Nelson

Campsite #2 (and the first one was much like this)Sunrise on Day 2, view from the campsite
Bridge on the highly manicured trail

I'm back in Nelson after 3 days on the beach hiking around with Jens and Trine. It was an extremely relaxing and beautiful trip and the weather was outstanding. The coastal track we walked is the most used track in New Zealand, and it's easy to understand why. Even though there were crowds at time, we were usually able to get some privacy and once or twice had a beach to ourselves. One downside to the popularity of the park is that people seem much less interested in talking on the trail when there are many people around. Whereas on Taranaki if I saw a person I would talk to them for at least 10 minutes, here I might pass people and we wouldn't say more than hello.

We took a water taxi from a beach near the end of the track this afternoon after relaxing on the beach at the campsite all morning and taking a swim. We arrived back in Nelson at around 7:30 and I've had to rush around to get food supplies for the next few days. Tomorrow I'm catching a bus out of Nelson at 7:15 (way too early) headed to Greymouth. From there I will get on the TranzAlpine train and go to Arthur's Pass Village in the center of Arthur's Pass National Park. This is supposed to be one of the most scenic train journeys in the world, passing through the "Alps of the South." Arthur's Pass village doesn't have a grocery store, or much of anything for that matter, so I've had to stock up on food here. It's all a bit rushed, but I need to be in Te Anau by the 9th. I'm going to spend 3 nights in Arthur's Pass and mostly do dayhikes and a bit of relaxation. Avalanche Peak is also a possibility (and it's supposed to be very doable in the summer despite the name). I'm not sure if I'll have access to a computer there, as I may be staying in a public shelter.

Tonight I'm going out with Jens and Trine for a drink before I say goodbye to them as they head off to Christchurch tomorrow. They're doing an around-the-world trip and will be headed to the States in April, where they'll make a roadtrip from San Francisco to New York, passing through the South. They'll be travelling up the East I believe, so I will possibly see them again!

Below are my entries from the last two days.

-Brian

January 29th
Nothing beats camping on the beach, and the beachers here are gorgeous with soft, golden sand and crystal blue water. The sandflies are bad at times, but bug repellant works really well against them -- better than on mosquitoes I'd say. The tide is out so we went exploring and found huge shells, lots of mussels, and starfish. Even better, I went down a deep cave carved in the sandstone with my headlamp to find a cavern filled with glowworms. Amazing! People pay money to see this sort of thing elsewhere.

We accessed the trail by water taxi (a great way to see the coast) and at first we had to walk through a horde of day walkers, but they thinned out late in the day. We probably saw 100 people in the first hour.

I have had great conversation with Jens and Trine and have definitely enjoyed their company. Trine doesn't carry her big backpack and instead carries a small bag -- but she's cool so I suppose I'll let it slide. I think it helps keep us all at the same pace anyhow. The trail is cut to be excessively easy, but that's okay because our packs are very heavy.

I cooked dinner tonight -- just pasta, fresh veggies, and chicken -- and everyone enjoyed it. The canned chicken here is really moist!

We're now relaxing on the beach with the 2L of wine we brought :) Got some in a cardboard carton, so it's not too heavy. Weather is wonderful and forecasted to stay that way.


January 30
We had to get up at 6 this morning and start hiking immediately to make a tidal crossing (low tide was at 6:30) -- well worth it because sunrise was great and the bay we crossed at low tide was really interesting.

The trails are easy here, and we're treated with beautiful beaches every 30 minutes or so. And there's rarely more than 1 or 2 people on most of them. It was a very relaxing day and once again we have a campsite on the beach with few neighbors.

Jens and Trine cooked dinner tonight and made a dish with sausages, cumin, pineapple, and coconut -- very delicious. They're great company.

Off to relax on the beach once again -- life is very easy right now.

Nelson

Trine and Jens, the two Danish travellers with whom I'll be doing the Abel Tasman trek with.
Endless vineyards in the North of the South Island

First view of the South Island from the ferry

I'm finally to the South Island, and, after getting off the ferry, I took a bus a little bit west to Nelson, one of the bigger towns in the South Island. It's still quite small by American standards and the whole town more or less shut down around 6pm (even Starbucks closed!). The bus ride took me through the Marlborough region which seemed to be just one vineyard after another. Haven't tried the wine yet though.

