Jo and Sarb's Year Off

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Day 354 (Tue 26 June) - Gatwick Airport, London

Arrived into Gatwick at 7am.

Felt quite good to be back; familiar signs, knowing what to do etc. However we both felt sad that our little adventure was coming to an end. The year went by so, so quickly.

Out of all the control areas and feeling a little befuzzled we were perplexed to see a pair of women tearing down toward us waving balloons. Sarb briefly worried about our safety before observing that the women in question were none other than the mother and sister in law. Sidestepping any over exuberant displays of affection (we are in England after all) he watched Jo get a slobbering. Yep, we are definitely back at home!

From Gatwick we caught a train to Rae's place in Saarth Laanden.

Back home. Back with family and friends. Wallet a bit lighter.

Would be doing it again?

We'd fly off t'row!

Monday, June 25, 2007

Day 353 (Mon 25 June) - Simi Valley, Los Angeles

Last day of our rather epic trip.

Slept, having set as many alarms as we could. Woke at 3am and having got ourselves sorted drove to the car hire place near LAX.

We were very nervous as we didn't know how much we would have to pay for the damage to the car. Found the pound and drove in and explained to the supervisor the issue. He basically looked at the damage and laughs us off. We took this as the equivalent of saying 'Get outta here, you crazy Brits'. So we did.

Took the shuttle bus to the airport, during which Sarb struck up his usual chit chat with the driver.

Check in was a right pain. Two problems. 1) They had a self service check in thing going where basically it went wrong each time. It just did not work. 2) They were attempting queuing LA style. Like the rides at Universal it looked like you were getting to the end, only to turn a corner and see it snaking out to the horizon. At various intervals they would call people out of the queue that were likely to miss their flights. Call me old fashioned but if they want to know about queuing they would only need to fly the average Brit, call them a 'Human Embarkation Consultant (Airborne Division)', pay them a thousand pounds a day and problem sorted.

Our flight was not till 7.35am so once we eventually got to the other side we didn't have much time before we were called. Settled in and flew to New York for about 4pm. Most of the flight was spent with Sarb glued to the window watching the wide expanses of desert and farms. (Sarb has a secret: he has always wanted to go to Nebraska. Go figure!!)

Sat around the airport for a few hours for our connection that we duly got at 6.50pm.

Tried to sleep but couldn't really. Mixed emotions on flying back to London.

Sunday, June 24, 2007

Day 352 (Sun 24 June) - Simi Valley, Los Angeles

Today is Jo's birthday!!!

As a special treat Sarb thought that it be wonderful to drive about 200km NE, into the desert, to check out some US Airforce bases. He'd read up that you could park up near to the base and sit out and watch all manner of aircraft taking off and landing.

Jo begged to differ so we settled on driving North from the Simi Valley along the coast roads.

Stopped off at numerous small coastal towns and just generally wandered around. Sarb was quite taken aback as to how stunning the natural environment is around here.

California is truly a blessed place.

Back at base we celebrated with a little cocktail!

Saturday, June 23, 2007

Day 351 (Sat 23 June) - Simi Valley, Los Angeles

Today we simply chilled.

Done some shopping in the nearby mall and then went to famous Dave's BBQ.

We were pretty hungry at this point so instead of getting seperate dinners opted to go for the two person platter.

Well, it's no wonder Americans are so big. We had what can only be described as an enormous and excellent meal. Sarb, not being the largest of folk, decided to put on a real show managed to demolish over two thirds of it!

He did complain of being a little full as he was rolled out of the joint.

Friday, June 22, 2007

Day 350 (Fri 22 June) - Simi Valley, Los Angeles

Today we continued on our jolly and went for a drive round Beverley Hills, stopping off at Rodeo drive.

Had fun drive and walk around the shops. To be honest, apart from the sunshine, Sarb couldn't see what the fuss was about ( [1], [2]).

Anyway, headed over to a beach area where we treated ourselves to a hotdog and Coke. Well we are in the US after all. Then headed on over to Venice Beach to watch the muscly chaps lift loads of weights and generally admire themselves in the mirrors.

Upon leaving Venice Beach we were just about to pull out of our parking slot when a whacking great 4x4 pulled in alongside us. All well and good but we heard an almighty crunch as he did so.

