New Zealand Diary, Day 15

Day 15: Springs & Steam
OK, admittedly this installment isn’t as steamy as the previous one. Let’s just start with brekkie, shall we?

DW and I ventured downtown, again, and this time bypassed the McCafé to find a more local place. We had seen a “Robert Harris Coffee Roasters” store the previous night, so we found it again and went in. It had a nice little self-serve cafeteria-style line, with hot selections such as pies and burritos, followed by cold selections like cereal and Danish. The patrons could bypass all that and order a cooked breakfast at the registers, which would be brought out to the table when ready. The real point of the place, though, was the coffee, which was very good. Most of the places, you may recall, made espresso drinks; Robert Harris offered those plus regular brewed coffee, of a quite delicious roast and blend.

Forgive me for waxing rhapsodic about the café. The best part of that meal was that we met a local man whose daughter lives in Florida. He loved talking with a couple of Americans, and he gave us some tips on other things to see in the Rotorua area. He was actually from Ngongotaha, a couple of km north of town on the west side of the lake. He told us of the Hamurana Spring, a which puts out around 1 million gallons per hour of fresh, cool water. It’s located a few hundred meters from the north shore of Lake Rotorua, and creates a river at least 20m wide–although not very deep–that flows into the lake.

The track from the carpark up to the spring goes through a small grove of redwoods. Around the spring itself is a fairly elaborate deck system, with one part that juts out so people can look directly down into the spring’s channel through the rock. As the track loops around the spring, there are a couple of places where, if you bring your cup like our breakfast companion suggested, you can obtain a sample of the water and have a taste. It is very good water, although not quite as exquisite as the gent had claimed, and just cellar-cool (around 50°F, 10°C), not fridge-cold.

I did take a photo looking down into the spring, but it basically looks like a wet blob, so I'm not posting it.

After visiting the spring, we took the alternate path back to the carpark to avoid the bulk of the people who were also there. On the way back to Rotorua for a forgettable lunch, we stopped by another place the gent had recommended, the Agrodome. We looked around and checked out the prices for the shows, and decided instead just to have a quick “Bo-peep” in the souvenir shop. We found the cutest little stuffed bird toys that, when squeezed, played recorded calls of the species they represented. We recognized a couple from our previous day’s hike. After stopping by the hotel for our water bottles, we drove back to The Redwoods, as we had planned, to walk the Yellow (Pohaturoa) Track.

Town & Lake

Look familiar?

The track began in the same way from the visitor center through the redwood grove, past the pool and up the hill. Shortly after it started up, it split off to the right to take us through a small saddle and then up the face of the hill overlooking the south end of the valley where the town of Rotorua lay. It led on upward past some erosion on the track to a summit, where a short path led to a lookout on the other side of the hill. This vantage point afforded a view of the lush valley between there and Lake Okareka, but we could not see the lake.

From there, the track went down through swamp gum and white oak forests, and more of the ubiquitous white pines. We came to a bridge over a small creek, but due to the recent rains the creek was now about 6 inches over the bridge. There was a young woman with two dogs in front of us, and one of the dogs was very hesitant to walk through the water. She had to fairly drag it across, while the other waited on the other side and watched. We gave her time to get across and head on down the track before we took our boots off. Thankfully the water was not too chilly, and my toes were not even numbed. Much.

There was a bit more up and down on the track, and it emerged onto a service road near a waste water processing plant, following the road on down to Long Mile Road and the visitor center. We had planned to visit there again to get some more information about something or other, but found it closed–it was after 5pm.

Back to the room to clean up and get on our evening clothes (clean shorts and T-shirt). Tonight we would eat at the Tandoori Palace, the Indian restaurant across Tutanekai Street from The Thai Restaurant. As it had been cloudy all day, and we’d recently walked through a creek, we decided to start with a hot drink, Indian Tea. It was very good, sweet, with milk. We got one vegetarian dish and one chicken dish to share, and enjoyed both the food and the people-watching.

The next day we had to drive back to Auckland and our airport hotel, so with tired muscles and full bellies we went back to the room, and were soon asleep.