I sat across from a couple from Denmark on the train I took a couple of days ago, and seemed to run into them over and over again during my short visit in Wellington. Then, sure enough, they showed up on the same ferry I was taking. We got to talking, I told them of my plans in Abel Tasman, and they asked to join. So I helped them book everything and now they will be joining me for the next three days in Abel Tasman. It should be great to have some companions for a while. They're really friendly people and we just got back from getting groceries for the trip. Interesting how you meet people when you're travelling. Reminds me of something I forgot to mention about the train journey. People liked to wave as the train went by every day (and only one train runs a day). Some guys working on a farm, however, had a better idea and mooned the train! It made me think of my dad :)

I was wandering the streets of Nelson tonight looking for an ice cream and heard some live music so I followed my ears to a pub that had some live jazz going on (old-time stuff). Not the greatest band I've ever heard, but it was still enjoyable to be around music for once in three weeks! I really do miss it. From what I've gathered so far, it seems that New Zealand really doesn't have an arts scene that can compare to what we have in the US, but I suppose that's really no surprise considering how small the population is (~4 million). Auckland had a few things going on, but nothing like what is around Washington.

So tomorrow we take a water taxi to about halfway down the Abel Tasman coastal walk, and then we'll walk to the end. The track goes along the beach for much of the way and is a pretty flat and easy trek, so we've packed a lot of good food and wine and our packs will be a bit heavy. I think both the campsites are on the beach, so I'm really excited. That said, I won't be able to write until Saturday here, so goodbye until then.

-Brian

Wellington

Trains are definitely somewhat of a joke in NZ. We arrived over an hour late to Wellington last night, and, from talking to a local at National Park, it sounded like this was a normal thing! I suppose that explains why the train wasn't too crowded. Nevertheless, it was a pleasant ride and I was able to walk outside the carriage and stand outside while the train was moving which was sweet (and I'm not sure that they'd let you do that in the states). Good scenery, but mostly just farms and a few volcanoes in this part of the North Island.

I'm staying at a big backpackers in downtown Wellington, but it's bearable because I have a single room with a TV!! It also has a desk, a chair, and a sink! And I only share a bathroom with one other person. I'm living extravagently and in luxury in the big city. You can't really get away from American television and Hollywood on the TV though.

It's a very rainy day here in Wellington, which I was actually pleased about because I planned on spending the day at the museum. It was a very interesting museum with a lot of geology exhibits plus an art gallery (although New Zealand's artistic output is pretty limited). I might see a concert in the botanical garden tonight if the weather improves; otherwise, I might just treat myself to some more tv.

I'm leaving the city and the North Island tomorrow morning and heading over to Nelson. The ferry goes through the sounds of the Marlborough region and I'm told is a great sightseeing trip in addition to being the only sea transport between the two islands. The following day I'm planning on doing part of the Abel Tasman Coastal Walk, which should be a relaxing tramp before I do the Milford and Routeburn in two weeks. The area is supposed to enjoy great weather this time of year and I can pitch a tent real close to the beach.

No pictures today because I didn't really take any.

-Brian

National Park - Wellington

Mountain biking around TongariroView of Ngauruhoe from the Hostel in the evening (this is Mount Doom)

The mountain bike ride yesterday was hot but a good time. I ended up riding much of the way with Leslie and Dennis, some people from Hamilton. I had to wait up a lot for everyone to catch up, but I suppose that's better than being left behind. Good views, great downhills, and some really hard uphills (including some that I had difficulty pushing the bike up).

The hostel here has a good atmosphere, I think mostly because there's really nothing to do here other than tramping and biking. So I've met some cool people here, and played cards with some Americans (my count is up to 7) and a Swiss guy. One of the Americans actually grew up near Bowie - most that I meet are from California. It's great to hang out here because the view of the mountains is incredible (reminds me of the American West a bit). But like I said, there really isn't much to do in the town itself. I walked around this morning and it was like walking through a ghost town. I think National Park is more of a ski town, and they get by during the summer with trampers. The ski posters here all have warnings about volcanic eruptions and give instructions on what to do if the volcano erupts while you're skiing! Mt. Ruapehu, the tallest in the North Island, is still active, and there are minor eruptions every few years.

I'm catching the train down to Wellington today, and I'm excited about travelling on something other than a bus. Trains are a rare in New Zealand, and as far as I know, this train is the only passenger train on the North Island other than limited city trains in Auckland (I think they're on their way to building a bigger subway).

-Brian

National Park

Pictures from Taranaki first:


The view from Lake Dive Hut

The mountain from a riverbed

One of the huts and the hut warden



Today I got up early to catch my bus out of New Plymouth and arrived in National Park at around 2:00pm. It took a while because of a long transfer wait. It's the hottest it's been so far here in National Park (I suppose because I'm away from the coast), so I'm taking it easy right now. Tomorrow I'm hiring a mountain bike to ride a trail in the area - I think it's 42 km, but relatively easy going, so it should be fun. There are other people from the hostel doing the same thing, so maybe I will ride with them.