There followed a comedy moment where Jo wanted to jump out of the car immediately and presumably wanted to rugby tackle the guy driving in case he wanted to drive off. Whilst Sarb, appreciating that he was in a country where carrying arms is pretty much mandatory, that he was in a hire car and perhaps we should gather our paperwork together first, decided to play it a little cooler. Anyway, we got of the car and soon were engaged in a friendly chat with the driver. Luckily the damage sounded alot worse than it looked.

Armed with our paperwork we worked out what we needed from the apologetic driver and were soon on our way.

Drove off to a beautiful little area littered with marina's and flash boats. Although Sarb admired what he'd seen of the US he was a little unsure as to their methods of bait fishing.

Had a wonderful day in beautiful sunshine.

Thursday, June 21, 2007

Day 349 (Thu 21 June) - Simi Valley, Los Angeles

Today it was back to being a tourist again and so we headed off the Universal Studios theme park.

Found it in no time and duly parked up and wandered over to the ticket counter. As we were only there for the day we decided to get some star passes. Can't remember how much they were (alot though) but it did allow us to use the VIP queuing system.

Wandered in and had an absolutely fun day. Went on loads of loads of rides and just generally acted liked kids.

Totally exhausted we made it back to our hotel at the end of a long and enjoyable day. Decided to head over to the mall and gorged ourselves on hamburgers.

Below are a small set of photos from our jolly today:

Magnum PI's Ferrari

Film set with cascading water

King Kong

The classic Amity Island hoarding

War of the Worlds crash site

Shrek and Sarb

Jo by the splash of the Jurassic Park ride

Jo by an anorexic Coldstream Guard

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Day 348 (Wed 20 June) - Simi Valley, Los Angeles

A chilled out day today after all the touristy stuff from yesterday.

Sarb decided that he should return to the real world after our trip so spent most of his time doing his cv.

Jo chilled watching a bit of tv and sitting by the pool!

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Day 347 (Tue 19 June) - Simi Valley, Los Angeles

Got up bright and breezy and after breakfast in our room we headed out to explore.

We drove into Hollywood and after finding some extortionate parking, left our tin car, and headed onto the Boulevard.

Sarb was somewhat unimpressed. Jo had been there before so knew how tacky the place was. Anyway, we did the usual ie. stare at some people's concrete footprints (Sarb had to pay homage to his fave actor) and stare at the Chinese theatre.

Tiring of all the tackiness we boarded the tin can and headed off following a map that promised to take us to all the main sights of the area.

Well we tried to follow the map. What we actually did was cut up loads of drivers, had a major argument, saw some gates beyond which apparently posh houses were sited, drove round some plush neighbourhoods and saw Henry Winklers (the Fonz) house.

Looking at our crap map we saw that Mulholland Drive was nearby. The only thing that Sarb knew about this road is that it is mentioned in an REM song (Electrolite) so we decided to head on up it. Excellent views as we climbed up and looked over LA. Would look quite spectacular at night!

From here we drove round until we hit upon Griffith Park. Decided to stop here for a slurp of pop and some sarnies (we'd brought with us) sitting on some benches. Quite a peaceful place.

Studying the map we saw that an Observatory was atop of the park. Decided to wander on up to it. To say it was hot would be an understatement.

We arrived at the top somewhat red in the face, passing a famous sign or two, but a restorative pop or two soon had us feeling fine. The surrounding views were quite breathtaking ( [1], [2], [3] ).

Wandered into the quite excellent museum and were kept happily amused for many an hour.

Afterwards we walked round the immaculate forecourt of the Observatory before heading back down the dusty trail.

Headed back to the car and drove through quite heavy traffic back to the hotel. We relaxed for a while, then showered and changed up and headed off to an Italian restaurant in the nearby mall.

Jo had pasta that duly arrived. Sarb, starving, had ordered a pizza and when he caught the attention of our waitress and informed her that he was still waiting was told it had been burnt it so another one was in the offing.

Soon enough a pizza duly emerged and was demolished!

Monday, June 18, 2007

Day 346 (Mon 18 June) - Naviti Resort, Coral Coast, Fiji / Simi Valley, Los Angeles

Leaving Fiji today!

