Mr & Mrs Thomas visit Mt Doom

Well I think we have just climbed to one of the most beautiful places in the world. We did the Tongariro crossing which goes between 3 active volcanoes near Lake Taupo, a MUST for anyone visiting.
The 6+ hr walk starts as you walk in over tundra type vegetation. you can see Mt Ruapehu in snow on the right this is where the ski fields are, then Mt Narahui in the middle looking like a volcano! and on the left is Mt Tongariro. The walk goes over the sholder between Narahui and Tongoriro

As you walk closer the lava fields become more obvious, the pumice and lava sculptures are amazing, it really does feel like Lord of the Rings country. There is even a 'loo with a view'!! Narahui last erupted in 1975 but most of the lava flows are from the 1950's (not very long ago in geological time!!)

 

The real climbing starts and you get to the north crater, where the frost was melting but we were getting to the snow line. It was a bit slippy on the snow and some folk only had trainers on, I was glad to have my pole for balance. (To climb the main volcano you need hard hats as there are often rock falls - I'll leave that one to Malcolm and his 'bumbler' friends I think!)





At the top the view was AMAZING. first of all you see the red crater with a strange chimney formation looking back to the volcano. then you look over towards the emerald and blue lakes. We sat and had lunch at this point and realised that although we were in the snow the ground was warm because of steam coming up through the ground!

The walk down the other side was slower and more gentle through grassland and lower forest but we did pass the only active steaming vent we saw. This one erupted in 2012 and destroyed one of the huts where you can stay, so it is only a day hut now!!

 

And saving the best till last we went to have afternoon tea at the iconic Chateau Hotel just down from the ski fields below Mr Ruapehu (the volcano on the right in the first photo). The view from the window whilst drinking flat white and eating superb scones jam and cream was great after a hard but stunning days walk.

Heaven?

We had the bikes out this weekend and cycled in the redwood forest about an hour away. Bought golf clubs on Trade Me - brilliant recycling site - and rearing to go. Yoga tonight was tough. Both frequent swimmers under the stars!

I visited Auckland last week on work and first impressions are it is an interesting place to explore.

We went to a brilliant presentation at the sailing club on how the Kiwis won the America's cup!!   For you sailors watch out for a video recording of “How technology won the America’s Cup” on www.ipenz.org.nz/centenarylecture.

On a more mundane level - the weekly shop proves to be 30-50% more than. We shop at Pak and Save (Aldi). Meat, veg and fish good value.

Now have golf clubs

 

 

Swimming in May!

Spent a beautiful and uneventful weekend up at the Coramandle peninsula. Just stunning scenery and so warm that we both went swimming, the first day we used out shortie wetsuits but the next day we just went in togs (the kiwi name for swimming costumes!) If you look carefully in the one of the sea you will see the top of Malcolm's head - the waves were VERY big!!

We staged in wee ‘pod’ type rooms at a local camp site at ‘Hot water’ beach where literally hot thermal springs come up into the sand as the tide goes out. It does get a bit busy though and the water was actually too hot to be comfortable!

On Sunday we found a perfect place – Cathedral cove and the little town called Hahei – just perfect – I even sunbathed on the beach – unheard of for me! This will be a must for all visitors.

Getting the car back today – at last!
First photo shows golden kiwis!

How do kiwis grow?

Life is becoming more settled here now, we are into our second month and the weather is still fine and warm, although all the trees are beginning to change colour and as we say at home ‘the nights are drawing in’!!

Last Friday I went for lunch to some friends of my school friend Kirsteen, they are kiwi fruit farmers, so I thought it might be interesting to show you how kiwi’s grow! This is the fruit picking time. The Avocado and Feijoa season is just finishing, walnuts, figs, lemons, and Sharon fruit are also ripe now – what an abundant land!

These kiwi vines are over 40 years old and grow the original green kiwis also known as Chinese gooseberries, there are also golden kiwi fruit which are very sweet and have a slight hint of pineapple to taste. The insects are cicadas which have left these skins on the bark after turning into adults.

And yes they do grow THAT big!!

So now you know

Dear All,

Been here 4 weeks - awesome. A quieter weekend! We stayed local and explored our city. Friday was Anzac day (Google Gallipoli). Kiwis take it very seriously and it is a public holiday. We rose a dawn for a service on the beach attended by 1000s. The day is much more participatory that Nov 11th. The short service was very moving with poppies all round.

Getting dark at 18.00 as Autumn begins to turn to Winter...but still the sun shines! Not getting my thermals out yet. Just had supper at home Monkfish stir fry and feijoa crumble. Drank too much on Friday night under bad Kiwi influence! Keep meeting kind folk.

Bought bikes for exploring forest tracks. Walked along beach and back up Mt Maunganui today. Google Tauranga. Kiwis keep teasing us with tales of volcanoes exploding, earthquakes, tsunamis.......

We have tickets for All Blacks v England in Auckland in June. Not sure who to support?!

Week 3

Hello again, well now completed week 3 and it has been eventful to say the least! We planned to go to Gisborne down the cost for Easter to house sit for one of Malcolm's colleagues but it did not quite go to plan!
We picked up our lovely shiny new car a 2010 Honda Jazz on Wednesday and set off on Friday stopping on the way near Ohope to have morning coffee with Ruth and John, relatives of a good friend in Altrincham.
After a lovely walk on the beach with them we set off through the 80 km Waioeka Gorge to Gisbourne only to hit a very large rock about 40km in, which took the sump out!.
So big bump, massive noises and crashes, we VERY quickly stopped, to see the oil pouring out of a huge hole.
No phone reception in the gorge, so it was decided that I (Shona) would hitch a lift back to Opotiki and try to get a tow truck???!!!. Not only could I not pronounce the names of the places we were in, we had not brought any details of the insurance and recovery AND it is a major holiday on Good Friday here!. In fact we hadn't even paid for the insurance yet!!
Everyone we flagged down stopped and were very kind but the small car with 4 huge Maoiri blokes had no room (phew!) nor did the car full of indian people. Then a farmer and his wife stopped and I got a lift with them, they dropped me at the petrol station in Opotiki. I managed to google the number and get through to breakdown who said I had to  phone insurance as it was an accident!. Anyway eventually a great chap called Graham in his tow truck picked me up and took me back through the gorge to Malcolm.

The car was them left in a garage full of wrecks!, in the mean time Ruth and John came 40 minutes to rescue us in the most horrendous electrical storm with waterfalls of rain, thunder and lightning and put us up for 2 nights. I was as much of a wreck as the car!
After 2 days of great company in their amazing smallholding we hired a car in Whakatane (pronounced Facatane - think fa as in fax!) and did go to Gisbourne where the cat in the house we were supposed to be house sitting was very pleased to see us.
I drove back through the gorge with much trepidation but it was fine, the gorge is very sheer and there are lots of rockfalls especially after the amount of rain we have had recently, but I think we were just extremely unlucky.
So now waiting for the car to be towed back to Honda where we bought it less than a week ago and to pick up the courtesy car.
Amazing Malcolm and I have both been driving since we were 17 and never had to claim on insurance or get a car towed.

We did enjoy Gisbourne and say where Captain Cook landed, he apparently misunderstood the welcome Haka and shot quite a few of the locals on first meeting so they were not helpful and he sailed off without provisions naming it Poverty Bay!

Lets hope this week is calmer!

HAPPY EASTER.