The next day I'll take the train to Wellington, spend a day or two, then catch the ferry to the South Island. At this point, I think I'm going to walk the Abel Tasman Coastal Walk when I get to the S. Island. An easy beach walk to give me time to rest before doing the Milford and Routeburn.

Brian

New Plymouth

Still can't upload pictures - but I will put up pictures of Taranaki as soon as I can.

Today was a rest day at the beach, although I had to walk 12k RT to get there so I suppose it wasn't completely a rest day. Awesome beach here that is surprisingly not crowded given that New Plymouth is a city of 10,000 (this makes it one of the bigger cities in NZ). The sand is black and the water of the Tasman Sea is extremely cold, so I didn't do any swimming. Also ran a few errands and spent an hour or so with coffee and the paper which was nice. Tonight I'm planning on going out for a drink and pool with an Australian guy I met at the hostel who is also doing a lot of tramping around NZ. He taught me about cricket today :) There's a big bike race tomorrow around Taranaki (150k I think), but I won't be here to see it.

Off to National Park tomorrow for just about 2 nights I think. I will do some more hiking if I feel up to it, and then off to Wellington for a night or two.

-Brian

New Plymouth

I'm back in New Plymouth, a day earlier than expected on account of cancelling my attempt at the summit. I was simply too exhausted to consider spending another day on the mountain. The AMC (around the mountain circuit) took me through about 50km of incredible wilderness but was extremely challenging. Recent storm damage caused severe erosion to the trails and it was tough-going most of the way. Poor weather made the first two days even harder. Still, the views on the last two days were incredible and made the journey worthwhile. And it truly felt like wilderness because I only saw a handful of people on the trail, and not a single person on the third day. I had an entire hut to myself last night, right up against Lake Dive with a phenomenal view of the mountain (pictures will come when I can upload them). Truly amazing. I've copied my notes from the last three days below. Incidentally, the equipment that I have brought along has served me very well.

Today saw good weather and I decided to hurry through the last section of trail so that I could make the 4:30 shuttle. After a relaxing (and beautiful) morning at the Lake Dive Hut, I hit the trail and saw people for the first time in about 36 hours when I arrived at the Dawson Falls Visitor Center. I grabbed a quick bite of real food there and then carried on. About an hour and thirty from the end of the loop I met a man from Hamilton who said he would show me the "local's route" back to the visitor center where I started. This route, along "the Razorback" was essentially straight down and was extremely hard on my already sore knees. Plus he was going incredibly fast. I started to get some of the worst pain I've ever felt in my knees and told him that I would need to slow. He offered my some ibuprofen, took my pack along with his daypack, and gave me his walking pole. By the time that we reached the VC my knee was feeling almost back to normal. I think it was just a bit of overuse, nothing torn. It feels fine now, just a bit sore. At any rate, I've decided to change my itinerary slightly and take some more days for rest. Instead of doing the Tongariro Northern Circuit (a 3 day alpine trip), I'm just going to head to National Park (that's the name of a town) and relax and maybe hire a bike for a day. Additionally, I will have another day in New Plymouth, which I'm going to spend at the beach along the Tasman Sea :) I'll be in Wellington by the 25th or so and on the South Island by the 27th.

Tonight was pleasant. I wandered around looking for food until I found a bar that sold food (it was Texas-themed which was funny). I was the only person there so I talked to the bartender for an hour which was good fun. He did a lot of fishing (for fish that I had never heard of) and a lot of hunting (for rabbits). Back at the hostel I've been talking a lot with a guy from Wellington who is spending a month in New Plymouth for work. We met on Monday when I first arrived. So beach tomorrow plus a few errand including the post office.

-Brian

January 19 - Holly Hut

Although the forecast predicted that the rain would be clearing from the area, the rain has persisted, quite heavy at times, throughout the day.

I was picked up from the hostel at 7:30 by Ian, a very friendly Kiwi driver. We talked some about the Taranaki region and he mentioned that dairy farming and oil drilling made it a very profitatable region. I talked to the staff at the North Egmont Visitor Center for about 30 minutes and then fueled up with a pancake breakfast at the cafe there. All the while, rain was coming down in rather heavy spurts.

I managed to hike an hour without rain and was treated to some views of the area at the base of the mountain, but to date have not seen the peak of Taranaki since I arrived in New Plymouth. I only walked 8 km of stream -- er, trail -- today, but it was quite exhausting and the weather is terrible so I have to decided to wait it out here at Holly Hut. The rain persists and the wind gusts are strong.