Checked out of our room and left our luggage in the holding area by reception. On the way out from reception we spotted the wandering musicians. These chaps for the duration of our stay appeared out of nowhere strummed a few tunes and then went on their merry way.

Spent most of the day relaxing by the pool and beach.

Sarb decided to go snorkelling in the bay. Quite murky water so he did not see much. Apparently better if you head way out, but he didn't fancy expending the energy!

Our taxi arrived at about 5.30pm and, after a quick change, headed off to the airport at Nadi.

Checked our bags in and then sat about waiting for our flight. It was scheduled to leave at 10.20pm. After what seemed like an eternity we heard the call to board by row numbers.

As soon as the call was given a group of elegant, late middle aged women rushed over to the ticket clerk. We could hear, with great glee, the clerk inform the women that their seat rows had not been called and could they please remain seated. They looked bewildered! The collective thought process seemed to be 'We're rich Americans. Surely this boarding by row numbers is for the plebs?'.

Soon our rows were called (including the numpties). We were not too impressed by the flight. The seats were very uncomfortable and no personal tv.

Still it was only a short flight. Arrived in LA and steeled ourselves for the apparently fearsome interrogation procedures at Immigration Control.

The chap we had was very pleasant and after being fingerprinted, having our iris scanned and blood and stool samples analysed (we're joking about the blood sample) we were in the US of A.

Boarded a shuttle bus to pick up our hire car. After filling out a mountain of paperwork we were finally shown to what can only be called a car with pretensions. It wanted to be something else. We wanted it to be something else. However we were stuck with it.

Jo decided to drive and soon we were just another car on the freeway. Headed off our hotel, the Grand Vista, in the Simi Valley.

Found the place without too much bother and checked into our large comfy room. It has a fridge and even a microwave!

Went to a local supermarket where we stocked up on grub then went to a nearby mall for a fab hamburger. Sarb loves America already!

Sunday, June 17, 2007

Day 345 (Sun 17 June) - Naviti Resort, Coral Coast, Fiji

Not a lot to report today.

Spent the whole day chilling out by the pool!

Saturday, June 16, 2007

Day 344 (Sat 16 June) - Naviti Resort, Coral Coast, Fiji

This morning we had arranged to go into the nearby small town for a spot of shopping.

Boarded the bus and were soon heading over small bridges and past smallholdings before finally crossing a large bridge and into town.

As the bus pulled up outside of a large shop we were greeted by the usual hopeful looking purveyors of tat.

The town is quite small and bustling. It has a tired sort of dilapidated air about it. Wandered round the various shops.

A disused railway bridge exists that spans the bright blue inlet. Wandered over the bridge, carefully checking our footing as some of the boards looked quite rotten.

Wandered past and through the bustling market area, marvelling at the unfamiliar fare on offer.

Headed back to the resort where Jo got her nails done.

Went over to the Bamboo restaurant tonight for another excellent Chinese mail.

Friday, June 15, 2007

Day 343 (Fri 15 June) - Naviti Resort, Coral Coast, Fiji

Today we chilled in the gardens.

Weather was overcast with an occasional refreshing light shower. We both managed to get slightly burnt though!

Had an excellent Fijian buffet.

We remarked that the staff are an incredibly friendly and cheerful lot.

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Day 342 (Thu 14 June) - Naviti Resort, Coral Coast, Fiji

Today Sarb went off to play a round of golf.

The small golf course is located within the hotel grounds ( [1], [2] ) and was basically a pitch and putt ( [1], [2] ). Good fun though.

Halfway round Sarb realised it really was baking hot and the small botter of water he had with him was almost done! Luckily it cooled off a little as he chopped his way round the remainder of the course.

Jo spent the day reading and relaxing in the gardens; although she did pop out to watch Sarb a few times.

For dinner we headed off to the no kids restaurant. Lovely food and a really quiet relaxing atmosphere.

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Day 341 (Wed 13 June) - Naviti Resort, Coral Coast, Fiji

Both a trifle hung over this morning. The hotel grounds were bathed in bright sunshine this morning.

Spent the whole day lounging around the pool area. Very relaxing.

Had a buffet dinner and then watched a traditional Fiji show. All the dancers wore quite spectacular costumes, including some fab grass skirts.

After dinner Sarb played a little table tennis with a group of kids before we retired for the night.

