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We're going on an Adventure! First off, you should know about Krystal's love for waterfalls and needless to say, New Zealand does NOT disappoint when it comes to that, so due to us writing 4 novels worth about the North Island alone, like the Lord of the Ring movies this is going to be a 3 parter - North Island, South Island and New Zealand Waterfalls!
& so the story begins…
New Zealand, North Island
After a smooth flight with LATAM into Auckland (Seriously North America get your airlines in order) we were greeted by one of Krystal's old friends Nick (whom she met 10 years ago, almost to the day backpacking in Costa Rica). He and his wife were kind enough to put us up for the week and toured us around for a sneak preview of what NZ has to offer… It offers a lot, New Zealand is stunning.
Our first week in Auckland we were treated to an impromptu “Intro to New Zealand” by way of the museum in Auckland. We hadn't planned this but Andi thought it would be a fun afternoon out. Nick smooth-talked us in (Auckland residents get in free) and we spent the afternoon learning about the country's volcanic foundations, the Polynesian peoples who first settled there, as well as the unique flora and fauna of the islands. The remainder of our week featured some gorgeous walks around the ocean and hills, black sand beaches, a day trip to Waiheke Island, and some of the best food we have eaten thus far in our lives. The fish and chips!! It’s only a mild exaggeration to say we would pay a plane ticket here just to have them.
Fun Fact: Krystal is now addicted to steak and cheese pies. These handheld pockets of savory joy are a staple food in NZ and she has become particularly attached to them. So if you need to bribe or distract her (if she's annoyed) you are welcome, toss a safety pie and you'll be ok.
We were 75km outside of Auckland when the meat pies began to kick in. We had muesli, 4 ginger beers, 3 bags of corn chips, and 12 lamb steaks, and Kiwi Land was about to get real.
And so the van life adventure begins! Our chariot for this adventure and home for the month was a white, 2000 Toyota Hiace. We named her Lucy, after her steering rack although at times my name for her shifted to “you big, fat, old Bessie!”, particularly while going up hills…at 50km/h…in third gear. She was modified to be a camper how do we say… not professionally… although not too bad for a home job. The speedometer and fuel gauge didn’t work so well, the windshield leaked on the driver's side, the tires were inconsistent for pressure, to say the least, and the grey water tank was plugged for a week and overflowed (got that sorted by a lovely gent in Napier) but otherwise, she was a sturdy and reliable companion, kind of like an old Clydesdale. She did get us to Milford Sound and back after all so I can't give her too much grief. If you are looking to rent a campervan in New Zealand we highly recommend Camplify, it was by far the cheapest rental place we found.
While we are on the subject of driving we need to take a minute to talk about getting around in New Zealand. The roads here really are something else, if you are even remotely a driver, petrol head, or just enjoy a good drive then you must drive in New Zealand in your lifetime. You get the impression they designed the roads so that no scenery was allowed to be touched. The result is a race car driver's dream. Ribbons of smooth tarmac draped over the hills and fields with many twists and turns climbs and slopes…..all in a 100km/h zone! You’ll die if you go 100 mind you, but hey they give you the option to go ahead and try, very kiwiish. Just make sure you pay attention to the recommended speed around corners and you'll be fine. Unfortunately, Alex's keen rally driver instincts and reflexes are wasted in a boat with little power, skinny tires, and a loose steering rack. We soldiered on nonetheless and really, who wants to just zip by the beautiful views? Alex has decided that a drive holiday will be in his future plans, with a proper speedy rental car and a small fortune set aside for fuel.
Freedom Camping in New Zealand
A wee disclaimer before we dive in. Our foray into freedom camping wasn’t the smoothest. It turns out that New Zealand has clamped down a bit on people just parking up anywhere to sleep. If you plan a trip make sure to check the regulations and places to stay. Free spaces were limited in the north island and we often found that by noon you were out of luck for the minimal spaces available. We did manage to find spots to stay but the routine of breaking camp to drive to the next spot and post up to keep it was putting a damper on our exploring. Fortunately, this eased up a bit as we moved south and by Napier we were having a much better time hiking, exploring, and relaxing. The weather also wasn't the best. If you google travelling in NZ in November lots of blogs will tell you that it's lovely in the spring and warming into summer. This year they had a long winter and so we spent a good bit of time in the rain and wet. Krystal went as far as hitting an Op Shop for more blankets to keep warm at night. If you do plan to travel in the off season make sure to check how the season is going.
