Walking in national parks

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After leaving Taupo we drove to the Tongariro Alpine crossing where others got kitted up for the 6-7 hour walk. Luckily the weather was with us & we got there in time so we set off & had glorious views from the top of the mountains & the emerald lakes. It was scenery from Lord of the Rings, stunning. After that long hike there was a well deserved soak in the hot tube before dinner.

The next day, after a lie in, we went to the Blue duck lodge, which is in the middle of nowhere but very beautiful. I went for a walk to see the old depot used in that area & saw the blue ducks. When we tried to get out of there the next morning, our path was blocked by a fallen tree, so whilst the others tried to move it, myself & Rob ran back to get a chain saw. Once we returned we found that the quickest way to move a tree is to get a bus full of determined stray people because the others had already created enough space for the bus to pass. However that adventure meant that we got a free pint from stray that night in Wellington, thanks Trouble.

We left Wellington on Thursday after a night in the basement of our hostel, good dancing, and caught the ferry to Picton. So far the weather on the south island has been fabulous. We stopped on the way to Abel Tasman for a wine tasting at a lovely Malborough vineyard and I bought 2 bottles for further sampling! Yesterday I spent the day in the park by kayaking out to Watering cove & going for lunch in Anchorage before walking back. There was adventure in the kayaking because 2 Irish girls were facing the wrong way when the wind blew & they got capsized so as I was with the instructor we had to go & right their kayak. I have to admit that I would not want to go swimming from my kayak in the cold water. It was a lovely walk back along the coastal track & glorious sunshine again today.

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