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Day 340 (Tue 12 June) - Naviti Resort, Coral Coast, Fiji

After an excellent breakfast we went for a walk along the beach.

The tide is way out so walked past large rockpools teeming with aquatic life.

As we walked we spotted a kingfisher patrolling his territory and other birds fishing.

Walked along the small harbour and looked out at the ocean. We saw a lone fisherman, some way out, with water just over his waist fishing with a handline. Sarb immediately felt a pang of loss for his beloved Kiwi handline! Great to be just hanging out ( [1], [2], [3] )

Headed back to the main resort area and chilled in the gardens. Watched the beautiful clouds as night fell ( [1], [2], [3] ).

For dinner tonight we headed over to the Chinese Bamboo restaurant. Had an excellent meal.

Post dinner we headed back to one of the large bars where we watched the other guests murder various songs under the guise of karaoke!

Monday, June 11, 2007

Day 339 (Mon 11 June) - Manukau, Auckland / Fiji

Got up quite early and after a breakfast of toast and tea cleaned out the van.

We left loads of unwanted food in the campsite's communal kitchen. One of the cleaners in the kitchen was most grateful as he took the best of the stuff!

Jo also managed to find a good home for Sarb's hand line. A family mooching round the kitchen had a little girl in tow who was most chuffed with it!

After giving the van a good clean out we drove the van off to the airport. No hassle dropping it off. Had to wait for about half an hour for the shuttle to the airport.

Checked in with no bother and boarded our Air Pacific flight. Uneventful flight landing at 4pm.

At Nadi airport we found our driver from the resort and were soon bouncing along in a minibus to our lodgings. We drove for about 1.5 hours to the resort. We passed many mosques, mandirs and churches in equal numbers as we travelled.

Arrived at the sprawling Naviti resort just as night fell. Checked into a large room, complete with a massive balcony. A small apartment really!

Relaxed and unpacked our gear then went off to one of the bars for some wine and a good buffet dinner. Quite a nice climate; not too humid or hot!

The hotel is quite busy with in the main Ozzies making up the numbers.

We both went to bed slightly squiffy!

Sunday, June 10, 2007

Day 338 (Sun 10 June) - Manukau, Auckland

Bussed into town in light but driving rain.

Pottered round town and having some hours to kill decided to watch a movie.

Decided to watch Shrek 3. Bought our tickets in the swanky cinema complex before heading to MacD's for a quick bite.

We both enjoyed the film, although Sarb felt that it was not as good as the first 2.

Headed back to the campsite where we had an omelette and beans supper. As we are leaving NZ t'row decided to pack as much of our gear as possible.

As a little celebration of heading off to Fiji tomoz we cracked open a bottle of bubbly!!

Saturday, June 09, 2007

Day 337 (Sat 9 June) - Manukau, Auckland

Nothing much to report today.

The weather has turned overcast with a very stiff chill breeze. We are really quite glad to leave!

Spent most of the day in central Auckland blogging

Friday, June 08, 2007

Day 336 (Fri 8 June) - Manukau, Auckland

We left Kauri with heavy hearts. We would have liked to stay forever. It is Eden.

Left along the valley floor taking a few piccies as we bowled along ( [1], [2] ).

Our plan was to head towards Auckland as our little trip was drawing to a close.

Approaching Auckland was quite something ( [1], [2] ).

Found a good campsite in Manukau, a suburb of Auckland. The campsite boldly stated that you could get into central Auckland in 20mins. We managed by public transport 1 and 3/4 hours. Clearly when the guide was written people were all travelling on Honda Fireblades at 3am.

When we finally managed to get into the charmless centre we struggled to find an internet cafe. Finally managed and settled down to blog.

Thursday, June 07, 2007

Day 335 (Thu 7 June) - Kauri

After a lazy start Sarb decided to try his luck at fishing again.

No luck so after refuelling on bacon butty's set off to the Lakes Taharou, Kaiiwi and Waikere.

Beautiful set of lakes and even better because there was absolutely no one else around. A bit blustery though.

Headed back on the meandering road past loads of happy looking cows. Sarb insisted on stopping and taking a few piccies of them ( [1], [2]).

Headed over to Trounson Kauri Park located just past our campsite.

