Doomsday

Mile 715 / KM 1151
Taumarunui to National Park

Audiobook of the week: 'Becoming' by Michelle Obama

I miss: Home


It all started with a very boring dirt road on a hot summer/winter day. We hadn't seen anyone all morning and were completely immersed in our audiobooks when it started to rain. We quickly changed into our rain gear and crossed a river right after. The dirt road turned into a narrow muddy track overgrown with ferns when we still had about 13km to go. We passed one of those crazy forest vehicles (I have no idea what they're called. Think golf cart / ATV on steroids). I looked over to Rosi and said "imagine if we got a hitch in that thing. That would be my dream right now". After hiking another sad kilometer in the rain, three big men suddenly appeared on trail. They were trappers and THE OWNERS OF THE GOLF-CART-THINGIE!!! So when they offered us a lift... well we had to say yes, obviously. Are we perhaps the first TA hikers to hitch this part of the trail? They squeezed in the front while the two of us sat in the back wearing our rain gear and little helmets. Dreams do come true. Riding in that thing was so much fun.

We were cold and soaked when we got to the Holiday Park Campsite and decided to treat ourselves to the 'SPA'. Little did we know that the word 'SPA' was a bit of an exaggeration. When we entered the room we both started laughing because we were looking at a hot tub which someone had crammed into the smallest pathetic room. Got in anyways and for the first time in weeks I felt clean. Like actually clean.

My alarm went off at 6 the next morning. Getting out of a warm sleeping bag is the hardest thing in the world and doing so while trying to not make contact with the cold wet walls of your tent is even harder. We started climbing up Tongariro Crossing and we had the mountain to ourselves for most part of the morning. After that the tourists that had started from the other side of the hill began to pass us. I must have said 'Hi' about 200 times that day. We had lunch at Blue lake which was absolutely gorgeous. The trail winds through a big crater and then passes emerald lake and then goes up a very steep shale ridge to a plateau with an amazing view of Mt. Doom and the Red Crater. Absolutely mind blowing. If you ever get the chance to go up there, do it.

The Oturere Hut was our goal for the night. It's about 5km off trail and we got there at about 3pm. Since we had already done the Red Crater we decided to spontaniously add the Northern Circuit and Tama Lakes. You know, might as well, while we're here. It was my favourite day of this trip so far. Finally being in the mountains felt amazing.

Volcanos are special. Mt. Doom is special. Mt. Shasta was special. I've always been facinated by them. They have a certain energy to them that is hard to describe. Their perfect triangular shape with the flat plateau on top. Calm for thousands of years and then out of the blue they erupt and destroy everything around them. Just like a week ago on White Island.

We camped at Whakapapa Village for a night and then hiked 13km down to the main highway where we put our thumbs out to hitch a ride back to Taumarunui. A lovely Indian gentleman ended up picking us up. He's the owner of an Indian restaurant that just opened 3 weeks ago and he offered us a place at his house. We gladly accepted so I am writing this while lying in my own bed in my own room. How nice is that!!! Can't get over the generosity of the people here.

Next up is a 7/8 day canoing trip from Taumarunui to Wanganui. The weather looks horrible but whatever. I've heard different theories about the river by now. Some say it gets less dangerous when there's more water but then when there's too much water it start becoming more dangerous than when there's no water and so on so.... I don't really know, but it will be fine. Right!?

Soaked.

After having been in the rain all day we thought we’d treat ourselves to a “SPA”. The shittiest SPA I’ve ever seen.

Dom and Mt. Doom

Breakfast. Coffee & bar

Lower Tama Lake