5 hour bush walk - must need a shave!
Trip Start
Jun 11, 2008
1
142
349
Trip End
May 14, 2009
Tongariro National Park,
North Island,
New Zealand
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Is it me, or is there just something funny about the word "bush"? Makes me giggle.
Our walk took us along Fisher Track, through the Erua Forest to the Taranaki Lookout. There were some amazing views over the National Park from here. We then continued to Tupapakurua Falls through the dense woods. This was very steep, up and down, and in places very muddy as well. We crossed a couple of streams before finally reaching the falls. Again there were great views, and it was a beautiful day as well. We decided to stop and have a bit of lunch here as it was that nice a place.
On the way back we got some awesome views of the three mountains : Mount Tongariro, Mount Ngauruhoe (more famously known as Mount Doom from Lord of the Rings) and Mount Ruapehu. All through our trek we didn't see another single person, it was really quiet and peaceful - except for Lorna's talking of course! We did see a smashed up car in the middle of the woods, which really did seem quite random! I can't remember Bilbo Baggins wheel spinning one of those through Middle Earth, but who knows, he may have been a secret boy/hobbit racer!
After a shower and change, Lorna and I went for burger and chips at the on site Spiral Bar. Got to say, we were aching a bit. We hadn't done any proper trekking for about a month, what with the beaches and our illness, so this was a bit of a wake up call for the calves & thighs! It's amazing how stiff you can get when you've spent all day tramping around the bush!!
On another note, we have both lost weight on this trip so far - mainly due to the illness probably. Found out I had lost 10kgs! However, I am not sure how this works. As we are on the other side of the World, does this mean I am being weighed upside down? And if so, does this mean that due to gravitational pull, I have actually put 10kgs ON?! It's all too confusing. I think I will just stick with the fact that I'm fat, but I'm also on holiday for a year!! Get in!
We packed our bags tonight as w are off to Wellington tomorrow. Craig is staying for a few More days, but we hope to catch up with him on Australia Day in Sydney, in January.