There was only the hut warden here when I arrived and 4 high school girls from New Plymouth arrived about 2 hours later. The hut warden is a volunteer and is friendly enough, but is a bit strange and really doesn't know much about the trails! The high school girls are -- well, they're high school girls. There is a woodstove here along with coal which is very nice -- it would be no fun to be in a tent right now.

Tomorrow will be a long day and I'm a bit concerned about the condition of the trails ahead. Today was slow going because of slippery rocks and deep puddles everywhere and I fear tomorrow will be the same. Some of the stream crossings are difficult, so I will have to be careful. Hopefully the weather will improve at least.


January 20, Waiaua Gorge Hut

I think today was the most difficult and most miserable day of backpacking I've ever had. The clouds and rain haven't cleared as forecasted and I arrived at the hut completely soaked. The hut is quite nice and I have it to myself so far. It's right at the edge of an enormous gorge (very impressive) and is also supposed to have a view of the mountain. I still haven't even caught a glimpse of Taranaki in two days. Hopefully I will be able to see it tomorrow morning. I'm even considering staying here an extra day and skipping the summit because I'm so sore and demoralized. I only covered about 15 km of trail today, but I don't think there was an easy stretch on it and it took me over 7 hours. Everything is dangerously slippery and my feet often sink a foot or so into the mud that's all around. Much of the walk was along a riverbed which was very impressive (and would have been more impressive if the peak wasn't in the clouds), but very tough-going. The stream crossings were difficult and the rocks large and difficult to move between. Erosion made for some very challenging ascents and downed trees were a pain. The worst part was the approach to Kahui Hut where I had lunch -- the bush was so overgrown that I couldn't see the ground and the ground was uneven and slippery. Just as I arrived at that hut, four New Zealanders (boys + 1 man) arrived from the other direction -- they had no interest in talking.

I haven't seen a soul other than those four at the hut all day, and I suspect I will enjoy my first quiet sleep of the trip. The girls last night were very noisy and kept slamming the doors in the hut. I did enjoy a game of Euchre with them and the warden earlier in the night which was very nice.

On the upside, the sun does seem to be tring to peek through. And I have a dry set of clothes on. I can only hope the weather will improve.

January 21 -- Lake Dive Hut

I ended up sharing the hut last night with two older men from Palmerston North -- one was Maori [I ended up seeing him at the other end of the circuit today]. I had such a hard time understanding their English, so we didn't converse too much.

After getting some excellent rest and sleeping in to 8:30, I was finally greeted with beautiful weather this morning. Not a cloud in the sky and the view was spine-tingling. It almost made the past two days worthwhile.

I had two routes to choose from today, a higher and a lower one, and since the weather was so nice I opted for the higher one. Two people had warned me about bad erosion on this route, but the lower route is known to be the worst on the mountain -- a big bog with no views. Of course, neither of the people who warned me had walked the trail, and I found it to be safer than the trail I walked yesterday. Plus, the views were incredible, especially as I climbed above the bushline. The trail was exceedingly steep [they don't really have switchbacks in NZ], but at least it wasn't slippery or covered in trees. I did run out of water for a bit, but I was able to filter some up soon enough.

Lake Dive Hut has sweet views and it's finally warm outside. I didn't see a single person today after I left the hut, so maybe I'll have this hut to myself.

Tomorrow I'm heading to Maketawa Hut [This later changed]. From there I can attempt the summit on Friday, or it's only about an hour walk to the visitor center where I'm getting picked up. Even if the weather is good, I'm not sure that I'll attempt the summit as I really don't have that much strength left. I will decide later -- for now, just relaxing with excellent views of the top of the mountain and Lake Dive.

New Plymouth

Today I woke up just as it started to rain and packed up quickly. It was then a 30 minute walk through the rain to the bus station in Auckland (I couldn't take the city transport there because it was too early). It took 6 hours to get to New Plymouth by bus, and fortunately most of the rain went through while we were driving. I didn't get much sleep last night because there was a loud party just down the street from the hostel, and I'm feeling rather down today (I'm guessing because of the sleep - fortunately I have a room to myself tonight)

New Plymouth is right on the shore of the Tasman Sea and the rain seems to start and stop unexpectedly. It's a nice small city of about 10,000 and I'm going in a bit to walk through the park where they're supposed to have a very nice lights display and live music every night during summer. There was a New Zealander at the hostel so I talked to him for a while -- mostly he was talking about New Zealand's drinking problem.

Tomorrow I'm getting picked up at 7:30 to go to Mt. Taranaki and I will spend 4 nights there and return to this hostel on Friday. So no blog entries until then! I was able to lock up my tent and a few other things at this hostel, so my pack will be a little lighter.

