Another day, another pair of black leggings. I feel silly that I even bothered to pack shorts and more than a couple tank tops because it’s been all pants and long sleeves in this weather. Speaking of the weather, it’s raining again. At least I got my little Treehouse cottage warm enough last night that it was still comfortable in the morning and I did not have to attempt to start a fresh fire. Today I leave Raurimu and head towards Rotorua where I’ll spend the rest of my nights this trip. It’s about a 2.5 hour drive that goes through Turangi and Taupo and I have quite an itinerary of stops put together for today: Tokaano Thermal Walk, Turangi Bakery, Tongariro River Loop, Airplane McDonalds, Huka Honey Hive, Huka Prawn Park, Huka Falls, and Orakei Korako Geothermal Park.
With a full day planned I was packed up and walking out the door and down the steps lined with their bottle cap edges of my Treehouse cottage at Wood Pigeon Lodge by 8:30am. I am looking forward to being somewhere where I’m not terrified of running out of power or setting the place on fire but this lodge has been fantastic and the bed is so comfortable. I would definitely stay here again.
Raurimu is known for the Raurimu Spiral which is some train rail layout that was devised in 1898 to get the rail to ascend the valley. On the edge of Raurimu there is a lookout point that I have not yet checked out so I made sure to do that on my way out of town. I parked and admired just what an adorable, quaint, picturesque little town Raurimu is as I walked the short path and climbed to the lookout tower. I was unsure what the big deal is about the spiral and I’m still unsure. Honestly, I’m not even sure what I was looking out at. A mini model-train size replica of a rail snaking through a tunnel was mounted at eye level. Is this a replica of the spiral? I don’t understand what I’m supposed to be looking at here. I think maybe just the hillside across the town and this rail goes through that hillside? Unclear. But it was a pretty view of the town nonetheless.
I drove along the edge of Tongariro National Park, waving goodbye to volcanoes. Remembering my rule to take all the scenic turnouts I did so on my way towards Turangi but with the cloudy rainy skies there wasn’t much to be seen.
I turned off the highway just before Turangi and arrived at the Tokaano Thermal Walk. There are also hot springs there but they look super cheesy and low brow so I have no interest in using the public pool of a hot spring but the thermal walk begins right by the entrance. Crossing the little bridge from the parking lot I could see rainbow trout in their spawning stream below and hear bubbling mud. Turangi is a big rainbow trout area. I smiled at the warning signs (I love a good sign warning of the danger of thermally active areas) and completed the brief Tokaano Thermal Walk loop. The boiling mud and steaming hot springs were my first real geothermal action this trip and set a great tone for the day.
Leaving Tokaano, I navigated to the Turangi Bakery. I have read that this is one of the best spots on the North Island to get a quintessential “kiwi pie.” I knew it was a good sign that the bakery had a bit of an old school look about it. The cases were filled with kiwi pies of so many varieties, sandwiches, and pastries of all sorts. I resisted the pastries and chose a mince and cheese pie. Sitting on a table outside I bit into my kiwi pie and wasn’t sure how I felt about it. I’m still not sure. The mincemeat and cheese filling had a bit of a jelly-like consistency. I certainly didn’t dislike it but I don’t know that I loved it. I ate about 80% of the pastry puff meat medley and still am unsure how I feel about it. In a nearby walkway local artisan bakers and makers had set up a mini market. I walked the tables and proudly resisted the urge to buy anything; it helped that nothing really piqued my interest.
Moving my car to the parking lot near the Turangi iSite to begin the Tongariro River Loop trail the rain started to come down harder again. Seriously? The loop is a 15km/9.3 mile trail and was supposed to be my main movement for the day. With an “easy” trail rating the loop should be attainable in a decent amount of time but f*%@ this rain. I sat in the car as the rain came down harder. Am I brave enough to start a 15km loop in this weather? I felt like I kinda had to in order to work off that kiwi pie. Swallowing my pride and pushing my ego aside I decided that I was going to pass on the loop. I absolutely hate to do so but I was miserable yesterday in the rain and I don’t want soaking wet boots so early in the day. I pulled away and started the drive to Taupo.
The highway followed the edge of Lake Taupo and as I neared town I actually encountered real traffic and a freneticism of cars, people, and shops. A pub caught my eye on the main road and I recognized it; that’s where Kyra and I had dinner the night we met! I met Kyra on the Huka Falls Trail in February 2018. Long story short, we met for dinner that night, did the Tongariro Alpine Crossing together the next day, and since then she’s met in the Galapagos, climbed Kilimanjaro with me, and is one of my dearest friends who has absolute family status. I had no idea I’d be driving by there and was sad that traffic demanded too much attention to be able to snap a picture.
I did manage to snap a quick picture of my next “destination,” the airplane McDonalds. I swear my plan all along had been just to see it and not eat at it. The allure? An actual old airplane has been converted to part of the dining room. It just sounded cool to see given that I have memories of the train McDonalds in Barstow as a child. But with the busy street and cars parked in front the airplane McDonalds didn’t seem as cool as it should. But I saw it and can check it off my list.
Thankful to be getting out of the hectic downtown Taupo, I headed towards the Huka Honey Hive. Across from the turnoff there was a sign for Craters of the Moon Geothermal Park. I don’t know that I’ve been there before. Perhaps this is a stop I should make since I skipped my Tongariro Loop?