Wandered through the ancient forest ( [1], [2] ), marvelling at the Kauri trees. Bit of a scary moment as Jo lost her footing on the slippery walkway. Sarb thought she'd seriously injured herself as she went clattering down. Luckily only a scraped knee!!

Pottered back to the campsite where Sarb went off to fish again. Unfortunately, the eel community must have realised there was a free feed going to as all he managed to do was lose all his bait to the slippery buggers!

Both spent a lovely evening chilling!

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Day 334 (Wed 6 June) - Kauri

This morning we drove across from the East coast of the North Island to the West coast, via a quite narrow road.

Stopped off at Omapere lookout for a great view of the surrounding areas and a huge river inlet.

Headed over to Waipoua Forest and stopped by the entrance to a walkway that gave onto a huge Kauri tree. Unfortunately it was chucking it down so we waited in the van for an hour until the rain had turned into a drizzle.

On entering the walkway we were plunged into a lush forest. Soon enough we saw the enormous Kauri tree; Sarb remarked that it looked a trifle like that Baubau's in Africa.

Drove on along narrow roads through the forest. The thick vegetation simply looked like solid walls.

Had a brief stop at Tane Mahuta and then found and stopped for the night at the Top 10 Kauri campsite. Absolutely beautiful site; it had a large stream running at the bottom of the sites and the grass all over was closely mowed.

Whilst Jo relaxed Sarb went off fishing with his handline. Walking along the stream Sarb found a spot where it took a bend, just under a bridge. Thinking that fish were likely to be here (he was by now a confirmed angler) decided to try his luck there.

After a few hours Jo pottered out with a glass of wine. Up and until this point Sarb had a few nibbles but nothing more; although a friendly fan tail kept him company. As Sarb had his first sip of wine, the line tugged and went taut and a huge fish started flashing through the water. It fizzed off the surface of the water in a wide arc before finally disengaging the hook. Whilst we looked at each other stunned, the fish worked its way down the stream by thrashing and flipping itself out of the water.

Sarb was well chuffed. It may have got away but at least Jo was there to see it!!!

Had excellent steaks for supper (although would have been better if we had caught the trout!!).

Tuesday, June 05, 2007

Day 333 (Tue 5 June) - Waitangi

Got up nice and early and as we packed our gear got chatting to a friendly NZ older couple. Nice bunch.

Said our goodbyes and then drove up the very steep and winding road to the summit of Mount Parahaki. Wonderful views from the summit of the city and the beautiful harbour.

Drove onto the Bay of Islands where we stopped at Paihia. Done our usual wandering round the small town and then went for a drive.

Drove through the awesome Waitingi golf course, with quite stunning views. We also passed the place where the historic Waitingi Treaty was signed.

Drove round for a while and then booked into a slightly grubby looking and empty campsite called the Waitingi Motor Camp.

Parked up and had lunch. Whilst we ate two cats kept us company. Cute little critters, although Sarb felt that Jo should not be feeding them quite so many sausages. Relaxed for the rest of the day.

As we got ready for bed that evening a fierce sounding dog began barking and running round. Not too much trouble but when we heard a thump against the side of the van we were a trifle put out. Sarb waited a while until things had quieted down before venturing outside to head for the shower block.

Monday, June 04, 2007

Day 332 (Mon 4 June) - Whangarei

From Auckland we headed north through Waipu Cove.

Headed into Whangarei where we decided to stop for the night. Found a pretty campsite some 10minutes walk from town.

Weather had been generally bright today although we were hit by a few sudden showers.

Set ourselves up in the campsite then went for a walk around town in heavy rain. By the time we got into town the weather had brightened up. There is a lovely marina in the centre of town brim full of expensive looking boats.

Found an internet cafe that was empty save for the owner and his toddler son. Amusing to be blogging and be constantly interrupted on a number of diverse topics such as 'Do you like my dinosaur?'.

Blogged for ages and then went to the local Pak n Save where we stocked up on food.

Walked back up the steep road back to the campsite. Had excellent saussies for dinner.

Sunday, June 03, 2007

Day 331 (Sun 3 June) - Auckland (North Shore)

Up early to head towards Raglan.

Raglan is West of Hamilton but we managed to get a trifle lost and ended up IN Hamilton. Checked our maps and were soon on the right road.