Back on Friday,
Brian

Auckland

Not much today other than shopping and getting supplies for Taranaki. Also spent a while just relaxing and reading the paper which was nice. Met new friends at the hostel tonight.

The pictures above are actually from yesterday, North of Auckland.

Hopefully I will have internet tomorrow in New Plymouth, otherwise I won't be writing for 5 or 6 days.

-Brian

Waiwera

Happy Birthday Mom! Wish I was home to celebrate! Or you were here!

Today was another beautiful day with temps in the high 70s, sun, and a nice breeze. We headed south and stopped at some amazing sand dunes and did something called sandboarding - you take a boogie board down a sand dune 100 ft high and ride it all the way into the water. Can't put pictures up on this computer but it was awesome.

Next we saw some kauri trees which are extremely wide but also extremely short, so they're really an awesome sight too. We're in more of a subtropical climate zone now so the plant life is really amazing and diverse.

After seeing the trees we got in a 40km ride on EXTREMELY hilly roads. It was like doing Mt. Ventoux, only with a heavy mountain bike.

I also meant to mention yesterday that I got to watch some tv which was interesting. I watched the NZ news broadcast. No stories about murders or robberies, and they actually spent close to 5 minutes talking about this chicken that someone bought for christmas that still had digested food inside it. Other than that, tourist accidents seem to be farely common, probably because of the amount of tourism and the stupidity of some tourists. Two men were killed when ice fell on them at Fox Glacier. They had crossed a warning sign. There's a big controversy about it because the rental car company wanted the family to pay for the towing of their car (the keys were stuck under the ice). This had really been the dominant news story for the last few days.

It seems like Kiwis don't much like to get involved in foreign affairs and really prefer to just have a laid-back lifestyle by themselves. Still, there's a lot of US news in the newspapers and on tv.

Time's out, so I've got to run! Tomorrow I spend the day in Auckland getting ready to head south. I'm staying at the same hostel I stayed at for the beginning of the trip.

-Brian

Bay of Islands II

Well I finally did it...

After taking a nice kayaking trip up the river by our campsite, this French kid and I headed over to the skydive place and did it. It was an incredible experience. The plane was a little Cessna and really shook a lot as we took off. I really wasn't scared at all until they opened the door and I had to scoot to the edge. But then as soon as we jumped out I felt fine. The views were incredible and it felt awesome to really feel like I was flying. After we deployed the parachute I was able to take control of it and make turns. It's an amazing way to see things! I splurged and got some pictures. I thought no one would believe me otherwise.

Afterwards I just took it easy and relaxed with some other people on the tour. Tomorrow we're heading south and then we return to Auckland the following day.

-Brian

Bay of Islands

No uploads at this computer so no photos today, although today was fairly rainy. After picking up a fresh batch of people, many of whom seem very friendly, in Auckland we headed north.

This morning we had one of the best adventures of the trip. Our driver read a headline in the paper about a new expressway opening and decided to take the new road out of Auckland. The thing is: he didn't read the article to know that it wasn't opening until 2010. And he also somehow missed whatever road closure signs were up as we made it about 2 miles into a construction site (this is no joke). The workers gave us funny looks, but no one seemed to stop us until we just about reached the tunnel at the end of the site which would have put us back on the old road. I'm not quite sure why our driver didn't think things were a bit suspicious. Finally a construction supervisor came and told us to get out. After a tricky maneuver we switched sides of the road and headed out, only to find that the bridge on that side of the road was not driveable (and a concrete wall divided the two lanes). At this point we needed to head back into the construction site to find a break in the wall, but the bus and trailer were too long to turn around. So we backed up about a half a mile with a huge trailer on the back! The construction workers were all taking pictures of us. We were about to finally make it out and the supervisor told us that he would escort the bus at 30 kph. Our bus driver seemed to ignore this and start driving past him and then the supervisor got really upset and had a few choice words for our driver :) Finally made it out after about close to an hour. So it seems that this tour company doesn't have the brightest drivers.

We stopped at a very nice beach for lunch and I got in a nice swim. The water in the ocean is pleasantly warm here and also seemed to be less salty (and another person on the trip said that she heard that this was the case). We also got in a nice bike ride to a waterfall, but got rained on. This area is okay, but I doubt I'll return - it's a little touristy.

Tomorrow we have the opportunity to skydive and I just might do it if the weather is good just to get it over with :) And then I'll do nothing else too extreme so that my parents don't kill me :)

I also have everything booked for my trek down to Taranaki, including a night in Auckland, bus to New Plymouth, and a night in New Plymouth, so that's a relief. I also splurged and got a single room in the hostel in New Plymouth. It was only about 25$ US and I really want a night where I'm away from people, so I'm looking forward to that.

