy opted for the 'smaller' 12000ft) and the various photo ops. In the end we decided to get photos and a dvd, meaning another man with a camera on his head would have to skydive at the same time. After meeting the tandem master (the guy I would be strapped to) and getting changed, I got on the plane. A very small plane where I was sitting on the floor/the man's lap by the door facing the wrong way! (Ironically not much worse than most airline's standards nowadays!!) The scariest bit was when we got to 12000ft and he opened the door and we just sat on the edge of the plane for a while before jumping! The people really are completely comfortable with it though, it was quite funny - the man who takes the pictures just climbed up to the top of the plane ready to jump! It all seemed to be over quite quickly. It had amazing views (and very harsh winds on your face)!! I was even able to see Mount Doom vaguely in the distance, minus the eye of Sauron!

The day after we went on a 3/4 hour walk to Huka Falls, New Zealand's largest waterfall in terms of water volume. The path dipped into a gorge and ran along with a river, making for some pretty good views.
We decided to stay 3 nights in Taupo, to allow Ryan to do the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, a 9 hour 12 mile mountain hike over active volcanoes and the infamous Mount Doom. Although tiring as you might imagine, with continuous steep ascents, the views were incredible almost the whole time. It passed many different habitats, and crazy blue lakes in amongst the loose volcano scree. At the summits which were roughly 2000m above sea level, you could see from one side of the country to the other! Luckily it was almost a completely cloud-free day, meaning great visibility and easier to walk at high altitudes, although it was still pretty windy!

We left Taupo after 3 busy days, heading east to Napier.

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