New Zealand Diary, Day 14 afternoon

Day 14, afternoon: Wild, Wild Life
The lady at The Redwoods visitor’s center had also clued us in to a couple of lakes in the region, one with a bird-viewing boardwalk. So after enjoying a fine repast purchased from the deli at the local Countdown supermarket, DW and I drove back out Tarawera Road to the Okareka loop. (The info lady had pronounced it oh-CARE-ih-kuh, but I really think it should be OH-kah-RAY-kah.)

The road took us up and over a pass, then down through a little residential area to the lakeside. We came to a small parking area next to a boat ramp, where we found a map posted with directions to the bird sanctuary. We followed the directions, and in less than five minutes we were at an even smaller parking area on a small hilltop overlooking the lake. From there, a well-marked path led down through the brush to the boardwalk built along the shallow shore of the lake.

The first birds we came to were a group of swans. Most of them were some distance out in the lake, but one mother bird and several cygnets were quite close to shore. DW got a couple of very nice shots of them. Partway along the boardwalk there was a photographer’s blind built a bit further out into the lake. We went out to it, but when we opened the door a pair of swallows flew out the window. We saw their nest on the inside wall, and not wanting to disturb them anymore, we returned to the main path.

The boardwalk led back to the shore, where the path continued through a large patch of wild ginger. There was a lot of activity in this ginger, since it was in bloom, mainly in the form of largish blackbirds with a white tuft on the throat. They were lapping the nectar from the ginger blooms. They mostly didn’t mind us, but didn’t sit still long enough to get a good close photo.

There were also some reeds along the shore where a pair of swans was wading, rather than swimming.

We went on down the track, between pastureland and a small stand of trees. From there we could see the houses built on the hill above the lake, and several pleasure craft making their way back to the docks and ramps on the north side of the lake. (After all, it was around 4:30 pm.) Soon we decided we weren't likely to see any more different species, so we started back.

As we got to the reedy area where the pair of swans had been wading, we saw them in the grass and reeds quite a bit closer to the path. DW went ahead alone to a spot about even with them, and took a couple of photos. After she had passed the area, I followed, and the birds seemed undisturbed by us.

The Redwoods information lady had told us of walking tracks that went around the Blue Lake (or Tikitapu), and out to the Green Lake (or Rotokakahi). It so happened that the southern part of the Okareka loop was also the access road to the Blue Lake. As we drove past, though, we saw that it was even yet quite crowded with families on holiday, with their children and dogs, their inflatable rafts and balls, and their portable barbecues and lawn chairs. The bird sanctuary, by contrast, had been fairly sparsely populated with humans. We had made the right decision.

Back at the Rotorua Motor Lodge, we consulted with Faith about a restaurant for supper. She suggested both a Thai and an Indian restaurant, pretty much across from each other on Tutanekai street, downtown. She also told us if we wanted to take a walk after supper, we should visit the Kuirau council park near the hospital.

We cleaned up and drove downtown, finding a parking space on Tutanekai, just north of Arawa, that was no longer being metered (as it was past 5pm). We found The Thai Restaurant–its actual name–immediately, where delectable aromas wafted through the open windows. We asked to be seated at a table near the window, and the hostess said, “That one is reserved for 7:00, but if you can be done by then you are welcome to sit there.” It was just about 6:00, so we readily agreed. The service was very pleasant and unhurried, but still speedy enough that we finished in plenty of time. The food was excellent. While we sat there, a rain storm pelted the street, then moved on, so that it wasn’t even drizzling by the time we left.

Following directions we had been given, we drove west on Arawa Street until it ended in a roundabout at Ranolf. We could see a large green expanse in front of us. We turned north on Ranolf and followed it around past the hospital to the entrance to Kuirau Park. We immediately knew why it had been recommended to us: it was filled with geothermal hot pools! In fact, most of them were so hot there were fences around them to keep people out.

Many of the pools were full of clear water, but there was one very near the entrance carpark that was quite muddy. This photo doesn’t really show how muddy it was, but if you look closely you can see bubbles. (Cliquez á embiggenez.)

