After a tiring few weeks at work, we decided to make the most of the Easter long weekend and headed south to Lake Taupo. We set off from Titirangi on Friday afternoon and drove the 300km down to the Motuoapa Bay campsite on the south east end of Lake Taupo. We pitched our tent close to the lake and after getting eaten alive by all the bugs decided to hide in the tent and read our New Zealand travel book (thanks Mum!) and make some plans for the weekend.
On the Saturday morning we got up early and were greeted by grey clouds and pissing rain – standard camping trip for us! Fortunately the rain disappeared as we headed 40km north to the town of Taupo. Our first stop was at the Huka Falls on the Waikato river. Although the falls are a lot smaller than High Force back in the UK, the colours of the river were spectacular and it was definitely worth a visit.
After the Huka falls, we headed to the nearby ‘Craters of the Moon‘, an impressive geothermal area with lots a large craters and steaming mud. We were quite hungry after all our exploring and so headed into Taupo to get some food. We ate (far too much as usual) at a lovely little Cafe down by the waterfront and then did a wee bit of shopping in order to buy some hiking clothes in preparation for Sunday’s expedition.
Sunday morning was another early start as we got ready to do the famous ‘Tongariro crossing‘. We drove to the finish of the track and met with Rosemary and Katrina, two of my friends from work, before catching the shuttle bus to the start of the hike. Initially we were a bit sceptical about doing the walk as the weather looked quite poor, but we are both glad that we went ahead with the hike as it actually turned out to be a beautiful day. The Tongariro crossing is said to be the ‘best one day hike in New Zealand’ and we can certainly see how it has earned that reputation. In general the hike is not particularly technical and the views are simply stunning. Particular highlights include the views of some active volcanos (including the famous ‘Mt Doom’) and the Emerald Lakes. The hike was approximately 20km in total – it is safe to say that we have definately earned our easter eggs this weekend!
See below for some more pictures of the weekend.
