Day 42 & 43 Taupo, Huka Falls, Thermal Explorer Highway and Napier

Oh what a day. Another glorious, beautiful spring day. It was so nice we couldn't get going, we just wanted to relax and enjoy the weather. So we decided to do a few chores in the morning. Kathy did laundry, Rod worked on the blog, Kathy cleaned the camper, Rod worked on the blog. I was exhausted by lunch time.

After lunch we decided to drive over to see the Huka Falls. It is the most photographed spot in New Zealand, probably because there aren't any stairs.

Huka Falls



Huka Falls



Swimming pool blue would be the closest I could describe the color of the water going over and through the falls. It was very distinct. The falls weren't very big but there sure was a lot of water being forced through a small space.


After watching and enjoying the falls for awhile we ventured down to Lake Taupo, both the lake and the town. 



Town of Lake Taupo




Lake Taupo

















Lake Taupo was created by a massive volcanic eruption around 2500 years ago. The bang blew a 660 square kilometer hole in the earth which sent ash flying all over the world, even as far as China.
Today Lake Taupo is known vacation spot and a world renowned trout fishing mecca.

Lake Taupo Harbor










 








You can get a view of Mt. Ngauruhoe, Mt. Tongariro and Mt. Raupehu from the shores of Lake Taupo. It's a pretty nice picture, just imagine it without cloud coverage. Hopefully on our return visit we will be able to spend time in Tongariro National Park where all three mountains are located.

We made our way back to the campsite and relaxed for the rest of the evening. Kathy left me all alone again when she went out to enjoy the sunset.
 

Friday (Day 43) brought with it clouds and the threat of rain. We had planned to travel towards the west coast today but due to mother nature we did an about face and headed east. We started out of town on Hwy 5 towards Napier and Hawks Bay. The highway is called the Thermal Explorer Highway and the first part of the drive was pretty uneventful. At about the 60 kilometer mark we entered into the Waipunga Falls Scenic Reserve and started to climb until we came to the Waipunga Falls.

Waipunga Falls

Once we had passed through the Scenic Reserve we started to see some pretty spectacular farm land.  Just imagine living in this valley and having to face this every time you walked out your front door.



We arrived in Napier in time for lunch so we parked downtown and went looking for a restaurant.  We had lunch and walked around downtown before heading to the beach.

The beach front area of Napier is now a lovely park.  In 1931 the town of Napier was destroyed in an earthquake and some of the remains where the park now stands were just plowed under. 

 

When the town was rebuilt it was done in the Art Deco Style Architecture of the 1930's and many of the buildings still remain today.  The art deco styling has become a tourist attraction in itself.

We finished our walk along the beach, well actually the board walk as it was too hard walking on the beach.  The small black pebbles that make up the beach shifted with each step you took and just made it too difficult.  It certainly gave the beach a very black look.



Once we arrived back at the van we looked for a campsite and settled in.  We were parked beside a couple that had a nice accent.  Canadian.  Barry and  Elaine are from British Columbia and are on a 85 day tour that includes Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand and the Cook Islands. 

Barry and Elaine La Pointe

They are nice people and we spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening chatting.  It was a nice time and another great day in Kiwi Land.