This somewhat colorful bird seemed to be enjoying the steam treatment. Maybe he was pondering whether it was worth it to go fishing in the scalding water.

This pool was apparently a flowing spring, and had no regard for the fence. After all, the fence is there to keep people away from the water, not the other way around. I did bend down to touch this water, and it was hot even as it flowed along the ground, but not hot enough to scald at that point.

On the east side of the park along Ranolf Street, there are several flower beds planted, along with trees and tree ferns. There is also this large pond, which is not hot, with the Rotorua Aquatic Center on the other side.

We were quite worn out after our walk in the park, and headed back to the motel for a good night's sleep. After all, we were going back to The Redwoods the next day to take a different track!

New Zealand Diary, Day 14 morning

Day 14, morning: Redwoods?!
Since it was dark when we arrived in Rotorua the night before, we had no idea what we would find off of the main highway. We did know there were geysers and other geothermal features in the area, not only from the brochures, but also from the pervasive smell of sulfur. It was still a surprise, though, to open the curtains and see a huge column of steam rising from the ground just a couple hundred meters from the hotel!

Our hotel (R) and hot pools

We had not originally planned on coming this far in one day, so since we were here we decided to spend the day and one more night here, then maybe go on to Tauranga on the Bay of Plenty coast before we had to make our way back to Auckland. We drove the 2 km back to city center, where the iSite is, to see if we could find a less expensive room. They gave us three alternatives, all of which were along that same 2 km stretch of road. After brekkie at McDonald’s (where I got two more punches in my McCafé card), we went to check out the motels. The first two were older, but decent, but their rates were still in the NZ$120-$135 range. Finally, at the south end of town, just a block or so from the $140 Holiday Inn, was the Rotorua Motor Lodge.

In the office there we met Faith, the hard-working proprietor. She told us she had a room that she detected a bit of mildewy smell in, that would normally be $95, but she’d let us have it for $80. She offered to show it to us, and on the way there amid conversation about it, she lowered the price to $70. In the room, the smell was not very strong, and we like to have the windows open anyway. We knew there wouldn’t be a room in Tauranga for that low price, and it wasn’t that far a drive, so we decided to stay there for two nights–for the same price as the one night at the Holiday Inn!

While checking in, DW asked about low-cost things to do outdoors in the area, explaining that we really liked to hike. Faith said one of her favorite things to do was go to The Redwoods, a privately-owned public area with several hiking tracks, bike trails, and campgrounds & picnic areas. She said, “There’s a blue trail; skip that. Then there’s a green trail; you may as well skip that, too. Then there’s a yellow trail; that's good. It goes up a mountain and looks out over the thermal pools. There’s also a purple trail that’s longer, but I haven’t done it, yet.” She also told us about the council park near the hospital and city center, Kuirau, where there were lots of hot pools.

After putting our stuff in the room, we followed the directions Faith gave us to The Redwoods. They have a simple, but nice, visitor’s center, with a large 3-D model of the area. The friendly lady behind the information counter helped us decide between the Yellow Track (approx. 7.5 km, 2 hours) and the Purple Track (11.5 km, 3½ hours). It was only about 9:30, and we knew we walked faster than the stated times, so we started on the Purple (Tokorangi Pa) track.

Most of the walking tracks start with a level stroll through the large redwood grove on the valley floor. Yes, California Redwoods, sequoia sempervirens. They had been brought to this area at around the turn of the 20th century for lumber purposes, along with European larch, Douglas fir, and a few other species. Just before we started up the hill, there was a spring with clear, still water. The track then climbed the mountain with some steep sections, including stairs. We walked around through working forest, some of which had recently been logged, and at the top was the site of Tokorangi Pa. The pa had been long abandoned, of course, and we could only see minimal signs of it. The way down passed along a small creek and by a meadow with a few cows, then finally back along a forest road to the visitor’s center and carpark. I’ll just let the photos tell the rest of the story.