Hot water beach/Cathedral Cove was our first round of stops and not overly successful as it turned out. We had planned to spend a couple of days up there to get used to Lucy and enjoy a soft start to our trip. We turned up at the hot water beach only to find that there was nowhere to camp. So with a bit of reluctance, we booked in for the night at a paid spot and hopped over to the beach. It is a cool spot, thermal vents cause hot spots on the beach which heat the water to be properly warm, and if you dig a little pool you can have your own beach side hot tub. Lots of company though and the cold air coming in was less than ideal. We compromised for a foot bath and a walk on the beach. Cathedral Cove was a complete miss. It comes up on New Zealand travel blogs as something you have to see. Unfortunately, the walking trail had been washed out recently and they had no motivation to fix it. Kayak/Boat tours were the only way to access the cove while we were there and it seemed that they were enjoying the extra revenue with the paths being closed. So a couple of missed swings off the bat, with that experience under our belts we headed south and towards Middle Earth!
Hobbiton Movie Set, New Zealand
Hobbiton!! If you are any sort of Tolkien fan then this is a must-go stop for a NZ tour. When they built the original set for LOTR it was torn down after filming. When they returned for the Hobbit movies the land owners requested that the set be made permanent. It is now a fully functioning shire loaded with detail and good nerdy tour guides to ensure you enjoy your time. You really do feel as if you have been transported into Middle Earth while you are there. After walking the streets of the shire we were led through a full-on hobbit house and finished off with a pint at the Green Dragon pub. I could go on being a nerd but the punchline is, if you like Tolkien - Go there.
Fun Fact: The hobbit's gardens are functional. There are full time and part time gardeners who work at planting and harvesting these gardens, the food that they harvest is then served for the second breakfast and dinner tours.
New Zealand is a country formed of volcanos. Hawaii often gets the title of the volcano islands but you might be surprised that NZ is formed on the base of 24 volcanos which includes 8 active ones. As a result, it is a place where you can find thermal activity aplenty. We had already explored the hot water beach and upon arriving in Rotorua we noticed that there were signs all over for thermal spas, although our first clue was the pungent smell of egg permeating in the air. Unfortunately, we arrived in the middle of a terrific downpour and so our adventuring was limited to strolling the shops. Still a win though as Krystal was able to find some lovely Paua shell ornaments for her wedding clients. The big win came the next day, the hot and cold river!
Fortunately, the morning sun was shining and we took a short hike up to the saddest little “waterfall” NZ had to offer. It was also noted as a warm river, so we took a dip! The water was warmish, tepid even but Krystal insisted the next spot was a winner. It was. Just a bit south of a thermal spa we found a walkway down into the hot/cold river. We should note that this little bathing hole is also completely free to enjoy. The experience was as unique as it was relaxing. The hot river flows out of a thermal vent and is properly hotter than your hot tub cranked up to max. The cold river flows beside it and the two meet in the middle at the swimming hole. A unique sensation occurs as the waters don't seem to actually mix. You can feel the current and cold temperature of the one river at the same time as you feel the hot flow of the other, unlike most bodies of water the temperatures don't seem to disperse into each other immediately. Having your feet cool at the same time as your arms and chest are being warmed, in the same body of water throws you off a little bit. We spent a couple of hours enjoying the heat soaking followed by some cool dips. It was a lovely way to relax after a few days of cool rain.
Getting the Ring to Mordor - Tongariro Alpine Crossing
For those of you wanting to get your own ring to Mordor this next bit is for you. Tongariro alpine crossing! An 8-10 hour hike through and over a volcano! Just be aware there are no eagles to save you on this one. The full hike is one that needs a bit of planning and booking. A 4 hour parking restriction at each end prevents you from just parking and hiking it and the trail is a one-way trek. Typically this involves having a tour company do the pickup/drop off on the other end. In the interest of saving money we had decided to simply park up and hike as far as we could in the time limit. The landscape is incredible! The sparse bushes and grass on the plain are all the vegetation to be found in a landscape of rock and boulders. Giant porous rock dots the ground and you can imagine them glowing with liquid heat after being thrown from the nearby volcano. The initial 45 minutes of the walk is rather easy. A raised path keeps your feet out of the muck and more importantly, keeps tourists from disturbing the environment. At this point, you reach the first hut, a bookable camping checkpoint for those planning to trek the full mountain. Then the path disappears and you start to feel like your trek to Mordor is a bit more real. We made it as far as the Soda Spring Falls, because of course Krystal's love of waterfalls, a good 2 hour walk in. We wanted to try for the first ridge up the slope but unfortunately, a heavy fog came in over the hills and numerous warning signs in the area told us it was not to be messed with. So we started getting the ring to Mordor at least, let's call it a scouting trip for the next run. Not like the fate of Aragorn and the gang is in the balance at all. For sure a “next time” adventure now that we know about it.
