So after our last camping adventure we went BACK to Lake Taupo. (We are trying to keep up with F and J a bit so we can do a few days and activities together as well as enjoying the much needed company of others - apparently Duncan finds the A-Z game a tad dull after 10 topics...) So anyway we are going back on ourselves so we can have a go at the White Water rafting in this area which is supposed to be cheaper and better than the South Island... and it was AWESOME! We only went for a grade 3 (commercially you can do a 5 in NZ) as I haven't done it before. We arrived and got paired with a group of 'elderly' white water adventurers, the youngest was 65yrs old... well good on them but I have an idea this may not be the hardest of rapids! So kitted out in sexy waterproofs, fleeces and helmets we enjoy a few gentle rapids and about 2 grade 4 rapids...we also got stuck on the rocks at the point that was supposed to be the best rapids and no amount of us and the elders bouncing was going to free us so the guide had to jump into the FREEZING water. How do I know it is FREEZING worthy of capital letters? Half way through the ride you have the option to do a waterfall jump (high or low version) Duncan immediately runs to the high level, me to the low, and damn if it isn't higher than it looks from the ground...suddenly I am not so sure, then SPLASH and *cheer* Duncan has jumped, crap, now I have to do it too. There is a moment after I have run off the cliff in which my mind goes 'what the fuck are you doi...' and I plunge into deep, freezing, clear fresh water. I can barely swim to the side to get yanked out unceremoniously by the guide and I wonder 'is this what Leonardo DiCaprio felt like at the end of Titanic...?' brrrrr. The rest of the journey passes by quite nicely with hot chocolate, dairy milk caramel and 'the elders' shouting at boy and girl (Duncan and I, but they couldn't remember our names) to paddle in time and getting upset because they are getting wet.... We have both decided that we love the rafting and next we'll be doing the level 5's which take you over the waterfalls.. watch this space!
Next we went to Wanganui, which has a mystical river and a large population of ducks. I'll get a video of Duncan telling off a black swan for frightening off the other ducks when we were feeding them bread asap!
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| The aggressive swans - video coming soon! |
Onto Wellington for a couple of nights. We pretty much did not like Wellington. Our hostel was like a squat and our stinky room smelt of damp and had a large speaker right outside, which when we asked the squatters if they would mind turning it down or off at about midnight as we had to get an early boat we were told 3 times 'no' because they were having a good time. Cheers guys. Also, I accidentally left my make-up compact in the room when we left and although I called the next day to ask if they had found it I was told 'If it was found it would have been put in a free box for others to take and it wasn't there now'. Now maybe I am getting a tad over-upset about make-up but it was boots own-brand, Christmas 2009 special edition, that I had waited 14 years for them to re-release after I stole my mum's and loved it when I was a teenager...humph. Other than that in Wellington we went to the top of a mountain to see some views, and enjoyed some amazing fireworks at the harbour (although it was a super windy Wellington night so it was freeeezing!) In general Wellington was a bit manky, under lots of construction works and not a great place. but is the gateway to the South Island ferries we were told we might see Dolphins if we looked out but instead I mainly slept and Duncan watched England lose to the All Blacks.
Goodbye North Island - Hello South Island!
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| Picture of Mount Doom - just because... |
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