-Brian

Auckland

Pictures:

Me trying to look tough after abseiling.
View of the canyon while descending

View of Taranaki from the window of the bus. It seemed to come out of the clouds.

Taranaki at sunset

Didn't mean to upload this one - but this is the countryside around Taranaki

From Wellington, we drove more or less directly to Auckland where we'll be spending the night. We go north of Auckland for the next three days. Yesterday, we drove through Taranaki, named after the massive volcano that dominates the horizon throughout the area. To the locals, it is known simply as "the mountain" because there are none other in sight. It's absolutely amazing to see, and the countryside around it is beautiful as well (farms spotted with white dots - sheep that is). The new guide is quite good and is from the Taranaki region of the North Island, so he had some very interesting things to say. Taranaki is believed to be the biggest threat to Auckland of any volcano in the vicinity. We spent the night along the Tasman Sea and had a nice fire which was great. The place is so nice that I've decided to change my itinerary once I get off the bus in Auckland in 4 days. I've booked a bus down to New Plymouth and from they're I'll climb Taranaki. It's a five day trip that goes around the mountain and summiting is very feasible in the summer as long as the weather is okay. From there I'll head east to Tongariro and do the hike there as well before catching a train to Wellington.

Today was mostly driving, but we did visit Waitamo caves. I didn't go into the caves and instead opted to rappell (or abseil as everyone seems to call it here) down a massive canyon nearby. The canyon was limestone (there's a huge amount of limestone in NZ) and formed when caves formed by a river running underneath itself collapsed. The guides were great and we had a really small group so it was good fun. We were able to control our descent and stop to take pictures when we wanted. It's very difficult to capture what it was like with a camera though. Tomorrow we're off to subtropical Northland and the Bay of Islands.

-Brian

Wellington

Pictures:

Steam rising from the giant hot pools on the Tongariro Crossing.

View from one of the huts along the Tongariro Northern Circuit (I plan on the spending the night here later) Me on top of the Crossing, obscured by hovering clouds. The coat worked great for the wind though!

"Mount Doom" from Lord of the Rings - also part of Tongariro National Park

The Tongariro crossing yesterday was amazing, even with clouds obscuring the top half of the walk. The views everywhere are incredible. Fortunately, I'm planning on coming back to the park and doing a multi-day trip that includes the crossing, so hopefully the weather will be better the second time around. It really feels like another world at the top, and the dense fog made it even more eerie. It would be nice to be able to see down the mountain too though. It was a very good workout too at 20km, but the popular trails around here are so well maintained that it's fairly easy on your feet. Although it's on Maori land and not accessible, there are huge hotsprings that you can see from the walk and the amount of steam billowing out of them is amazing. Warm, grayish water also flows down along the trails from them. Hopefully I'll get some better pictures the second time around.

After waiting a while for everyone to finish, we headed south and stayed at a backpacker's. It was late, so I don't recall the name of the place or the town. Nothing special so I have no intention of returning. I'm now in Wellington, the capital, and will return to the bus tour at 1:00 and head north to Mount Taranaki (which looks amazing from the pictures). Not so sure where we'll be staying, but I may have a chance to write tonight. Wellington is the "windy city" of New Zealand, and it is certainly blowing. It's nice to have cheap internet though!

Since there was a request to talk about the culture here, I'll try. Really I haven't met too many New Zealanders because I've been surrounded by other travellers for the duration of my stay. From what I've seen, this place really is a lot like the US. And based on my talks with people from the UK, the UK is really a lot like the US too. I suspect that it's got something to do with language (language facilitates culture sharing and is perhaps the most important facet of a culture). There are, of course, small differences, and, on the whole, I find the people more friendly here. I haven't met many Maori so far, and the one person I met for an extended period of time was a janitor, so maybe he isn't the best representation of the culture. There's a big attempt at biculturalism here, but you can still sense some tension between races. Though it's certainly nothing like in Australia. The Australian man on the trip was noticeably perturbed when the Maori man was around last night (and especially when he insulted Australian beer -- it just so happens that this Aussie used to be general manager of Foster's).

-Brian

Tongariro

Pictures!

View of OTHER people doing bungy.


View along the MTB trail today.

The geyser today.

Zorbing (yesterday)

Cathedral Island, yesterday morning.

Skydiving was called off due to weather, which actually disappointed me more than I thought it would given all the encouragement I got to do it from friends who had read the blog. I think I will return and do it by myself; I'm sure the view is spectacular.