Rotorua town and lake

Cattle on a hillside

Signpost at the summit

Trees in rows, as if
it were a cropfield

Oh, by the way, we were correct that we would finish before the estimated 3½ hours. It took us just under 3 hours, and we really took our time on the last half. DW recorded some video to catch the birds singing. If I have any success at editing those to show off those birds, I’ll post the video here or in Google+.

New Zealand Diary, Days 12 & 13

Day 12: More Aimless Wandering
New Year’s Eve! It may have been the rainy weather, or it may just have been the jet lag wearing off, but we slept in again. After scoring some breakfast at the supermarket and putzing around a bit more downtown, it was time to queue up for the ferry, then off we went to Wellington. We drove around the metro area a bit, then headed up Highway 1 to start looking for lodging, as it was now close to 5pm. We drove through Porirua and were considering a few places, when we came to Plimmerton. We first turned down a side street, but seeing nothing but small shops and beach there, we went about another block up the highway and saw the Spinnaker Motel. There we found a very nice older gentleman who was minding the place for a friend who was on holiday. He offered us a great deal on a large room with a queen bed and a full bed, a sitting area, and a full kitchenette. Since the first street we’d turned down had a beach with a nice walk along it, we accepted.

We were in the mood for pizza, so we asked where to get a good one. He told us where to find a Hell Pizza (the chain I mentioned in my previous Petone post). We went there and ordered for takeaway, since there wasn’t really a dining area. The kids working there were so friendly and helpful! We got a combo pizza called “Wrath” and an order of “Spirit” pasta (alfredo sauce, onions, mushrooms, and bacon). The standard pizza sauce in New Zealand is similar to BBQ sauce, and the venison pepperoni was more like salami, but the pizza was a good combination of flavors. The pasta, though, was outstanding, with creamy, garlicky sauce and nice chunks of onion and bacon.

After clearing away the debris left from our scarf session, we sat back to watch a little TV (and do a little tweeting), and drifted off to sleep.

Day 13: Plimmerton, Palmerston North, and Panic

We awoke nice and early in 2012 to mostly sunny skies, and headed back down to the beach area, which was the old town center. We had a light brekkie at the coffee shop on the corner, then started walking down the parade–Sunset Parade. The tide was out, so there was from 50 to 100m of rocky beach, with plenty of gulls and shags flying around, sitting, and calling. Across Onehunga Bay we could see the northern reaches of Porirua–a nice neighborhood with a golf course, and a hill with communications towers at the top. In the other direction was Plimmerton itself, rows of houses on the hillside, neighborly but not crowded. Sunset Parade is very short, but Moana Road takes over and continues north for another 1½ km or so. Along the way I saw the remains of an old narrow-gauge railway that likely went out to the long-gone pier, to haul the day’s catch from the boats to the market. Now, there are no boats, there is no market; just houses with well-manicured front lawns that overlook the sea.













We spent a couple of hours walking down the road and on the beach, taking photos of the seascape and of the houses. One house in particular caught my eye: the Somme House. Apparently it’s one of the more historic buildings in town, because it features lettering in the stucco above the top floor windows, reading “Somme House 1916”. We also spied a cat waiting patiently for one of the sparrows to alight on the roof of her house.

Refreshed from our walk, we got back in the car and started north. We planned to go through Palmerston North (apparently there is a Palmerston on the South Island, too) and over to Napier in Hawke’s Bay on the east coast for the night. A short way out of Plimmerton is Paraparaumu, which I had fun saying over and over (still do). As we approached Palmerston North on Highway 57, we saw a sign for an alternate route (56). The distance was nearly identical, so we took the alternate route, figuring it would be less touristy. I don’t know what’s on Hwy 57, but Hwy 56 is certainly devoid of any roadside attractions or tourist businesses. It crosses the Manawatu River and passes through farmland, coming into town from the west, where Hwy 57 passes by town and Massey University on the south.

We were actually glad to have come into town from the direction we did, because we saw a Warehouse store (similar to TJ Maxx or Burlington Coat Factory) and some likely lunch places. After exploring downtown with its large green town square, and finding everything closed (it was New Year's Day, after all), we backtracked and had lunch. We stopped at the Warehouse to look at sport shoes for me, since my old ones smelled of sea water. We found a pair for NZ$30 (US$24)–score! We then went back to a park we had seen on the Manawatu River for a walk, so I could try them out.