Leaving the suburbs of Hamilton behind us we were soon travelling on a windy and hilly road surrounded by fields.

Once we arrived at Raglan we went for a bit of a wander. The harbour area beautiful complete with a small footbridge that allows you to walk across it to the campsites on the other side.

From a small pier you could peer into the clear water and see hundreds of tiny fish.

Went for a walk on the black volcanic sand before finding an internet cafe. Both done some jobs then bought some grub from the small supermarket and started the long drive to Auckland.

Arrived quicker than expected and stayed at the North Shores campsite. A very crowded camp site that was literally teeming with teenagers being far too loud.

There was a small pizza place on the corner of the campsite and being a little tired just ended up getting a take away pizza.

Saturday, June 02, 2007

Day 330 (Sat 2 June) - Waitomo Caves

Got up to an overcast sky. Seemed to be little point in going to see Mount Egmont as too cloudy so drove onto Waitomo.

Waimtomo is a pleasant village or small town and our campsite is right in the middle of it.

Went to tourist info and booked ourselves onto a tour leaving at 3pm that afternoon.

We both mooched about as the weather turned rainy. Even watched a local rugby match being played alongside the camp site.

At 3pm we went back to tourist info to meet up with our tourguide, Pete. Really nice chap.

Set off on a windy road, Pete explaining the geological features of the surrounding area as we went. Soon disembarked and made our way into a winding set of tunnels.

These tunnels were illuminated by small lights. At one point during the tour he switched off the lights to get a feel for how dark it was. To say it was pitch black would be an understatement. Very disorientating!

Also in this cave system were glowworms. Although the pretty dark it was too difficult to see the glowworms lights. However, it was a great place to see the sticky threads that the glowworms exude in order to catch their prey.

From this set of caves we set off to a cave system that had the glow worms in abundance. Just before we entered the caves Pete suggested we try and feed the eel. A small stream fed into the caves and into this he dangled a small piece of meat. Soon enough a massive eel appeared and pushing itself vertically up and out of the water gratefully grabbed at the titbit.

The caves are fed by the stream so the only way of really seeing the glowworms is to board a small dinghy. Once onboard Pete gently moved us round the cave system by hauling on overhead ropes.

The caves and the glowworms were simply beautiful. Really felt like you were floating in space.

Spent loads of time oohing and ahhing. Sarb tried to get some photos but needless to say it was pretty difficult. Luckily Pete gave us permission to use his ( [1], [2] ) if we gave him a plug. So here's the plug Spellbound.

Brilliant afternoon that was topped off by cooking an ace curry!

Friday, June 01, 2007

Day 329 (Fri 1 June) - New Plymouth

From Whakappa village we drove south stopping at Wanganui.

Found a supermarket and stocked up.

Drove on along the West road occasionally seeing the huge Mount Egmont. This road kind of winds itself round the enormous base of the mountain hugging the coastline; the mountain always on your right.

Unfortunately the weather was beginning to close in and the sky was threatening rain.

Stopped off at Opunake where we had a sandwich by the sea.

Drove onto New Plymouth and parked at a Top 10 campsite miles out of town. Nice enough but would have preferred to be able to walk into town.

Miserable weather during the evening!

Had some kebabs for our tea.

Thursday, May 31, 2007

Day 328 (Thu 31 May) - Whakappa Village

We had planned to get up really early but for some reason emerged at about 10.30am!

Our plan today is to walk to the lower Toma Lake.

Set off and headed past the falls walking in the opposite direction from the previous day. Looking back we could see Mount Ruapehu behind us.

Walked on a path that cut it's way up and down through grassland. Really felt like we had the place to our own as we passed about 2 other walkers on the way.
After about 3/4 hours we finally reached the lake.

The lake was quite beautiful, Mount Ngauruhoe forming an imposing backdrop. Apparently it had been formed from a previous volcanic eruption millenia ago.

We briefly thought of walking down to it but having looked at the sides of the crater and the floor of the crater itself it looked like it was formed of powder. Did not want to risk doing anything silly so settled down for a spot of lunch instead!

There was another lake a few hours away from us that we could have gone to but by this time Sarb had noticed that clouds had begun to form on the distant horizon. He decided that we should turn back.

By the time we had made it back to the waterfall the clouds had completely covered the base of the volcano and the places where we had been walking. Lucky call!