We had another great day of mountain biking on a trail that led into Taupo. Technical enough to be a lot of fun and challenging without the need to ever hop off the bike and walk. They do an amazing job keeping the trails clear and there are never any fallen trees. Simply amazing views the whole way too -- an even better ride than yesterday.

Also saw some mud pools, a geothermal power plant, and a geyser, all outside of Rotorua in the morning. They DoC people "activated" the geyser by pouring soap down it!

We had the opportunity to do bungy, but I couldn't pull myself to do it. The view of the canyon down which people jumped, however, was amazing! It just looks too scary too me, and I'm still not great with heights.

In Taupo I found a backpacking quick-dry towel that was cheap so I purchased that for the future.

I also discovered that in Wellington (which we reach in 2 days), the guides will be switching out, so I'll have different guides for the trip North to Auckland and beyond. Will be nice to have a fresh perspective.

Dinner tonight was grilled lamb chops - simply delicious! Had laughs with the guides and also some other people in the group who I've become good friends with.

Tomorrow we wake early to do the Tongariro Crossing, the most famous daywalk in NZ - hopefully the weather will cooperate. After this guided trip, I plan on returning to Turangi and doing the Tongariro Northern Circuit, a 3 or 4 day trip which will offer a slower look at things around here. Then I think I'll head to Wellington (southern end of the North Island), do some planning, then catch the ferry and start on the South Island.

-Brian

Rotorua

Once again, I can't upload pictures :( Awoke at 5:30 to walk to Cathedral Cove, which was quite nice, but unfortunately it was overcast (first time since I've arrived), so the photos aren't quite as good as I hoped. I actually ran into a professional photographer on the beach there and he gave me some tips which was nice. Beautiful place, very hard to capture in pictures. And I got nailed by a wave while I was trying to run to the other side of the cove, so it was a bit of a wet walk back :) Gore-tex doesn't withstand a two foot wave crashing down on your feet it turns out.

Breakfast was cold cereal and then we were on the road. The rain held off and we had choices of activity in Rotorua. There was Zorbing, which looked like lots of fun, but was prohibitively expensive at 50$ NZ for a 20 second run! Also various other novelties, but I opted to take a bike and ride into town with a fellow traveller who is Dutch.

Well, I'm now fully convinced that BOTH of our guides are idiots. Drew, the male guide, told us as we were leaving on the bikes that he would drive ahead and leave a map to the campsite at the information center in Rotorua. We arrive (after passing some very nice hot springs) and the people working had no clue about it (it turns out that he couldn't find a place to park and so just said to hell with it). He told us that they would be going to camp to set up and then would be making various side trips. We arrive at camp at 2:00 and the camp people say that the group hasn't arrived and that the reservation wasn't even made until last night! So we kill time at the pool until around 5 and then decide to take the bikes out on the local mountain bike trails (of which there are many). Just as we're about to leave, they pull up and he tells us to come to camp. At camp, we discover that there isn't really anything to do and finally make it out on the mountain bikes. Fortunately, the ride redeemed the disappointment of the day. Some of the best mountain biking I've ever done. Single-tracking through dense forest with huge ferns, streams, and the trails ran easy, so we could really move fast. It was a blast. So despite how unorganized this all is, there really are some nice opportunities.

Tomorrow we move to Lake Taupo. We have the opportunity to skydive, and I've almost convinced myself to do it because I suspect the view of the lake is incredible. It's cheaper here than in the states, but I have a feeling that I might chicken out anyway.

-Brian

Hahei Coast

After saying goodbye to my new friends at the hostel in Auckland, I boarded the tour bus and left Auckland for the first time since I arrived in NZ. The countryside is stunning. Even the "small" mountains of the north are much more dramatic than what I'm used to. I would post pictures, but this computer won't permit uploads.

The people on the tour bus are for the most part very friendly. We headed straight to the east coast of the country and are staying along the beach which has perfectly blue water and dramatic rock island coming out of the water all around. There's a cove about an hours walk down the beach and I plan on waking up around 5:30 tomorrow and hiking over to catch it at sunrise.

The tour is nice, although I miss solo travelling already. It's really nice being able to do exactly what you wish. Having to wait for people to set up tents was a bit frustrating. Not to say that I'm not satisfied with what we're doing, but the freedom of the last three days was really quite nice. One guide is a New Zealander and seems knowledgeable enough. The other guide is an American from NYC and she seems like a complete idiot. The tour is nice in that it offers some flexibility, but I'm kind of at the mercy of the group decision in some cases. I was able to take a bike, however, and took a nice (and very steep) ride up to the top of one the very dramatic rock outcroppings.