The Palmerston North council has done a wonderful job with the riverside track, which we accessed from a park on the east side of Fitzherbert Street (which goes out to the University). We started east, up river, on the paved track, and soon came to a tower that gave information about the height of the river and its flow rate. There was no flood danger on this day, and we continued southeast around a slight bend and toward a high bluff on the other side of the river. That land mass was split by a creek valley, which created a beautiful green backdrop to the Manawatu. On reflection, I realize the bluff face had experienced a recent slide because of the heavy rains in the first part of December 2011.

The river flows south, then bends sharply back west as it gets to the bluff, so for us that meant the track turned left. It also ran out of pavement and became a slightly muddy gravel path. We ambled past a small, clover-carpeted grove of unspecified trees, up toward a rise where we could see the edge of a nondescript residential area. We found there was a generic golf course on our left, and as the trees and brush thinned out we could see run-of-the-mill golfers enjoying the mild summer day.

On the way back to the park and the car, we met a couple walking their two Weimaraners. We are both fascinated with the silver-colored dogs, so we stopped to talk to them. They confirmed that the dogs are great companions for hiking; he said he takes them hunting, too. Apparently there are quite a few deer running around on top of that bluff.

The new shoes had performed admirably! With our legs stretched, we got back in the car and went on toward Napier. After just a few kilometers at the town of Ashhurst, a sign informed us that Highway 3 (which follows the river) was out due to flooding and washouts, and we would have to detour over Saddle Road. We are so glad we did! The power-generating windmills we could see from the river in Palmerston North are actually on that saddle. At the summit of the road there’s even a small enclosed area, carved out of pastureland, around one of the towers, with consumer-oriented information about the windmills.

We went on to Napier, and started out going to the Port of Napier following the road that led to the hotel-lined Marine Parade. We inquired in a few of the hotels, but rates were much too high, and there were no vacancies anyway. Well, it was still fairly early, not 6:00 yet, so we looked at our map and figured we could make Taupo by 8:30. It was after 9:00 when we got to town, because it was not only growing dark, but we drove through several heavy rain showers in the mountain passes. We were able to find a restroom and food, but completely unable to find a hotel room.

The next-closest large town is Rotorua. We really weren’t interested in visiting Rotorua, we thought, because the most advertised attractions there are geothermal features–hot pools, geysers, and such–and Maori cultural shows. We came to New Zealand to do outdoor stuff, and we’ve already been to Yellowstone. But we needed to find a room soon, so over more mountains to Rotorua we went. The motels down the main boulevard were either dark or displaying “No Vacancy” signs. We found the Princes Gate a couple of blocks off the boulevard, near the Government Gardens, but they wanted NZ$165 for the night. The night was half over!

The clerk there made a couple of calls, and told us we should try the Holiday Inn. We drove back down the boulevard and two blocks over to the hotel. The lady behind the desk told us their normal rate was NZ$165 as well, but she was able to discount it to NZ$140. Since it was now 1am, we reluctantly acceded to pay that price. When we got to the room, we found the electronic key (a rarity in New Zealand) didn’t work. The housekeeper let us in so DW could unpack while I took the key back to the desk for recoding. When I got back, DW was still talking to the housekeeper about things to do in Rotorua.

We also learned that the 1st through 4th of January is a holiday in New Zealand, and that’s why the hotels are so full!

Finally, we were able to stretch out and rest. At least they had good pillows.

New Zealand Diary, Day 11

Day 11: “The Snout”

We slept in just a bit before checking out, partly because of the mid-night interruption, and partly because the cool, rainy weather was conducive to it. We’d made a booking on the BlueBridge ferry for the next afternoon. Our plan was to stay in Picton, the ferry’s port town, this night, so we wouldn’t be rushed getting to the pier on time. We traveled back up Highway 1, past Postman’s Road, past the Ohau seals, past fog-shrouded forests and hills, past the salt farms of Ward, until we got to the township of Seddon. We hadn't eaten anything substantial, so we stopped at the Seddon SuperValue market (look it up on Google Maps Street View) for some fruit and yogurt, or maybe lunch fare. We took our time in this store, as well, looking over the warm pies, the cold sandwiches, the fruit & dairy selections, and the chip section. I wish I’d had the camera with me in the store, because they had chip flavors I hadn’t seen before. The ones that stuck with me the most involved bacon. There was bacon, bacon and sour cream, and bacon cheddar.