Bell Rock Hike, New Zealand
The Quest to Bell Rock (written from Alex's point of view) - A day that shall live in infamy as my nervous system still has mild PTSD. I've mentioned the joyful road conditions around New Zealand, our journey to one of the most breathtaking spots on the north island begins with just such a road. The catch was that this road wasn't paved, an hour and a half of steep, twisty washboard to get to the trailhead was in the cards. Needless to say, my nerves were thoroughly frayed, my teeth mostly dislodged, and I was checking Lucy for damage by the time we were set to start. Krystal's assurances of “it'll be worth it” were not doing much to ease my mood, she did this a lot throughout the trip. Fortunately, the hike was indeed worth it. We started with a rather steep and twisty hour up through a tropical rainforest. The birds kept us company in the brush while we dodged roots and rocks. After an hour of solid leg workout, we emerged into a hilltop farmers' field, a stark contrast from our tropical path. Another hour or so of dodging sheep led us to a properly remarkable sight. The mountain looks as if it has been eroded away by water, leaving a shear cliff and smooth rock formations from which it derives its name. I'm not bothered by heights so much but this took my breath a bit. The scope of how far down the valley below is from the top was staggering and made me wonder if anyone had tried a base jump from there. Naturally, Krystal wanted pictures, “epic” pictures, and my nerves took another shot as she hopped around the ledges like a nimble little goat checking out angles and views. I had assured many people prior to leaving that Krystal would be taken care of and the narrow paths with their steep drops, as well as her insistence on sitting as close to the edges as possible, had me concerned about my life span upon returning home. Fortunately, no mishaps occurred and we returned to the van without incident.
Napier was next on our list of stops and we needed to stop off at a mechanic to fix the water tank. Despite being an inconvenience, that experience also gave us knowledge and insight into New Zealand culture. While in Rotorua we had seen Mauri carrying red, black and white flags; we saw this again in Napier and we asked Dorian (mechanic) about it. It turned out that the Mauri were protesting against legislation that was in the works and that the Mongrel Mob (a Mauri bike gang) were causing a good bit of trouble over it. Fortunately, we didn't have any trouble with this but it was interesting to see the parallels with First Nations people of North America. We finished our afternoon with a hike up the local mountain, the sun was shining and we took advantage of some rare tanning time. We finished up in Napier meeting up with one of my old schoolmates. Turns out he and his wife were down on holiday and staying at the same camp as us. Kinda cool how life works out like that.
Our ventures into the South Island begin with a midnight ferry ride. Not as mysterious or adventurous as it sounds, we just waited too long to book and then that was all we could get. We drove from Napier into what can only be described as cyclone force, “get off my roads” style winds. Apparently “Windy Wellington” applies to the whole south tip of the North Island which meant Alex lost about 10 pounds in sweat trying to keep our boat on the road. Oh yes, the roads are still the twisty and joyful children of a teenage racing driver but now they have wind gusts from all directions! What fun! The saving grace of driving through the Lethbridge of NZ was the Wind Farm Cafe (no we can’t make this up). We stopped off for hands down the best meat pie, coffee and doughnut thus far. For a wee bit of perspective, Krystal doesn’t generally eat cakes, muffins, doughnuts, or most sweet baking really, but she nommed down that donut right quick. But anyway we’re getting distracted by food…likely hungry while writing this…. Having reached Wellington we gassed up, grabbed groceries, some fish and chips and boarded the ferry.
Here ends the first part of our adventure in New Zealand. In order to do it proper justice we have decided that this will be a 2-part novel. We hope you are enjoying our New Zealand adventures thus far. If you haven't seen our Finding Nemo guide on Sydney, you should check it out.
Thanks for being here friend, till next time.
Xo Krystal