Destination: Lake Taupo, North Island, NZ February 13 – 19, 2006

Lodging: We rolled into Taupo during the height of summer and over a very busy weekend with no place to stay. We started off by spending one night at De Bretts Thermal Resort ($110/night for a 1 bedroom motel unit which slept 4) with Brady, Ingrid, and Dave as we all needed a real bed and a real shower after a week on the paddocks. We were all also eager to take in the thermal pools which we relished. The next day we parted with our kiwiburn friends and made our way alone – we booked in two nights at Bradshaws B&B ($70/night for a double w/ ensuite), a small comfortable B&B situated in the quieter part of town (on Heuheu Street) but within walking distance to the main drag. Next we moved to the Berkenhoff Backpackers ($56/night for double w/ ensuite) located in the outskirts of town. The rooms were a little rundown, but it boasted a very nice kitchen, a bar with reasonably priced beers, and a grill where one could select from ten different types of burgers for $10 or less. And finally, on our last night, we were ready to be back in the great outdoors and found ourselves at Reids Farm, a free camping spot about five kilometers outside of the township. Yes, I did say FREE as in no money. This was a beautiful spot right alongside the Waikato river with room for at least 50 parties of tents/campers, etc. The only facilities are long drop toilets, but what else do you need? (If one was to stay for a while, one could use the public shower facilities right in town for something like $2).

Memorable Moments & Fun Stuff: We managed to do quite a few things during our few days in town. On one day we did the ‘Huka Falls tourist loop’: several hours were spent walking the boardwalk at The Craters of the Moon, a thermal area in Wairakei Park which sprang up in the 1950’s when the nearby power station lowered underground water levels! Bubbling pots, mud craters, and fumaroles galore. Another stopover at Huka Falls – an area where the Waikato river compresses into a narrow gorge, rapidly funneling 62,000 gallons of water/per second through the gorge before pouring out over a 33 foot fall. Quite impressive and worth the stop. From Huka Falls we did a 1 ½ hour hike out to the Aratiatia Rapids/Dam to see the daily flooding of the dam which occurs at 10 am, noon, 2 pm, and 4 pm. This area houses one of the first hydro power stations on the Waikato River. And lastly, we stopped in at The Honey Hive where all things honey are available. Aside from all the products, the Honey Hive actually has a really nice display of real hives. One can view thousands of bees in action by observing them through clear plastic tubing as they zip in and out of the hive. We sat and watched an awesome video circa-1980’s on bee-keeping and the life of bees. I was mesmerized and have really come to appreciate our bees and a bees place in the natural order of the universe!

On one gorgeous day, we hiked up Mt. Tauhara, a 3000+ foot old volcano (last active 30,000 years ago). This was a moderate hike, taking about 1 1/2 hours to summit, first meandering through private pastureland for about 30 minutes, and the remainder hiking up through forest. The views from the top were outstanding. 360 degree views of Lake Taupo and its surroundings. The one downside was that we could see where a lot of logging has been going on recently where huge swathes have been made through the forest floor. I’m not sure if this is all part of the normal forestry management plan, but I do know that Taupo is growing at a phenomenal pace and we noticed a few ugly US-styled tract-home housing developments being built. This was disturbing.

Finally, on our last day, we splurged and went on a four hour guided Lake Taupo kayak tour to see the Maori rock carvings located in Mine Bay. The main carving, named Ngatoroirangi, is 30 feet high, and was crafted in the 1970’s by master carver Matahi Whakataka-Brightwell, his first ever rock carving. There were three kayak outfitters offering this tour (can’t remember who we went with) for approx $85 for the four hours.

One of the outstanding places we did go to was The Grand Central Fry, located far from central Taupo in one of the outer neighborhoods (199 Rifle Range Road). Our kayak guide, Collin, told us it was one of the best fish and chips shops in town and we were not disappointed. Coincidentally, or not, they have a sister shop in Turangi (on the south shore of Taupo) which we had stopped at a few weeks back while enroute to Kiwiburn.
Try the paua (abalone) fritters – hmmmm, salty, fishy, and good!