2018 - Taupo, NZ (Part 1)
Huka Falls and white water rafting
Thursday 27 December 2018 - Saturday 29 December 2018
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2018 Taupo
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Thursday 27 December
A long and relatively slow drive from Whangarei, via Auckland to Taupo. Road works near Hamilton and slow traffic around Tirau contributed to this. Once we got there, everything was good. The motel was very nice, a short walk from the town centre, and we had a view of the lake and the mountains. Dinner in town by the lake front.
Friday 28 December
Breakfast in cafe in town and there was an issue in that there was not enough toast provided to soak up the poached eggs. Not quite sure why I had to buy extra toast just to match the number of eggs provided.
Out to Huka Falls and the Wairakei Geothermal area.
The exit from the lake towards Huka Falls.
Hung and Huka Falls.
Huka Falls.
The narrowest part of Huka Falls.
The main cataract on the Waikato River at Huka Falls.
The down stream section of Huka Falls
A peacock near Taupo.
A llama near Taupo.
Another llama.
A walk around town, booked the rafting, a visit to the supermarket (the motel unit has a small kitchen and eating in saves a heap of money, especially in a touristy town like Taupo) and a lazy afternoon.
Saturday 29 December
Rafting day. We drove to Turangi to meet the group who would be rafting down the Tongariro River. It is a Grade III so it is bumpy in places, but nothing too wild though.
The two group were a mix of locals (only us) and tourists from all over the world. We had a two Americans, and an Argentine. The other raft were two Europeans (can't remember where they were from) and an American family.
The two groups before we started down the river.
Us ready to start down the river.
Us coming down the river.
Going over the bumpy bits at the end of the run.
Still coming down the river.
Almost at the bottom.
The other raft at the bottom of the run.
It was great fun. I wasn't sure Hung would like it, but she absolutely loved it, that is until a rogue wave hit her fair and square in the face. Given the river starts on a mountain very close to here, the water was not tropical. The company were well organised, the equipment looked safe and well maintained and the crew knew what they were doing. Beers and hotdogs at their base afterwards.
Posted by nzhamsta 12:00 Archived in New Zealand