Dinner was good and I finally got some lamb prepared by a New Zealander. Quite good. I met a very nice Welsh lady on the trip who reminds me so much of Grandma - she looks just like her and talks like her -- just in a British accent.

The weather continues to be stunning, although I believe rain is in the forecast tomorrow. We head to Rotorua, known for its geothermal hotpools.

-Brian

Auckland II

I've made a daily habit out of starting the day with a cup of coffee - always from a different cafe. Today, I was served a cup of "black coffee" (essentially espresso) along with a cup of steaming hot water to dilute it (I hope I didn't just get the water because I told the man at the counter that I was from the US). I also always spend time reading the local newspaper, which is an excellent way to learn about the country.

The weather was georgeous this morning as it has been the past two days, so I left early to walk through the city park and visit the Auckland museum (located in the park). The park was beautiful and I practically had it to myself. So many of the plants and animals (well, I have only seen birds so far) are new to me. The colors are quite vibrant and they had a very nice plant display within the park. The palm trees (I think they are palm trees at any rate) were also huge and impressive. Finally, there was a large collection of ferns that is upkept by the "Fernz Corporation" (coincidence?).

A parrot!

The museum was quite nice with interesting exhibits on Maori culture and on the volcanic nature of the island. Especially humorous was the simulation of experiencing a volcanic eruption from within a house in Auckland -- the whole little room within the museum shook violently as we watched the volcano come out of the water on the screen.

Tomorrow I leave Auckland for a guided tour of the North Island, which will also give me an opportunity to do some cycling around the country.

One other funny thing that I just remembered: As I was leaving the museum and descending from the hill upon which it stood, I was was stopped by a woman from Hong Kong who asked if I could push her husband up the hill in his wheelchair. A few seconds after having started, they discovered that they had left his hat in the restaurant in which they just ate (which was about 500 ft away). She wanted to go fetch it and asked me to keep going, but then she turned his wheelchair around so that he wasn't facing the sun and asked me if I could take him up backwards. The hill was quite steep, so needless to say, I turned him around as soon as she was out of sight.

-Brian

Auckland

My jetlag quickly faded today as I walked to the summit of Rangitato (or Rrrrrrrrangitato as our ferry driver pronounced it), about a 10km walk. You could only access the island (essentially a volcano that grew from the sea) by boat. I did the walk with Sergio, a young man I met from England at the hostel. It's incredible how often one runs into people from the hostel while wandering around the city. The hike was quite nice, although the sun is merciless here. It isn't hot at all, but the UV index today was 13 (out of 10). Below are pictures from the island, which had nice views of Auckland. It's incredible how foreign it all looks to me (it was a bit like Jurassic Park). The water and air is incredibly clear. Along the walk (while searching for a bathroom that turned out to be closed) we met someone who had a little house (without utilities) and she kindly let us use her outhouse. Afterwards, she invited us in and showed us around. Some way to treat people who just walked into your backyard!

Arrival yesterday was admittedly a bit scary, especially considering that I know absolutely no one in the country. It was a bit difficult to get through customs because they had to go through all of my camping gear and run tests for biohazards. As an island, the country is very vulnerable to invasive species, so I suppose it's worth the hassle.

I took a shuttle to the hostel and felt rather alone at first, but quickly met people. There are so many people doing exactly what I'm doing, and it's very interesting to hear other travel stories. This particular hostel seems to have mostly German and British tourists, and I'm a bit of a novelty as an American. I am consistently amazed by how much American culture has penetrated the rest of the world. Some of the people I have met know American sports teams and movies better than I do. Many of them watched the presidential election closely. So in a way, despite being one of the only Americans around, I feel like I already have a lot in common with the people I have met. Last night, I went out for drinks in the city with Sergio who has travelled extensively throughout Asia and Australia, and it was very refreshing to have a fresh perspective on ideas. Curiously, we both had the same beer (a local New Zealand one) and found out that both of us felt a bit ill in the middle of the night.

Tomorrow is my last day in Auckland before I start the guided bus tour of the North Island. I'm planning on walking around city center, going to the museums, and tasting some of the food. The weather has been so nice so far (highs around 75 degrees and lows around 55), although rain is in the forecast for the weekend. Tonight I plan to sleep outside the hostel. I didn't realize that was an option at first, but the owner is permitting me to do it and is even going to refund some of my money. Truthfully, sleeping in a room with 7 other people was much better than I expected (everyone is quite respectful), but I think I'll still prefer to sleep outside and not wake up staring in the face of a stranger.

-Brian

PS. A picture from the airplane is above (in case you couldn't tell from the wing in the picture).