Got back to camp truly tired and had a filling pasta supper.

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Day 327 (Wed 30 May) - Whakappa Village

Up fairly early to pack our gear up on a day with blue skies and a few puffy white clouds.

Headed South towards Tongariro NP. As we climed up into the hills we had some great views of Lake Taupo.

Soon the landscape began to change into brushland surrounded by imposing mountains and lakes.

Soon got to Whakappa village. Tiny place dominated by a huge hotel called the Chateau that would not have looked out of place in Austria! It is dominated by a huge volcano immediately behind the village, Ruapehu, and off to one side a massive, cone shaped volcano, Ngauruhoe. This is the mountain used as Mount Doom in The Lord of the Rings films.

Parked up in a small shady campsite and went for a walk towards the volcanoes.

The scenery was simply stupendous. Walked for a couple of hours, passing Taranaki falls, and several burbling streams, and as the light was fading headed back to the campsite.

We plan to do a much longer walk t'row.

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Day 326 (Tue 29 May) - Lake Taupo

Sarb was still keen on fishing today so set off at an ungodly hour.

There was a deep mist over the entire town as he slowly threaded his way down to the river. Jo, very wisely, decided to stay in bed for a few more hours!

Once Sarb arrived at the river bank he took quite a while to sort out the rod as the line had got tangled up in the spinny thing. Soon enough he was off.

After about an hour and a half the sound of a van engine signalled Jo's arrival. She had driven down and soon had the kettle on!

We both had a cup of tea and some breakfast after which Sarb carried on fishing, interspersed with throwing bread for the ducks.

He didn't have much luck, and as the mist was beginning to burn off, we decided to drive down to Lake Taupo.

As soon as we reached the southern reaches of the lake the weather lifted and it was absolutely blue skies!!

Jo wrote her journal as Sarb fished on the edge of the clear lake. He didn't have a nibble but did witness some massive fish jumping out of the water and, most depressingly, just after he'd pulled his line in, a huge dark shape swam just where the bait had been!

After a couple of hours we drove off to the northern part of the lake. Stopped at a beautiful jetty where we had a great soup lunch.

At this time it was late afternoon so we returned to Cherry Island for a final attempt of getting a whopper. No luck but we seemed to enjoy spending the day relaxing.

Wandered back into town where Sarb regretfully dropped his rod back to the shop.

We both updated the internet then headed off back to our campsite.

Monday, May 28, 2007

Day 325 (Mon 28 May) - Lake Taupo

After a simple breakfast we drove onto Lake Taupo along the desert road.

Beautiful barren landscape with vast mountains that seemed to be way, way ahead of us. Soon arrived at the beautiful Lake Taupo with its crystal clear waters.

Found a Top 10 campsite situated about 2km from the lake. Parked up and decided to wander into the small town.

Our walk took us on a path where a river ran at the bottom of a deep gorge. Quite beautiful. We managed to find a path down to the river bank and were amazed to see trout swimming along in the clear water.

Walked on into the pleasant town, via a well kept cemetary where two cats popped out to say hello.

Had a bite to eat at a cafe sitting outside in the bright sunshine. Wandered round until we found a rod hire shop. Sarb, no doubt fired up at seeing the trout, decided he'd hire a rod for the day.

Leaving Jo to continue wandering round town Sarb headed back up to the river. He was soon casting off Cherry island and fished for the afternoon. Not a nibble but he didn't seem to mind! After a few hours he decided to try a different spot so headed off to the natural warm springs that feed into the river. Not much luck here either!

Sarb returned about 6ish back at the campsite where he found Jo preparing supper.

Sunday, May 27, 2007

Day 324 (Sun 27 May) - Taihope

Got up and after feeding the ducks drove into Hutt town to stock up on food.

Sarb also bought some swimming shorts as the ones that he'd got in Vietnam were practically falling apart.

Drove on up through a town called Levin where we stopped for a whacking great big McD's. Ate this veritable feast parked in a little layby just on the edge of the town.

After lunch drove onto Taihope where we found a campsite complete with all amenities including a grumpy old woman owner.

We were the only ones in the site. Quite a pretty set up. From where we were camped, fields ran onto the edge of a broad stream.

Had a quiet night in.