New Zealand is known for their honey and the Huka Honey Hive is a showroom of all sorts of honey and honey-related items from various artisans and manufacturers. The centerpiece is a tasting station with tons of honey on one side and all sorts of honey-related alcohol on the other. I sampled honey after honey, amazed at what differences I could taste. Then I sampled all the mead, honey gin, honey liqueur, and I can’t remember what other honey alcohol. I chose way too many honeys, a few honey products, and limited myself to one bottle of honey liqueur. Did I maybe go a little honey crazy in there? Perhaps. Packing to fly home is going to be interesting now.
On a honey high, I figured why not hit up Craters of the Moon?! Craters of the Moon is a small valley full of bubbling craters and steam vents. It’s interesting because while it’s on geothermal land, it became more active in the 1950s due to the nearby power plant affecting underground water levels. The rain was cooperating enough, completely gone at times and drizzling annoyingly at others. While not the most interesting geothermal park it had some colorful and interesting craters with mud popping away. A side hike up the saddle between the Craters of the Moon valley and adjacent valley revealed a fascinating juxtaposition between the steaming geothermal land and the land of lush green bush with pastures beyond.
With the amount of movement I’ve been doing it’s not often that I’m not hungry right now so I was ready for Huka Prawn Park after Craters of the Moon. At Huka Prawn Park they farm prawns and have all sorts of little water activities on their manmade lakes (like paddle boats), but most importantly to me, they also have a restaurant that sits right along the river. Unfortunately, the returning rain meant that sitting out on the patio wasn’t practical but still, I could enjoy some prawns inside. I ordered a half kilo of prawns, garlic butter pita bread, and decided to splurge in a ginger fusion hard ginger beer. I poured my ginger beer over the delicate cup of ice and took a sip. Two things hit me at once; how damn delicious this is and the fizzing bubbles straight up my nose, tickling my nostrils. This may be one of the best things I have ever drank. Made by a local distillery I’m not sure I’ll be able to find it in the states and that makes me sad. The garlic pita was warm, toasty, and perfectly garlicky. My server brought over two buckets; an empty one for my shells and one with warm water to rinse my hands. And then the grand finale, a large plate of steaming prawns, staring at me, cooked in garlic butter, with two dipping sauces. The prawns had a different texture than I’m used to and I’m honestly not sure how I feel about them. Shelling them was also a lot of work and I hate getting all the butter and goop under my nails. But it was a great little meal. Right next to Huka Prawn Park is the Huka Jet Boat which does “extreme” jet boat rides up to Huka Falls. I seriously considered hopping on the next boat but after watching them along the river I decided to take a pass. I knew that the jet boats would mean getting soaking wet and it would get me out of there too late to get to Orakei Korako.
I’ve seen Huka Falls before (it’s where someone rolled down the falls in a barrel in Lord of the Rings – still haven’t seen that movie) but it was right there so I had it on my list for a quick visit today. Last time I actually did the hike along the river to the falls and discovered upon my arrival that there is actually a car park with access right there, right at them. So this time I just went to the car park because the rain was seriously not cooperating again. Huka Falls are impressive and stunning. These are falls that impress me. While not a long drop, the falls are more like a series of gorgeous rapids; aquamarine with foaming swirls that look like the egg swirling in egg drop soup. Enough water flows down the falls to fill five Olympic size swimming pools every minute.
Moving on from the Huka area, I navigated the short distance up the road to Orakei Korako Geothermal Park. I have been here before but it’s so beautiful I felt it a worthy stop to revisit on my way. Getting into Orakei Korako requires taking a boat across a small lake. The Skipper let me know that there were only a few other people on the trail at the moment so I should pretty much have the area to myself. Awesome! I wandered along the boardwalks over silica embankments of sulphuric terraces, past geysers and steaming hot springs, and recreated a selfie I took 5 1/2 years at the Rautapu Cave. I may look older now but man it’s worth it to get to such a great point in life. The bubbling mud captured my attention and I spent minutes standing there just watching the mud bubble and listening to the “pop pop pop.” It is ridiculously soothing, this is the best white noise ever. I think I need a bubbling mud soundtrack to fall asleep to at night. I wonder if it’s possible to get some type of faux bubbling mud fixture, like a zen garden but with bubbling mud. While it sprinkled a bit, the rain mostly held off which was a welcome relief. Just as I boarded the boat to cross the river back to my car the rain started coming down heavy again; it’s like the rain gods were just being kind and giving me a break. And I appreciated it.
Finally I made it to Rotorua and my AirBnB for the next two nights. Modern and new this is quite a stark contrast to the Treehouse but it has a heater and reliable electricity! I settled in before heading out to Ali Baba’s Tunisian Cuisine for dinner.
Parking in Rotorua was terrible but I finally found a spot near the busy main restaurant district. I ordered my Tunisian style rice dish and sat at a table to wait, I’d been warned at the counter that it would probably be at last 25 minutes. While I waited, the cook came over to inform me that of the three rice dishes the other two were far more popular so perhaps I wanted one of them instead? When the cook steers you away from a dish, it’s best to listen. I changed to the Berber style and while I have no idea what I missed out on, I’m glad I did. The meal was delicious. Oh how I wish we had good Mediterranean restaurants at home!
I wished I could walk after dinner but I’m sick of being in the rain. More rain remains on the forecast everywhere for tomorrow. I need to decide if I’m going to stick to this area or head down to the Whirinaki Forest. At least I am warm in my AirBnB while I do some more weather research and see if I can make any decisions on where tomorrow takes me.
Taking On the World 
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