We had our lunch, and went on to Picton; it was overcast but not raining, and the iSite was open. After all, even though Nelson and Blenheim are the centers of activity for Marlborough, Picton is the point of entry for many people. In the iSite, we were helped by an effervescent young redhead, who booked us an ensuite room (private bath/toilet) at the Buccaneer backpackers’ inn on Wairawa Road, with sheep in the yard and an almost close view of the marina. Being close to the marina was desirable, because there is a walking track that begins there, and the price was right.

We checked in and got settled in to our room, which did in fact overlook the marina, part of the town of Picton, and the sheep in the front yard. We changed into hiking shoes and grabbed our water bottles, and armed with a map from the iSite we set off for the trailhead. To get there, we walked down a couple of residential streets, and between a couple of houses through a council-maintained shortcut. We found the trailhead directly across the street from the marina entrance, and started around the densely vegetated hillside. On the other side, the track was interrupted by a cul-de-sac from another neighborhood, then it continued on up the sea-side of the hill. Eventually we came out of the brush at the end of a dirt road, with a sign pointing the way to the “Snout Track” through a gate designed to bar access by vehicles, including bicycles.

The Snout Track

“The Snout” is a narrow, crooked finger of land that separates Picton Harbour from Waikawa Bay to the northeast, in Queen Charlotte Sound, and the western face of this spit (plus a few more hectares) is a reserve called the Victoria Domain. The Snout Track climbs through the Domain along the relatively steep hillside that descends to Picton Harbour, reaching its highest point at Charlotte’s View. It then continues down through the ferns and totara trees to the very tip of the spit. The total distance of the Snout Track by itself is about 4 km, or 2½ miles, so it took us about an hour to make the walk one way, after the 30 minutes or so it’d taken to get to the start of it. It was certainly worth the time, though. While going out, we saw only two other parties, and we were alone the whole time we were at the Tip of the Snout. We met a few more parties going out as we were coming back, but we were still impressed with how few people were on the track for such a populated area.

I disappear around
the corner.

A sloop,
on the sound,
from the Snout

Notice the kayak

Charlotte’s View is on a peak about 2½ km from the start of the track. When we passed there on the way out, the sky was cloudy bright, no rain, about 70°F. By the time we got to the tip, it was beginning to darken, sprinkle, and cool off. It stayed fairly mild as we climbed from the marina back to the hotel, but when we were yet about 8 blocks away, suddenly a chill wind came up and started whipping the rain at us sideways. As we climbed the outside stairs to our room the rain slammed into our backs, relief coming only when we turned the corner to cross the deck to our door.

After drying off and changing clothes, we decided to go for coffee and explore the downtown area, defined as High Street between Broadway and London Quay, with a little spillover onto Wellington Street–that’s about four square blocks. The storm was still raging as we ran down to the car, but by the time we got downtown, the wind had died down and the rain was a light drizzle. We drove around for a few minutes before finding a 2-hour parking space, then went looking for a likely place for coffee. We stopped in a nice little restaurant with a courtyard that I can’t remember the name of, and decided to have a couple of the specials they had posted. There was a coffee pot and cups set out on a table by the bar where we ordered, and the barmaid told us it was normally $2 a cup, but it wasn’t very fresh so she wouldn’t charge us. For free coffee, it wasn’t half bad. The food was very tasty, and came in almost American-sized proportions. We ate our fill, then looked around downtown a bit more, but there wasn’t really anything that spurred our interest. We did, however, locate a grocery store where we could get something for breakfast in the morning, and got a bit of sweets for later. Then it was back to our room for the night, again quite exhausted from the day’s activities.