Advertisement
Hamilton, Tongariro National Park, Waitomo Caves, Auckland
My final week in New Zealand was spent craming in activities I wanted to do but hadn't yet got around to. One of these was the Tongariro Crossing, a day walk in the Tongariro National Park, which several fellow travellers had described as spectacular. As it was tricky to reach the national park in one day from Tauranga, I decided to travel to Hamilton and monitor the weather forecast, which didn't look promising. On my first evening there, I went to an English-themed pub with another lone traveller from Cornwall but decided to pass on the British ales (which included London Pride and Old Speckled Hen), as they were expensive (over £6!) and not from hand-pumps (which I only ever saw in one New Zealand pub). Instead, I settled for a New Zealand beer - see summary below for my thoughts on Kiwi beers.
Hamilton was larger than I expected and I managed to fill a day with a walk along the river to the Botanic Gardens. There were several themed gardens (including Japanese, Chinese, Tudor, Indian and Roman), which were surprisingly excellent, and I regretted not charging my camera battery beforehand
(it died in the Japanese garden).
After weeks of mostly clear skies, the weather was beginning to fail. While this was much needed, given the severe drought the country was experiencing, I'd have preferred it to wait another couple of weeks! However, the forecast seemed to suggest there would be a window of opportunity on Thursday, so I took the bus down to Tongariro National Park the day before. I got the shuttle bus to the start of the Tongariro Crossing track the next morning and set off walking with Will from Leeds, Kate from Milton Keynes (not married) and Alex from near Vancouver, Canada, who were staying in the same hostel. Unfortunately, the promised break in the weather didn't materialise and visibility dropped to around 10 metres as we climbed the Devil's Staircase to reach South Crater. After crossing the crater, which felt like an endless barren plain, the path became more exposed. We reached the point where the path to Mount Ngauruhoe (aka Mount Doom from the Lord of the Rings films) splits off the main track. Alex and Kate decided to attempt it, but with my fingers already going numb, even with gloves on, I took
the easier option of carrying on to the Blue and Emerald Lakes with Will (beyond this, the track was closed due to recent volcanic activity). Unfortunately we saw nothing of the lakes and with the conditions difficult to bear, we trudged back, disappointed and cold. Alex and Kate arrived at the hostel later, impressively having made it to the top of Ngauruhoe, where they were briefly treated to some good views.
Predictably, the weather the next morning was fine and clear, and I was able to get some decent photos of the volcanoes from a distance, but time constraints meant I had to head up north for my next activity: "Black Water Rafting" in Waitomo Caves. The rain returned the next day, but this wasn't an issue inside the cave. Our journey started with a scramble down to the point where the water was deep enough to ride in our rubber rings. We had to jump backwards down a waterfall around 5 feet high in the dark, which, having avoided skydiving and bungy jumping, was the scariest thing I did in New Zealand. Then we floated gently through the cave with our head torches turned off and watched the
glow worms on the ceiling. It was too dark and wet to take my camera, but the feeling of being inside a cave cannot easily be conveyed visually and really has to be experienced.
I spent my last night in New Zealand in Auckland, for ease of reaching the airport. The hostel I stayed in last time was full, but I was fortunate to bump into Kieran and Kelly and spend some time with them. It seemed most people I met in the last couple of weeks were also soon to leave New Zealand, many having spent a year there on the Working Holiday Visa. While they were heading back home to start their careers, I was travelling on for more new experiences to the third continent of my journey: South America.
Summary
Over the two months I spent in New Zealand, I was treated to some excellent scenery and wildlife and found locals and travellers alike to be friendly, helpful and trustworthy. It's hard to pick faults. The only ones I can think of are: Expensiveness - the pound has weakened significantly against the New Zealand Dollar over that last few years and it
Tongariro National Park
Mount Ngauruhoe the day after. seemed that tourists in particular were milked. It is noticeable (in contrast to South East Asia) that most tourists are from relatively well-off countries. Of the other travellers I met in New Zealand, the most common nationality was overwhelmingly German (to the point where many of the Germans I met were complaining!) I was told this is due to their strong travelling culture and that spending a year working in an English speaking country before or after university is looked upon favourably by employers, (although a guy I met said most Germans spent their time speaking German with their compatriots); internet access - internet cafes are rare and expensive, and I made far too many visits to McDonalds for the free WiFi, as you generally have to pay elsewhere; quiet evenings - outside of the major towns, little seems to happen in the evenings. In Akaroa, I decided to go for a beer around 10 o' clock but the bars were closing up, and in Waitomo, I arrived hungry at the main pub/restaurant at quarter past 7 only to be told they finished serving food at 7pm (in Argentina, 10pm is considered early for dinner!)
Finally, beer: New Zealand
has a thriving craft beer scene and I found a few brews I liked, in particular, Mac's Sassy Red and Stoke's Amber. However, my general opinion on New Zealand beers is that they are served too cold and I wasn't able to find one that quite matched a good British ale for flavour.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.104s; Tpl: 0.014s; cc: 8; qc: 47; dbt: 0.0497s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
Kate Birch
non-member comment
Hi Graeme
Well Graeme looks like NZ strong on scenery but may be not for the party animals amongst us. Don't know how Alice will find it- probably not great weather in parts I imagine.Well I've signed up for my immunisations prior to my Cambodia trip- don't think Ill be blogging though! Hope Brazil is meeting expectations. Bel is still looking for a job.. Look after your self Love Kate ,Keith and Belxxxx (not sure where Alice is!)