A whirlwind tour of the North Island
Trip Start
Dec 02, 2007
1
18
55
Trip End
Sep 01, 2008
Wellington,
New Zealand
Thursday, February 21, 2008
From Auckland we moved on to Hamilton for England's second defeat (see P's cricket blog) before heading to Rotorua to soothe away our cricketing woes in the hot thermal springs, which did wonders for Piet's back but turned the fake wedding and engagement rings I am wearing for our trip a murky bronze tone
Auckland Sky Tower
. South of Rotorua, we visited the Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland, a vast park of mineral filled craters, mud pools and geysers in an array of amazing colours.After a relatively major detour, backup to Auckland to see Interpol play in the town hall and England's fine victory against the Black Caps, we returned to the countryside of the central north island, and decided to take on the Tongariro Crossing This is one of New Zealand's 'great walks', and one of the few that can be completed in a day. The publicity shots for the Crossing show beautiful views, albeit from the top of a climb so steep it is known as the 'Devil's Staircase'. Some of you may be familiar with the landscape of the crossing as Peter Jackson chose the spot to depict Mount Doom in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. How those hobbits managed it without the trekkers must-have uniform of North Face fleeces and cagoules, I'll never know. I'm not overly familiar with Jackson's films but I don't imagine they walked along on a sunny day admiring the view, the poor little blighters, but then again neither did we. The cloud was so thick that every time we thought we has ascended the staircase, another steep section was revealed. By the time we reached the top, rain and a ferocious wind had set in. Terrifying stuff for little me, but naturally Piet braved it and had no problem running through the volcanic ash whilst instructing me on how to descend! Happily, once the weather cleared we had a very enjoyable walk and completed the 18km hike in a respectable time.
As a reward for completing the Crossing, oh and to celebrate Piet's 28th birthday, on arrival in Napier the next day, we booked ourselves on a wine tour in the Hawkes Bay region. We saw this as an opportunity to warm up our tasting skills for the Marlborough region, where Vaughan family favourites Cloudy Bay (for special occasions) and Oyster Bay (for Saturdays when Piet and I visit!) are made, and hoped to find a gem that may rival the wines from the south island
P at the start of the Tongariro crossing
. We found a couple of nice wines, including one that is sold at the cellar door for NZ$75, and by Gordon Ramsey at Claridge's for £125, but on the whole were not wowed by what was on offer here. Despite this we has a hugely entertaining day largely due to the fact that we were joined on the tour by two couples from Yorkshire, also in town for the cricket. Great banter with our Kiwi guide and jokes so blue that they certainly can't be repeated here, although Piet may tell a few of you in the Dev come September, made for a fantastic day.So onwards to Wellington for one night only; we return here for the second test in March, and the ferry over to the south island tomorrow. The north island has been an enjoyable experience but largely because of the cricket and characters we have met at matches. So far I have not seen anything to rival the majesty of Argentina, but am told the south island is where this country's true beauty lies. I'll let you know.
