Ah, the ever-trusty Ead.
Setting off, we finally got a glimpse of Mount Ngauruhoe, otherwise known as Mount Doom. Look.
Impressed. We also got a brief look at Mount Ruapehu and I managed to grab some pics of Mount Tongariro. Woohoo!
And then the sun came out and we got some amazing views of Lake Taupo, which is absolutely massive.
Turns out it was pretty windy and the kayaking trip we'd booked the day before was cancelled. Instead we booked onto a trip on the lovely little boat Ernest Kemp and headed off for a wander to kill some time until then.
Stopped in at the Taupo Museum where it became all the more apparent that Taupo is actually pronounced Toe-paw. Which is odd, but hey. The museum was just big enough to fill the hour we had to spare and had an awesome exhibit of Maori history.
Then we headed for the marina and boarded the boat. Warnings from the skipper regarding the conditions on the lake - basically, it's really rough and his little helper had got seasick on the trip in the morning. Which was worrying.
Setting off, it became apparent just how bad it was. Claire, bless her, got seriously seasick and the skipper sent his helper to leave some "just in case" bags in the cabin. We're talking swells of at least a couple of metres. Amy spent most of the trip grinning manically while I caught myself clinging to the table without realising. Claire just buried her head in her arms so she didn't have to look at anything. My brain went on a mad trip trying to work out why I thought a shallow drafted boat was a bad move in such big waves...
Anyways, we got to the carvings eventually. They're amazing - something like 10m high and carved by a group of local artists in the 70s. Have some pics:
Claire managed to look up just long enough to go "mm, carvings" and then retreated back into her arms. Good job I had strict instructions to take lots of photos.
Heading back towards Taupo wasn't so bad because we were running with the waves. We passed another boat we'd considered going on, a sailing yacht called Barbary. Glad we didn't go with it - looked like they were having an even bumpier trip than us.
Got some awesome views of the Tongariro National Park and its beautiful mountains. The pics aren't so good, but trust me - it was amazing.
After we'd got off the boat and the skipper had checked that Claire was OK (bless him), we headed off up the road to Huka Falls which are apparently the most visited attraction in New Zealand. The place was indeed full of tourists, but the Falls were pretty cool. Behold, stupid photos.
We also got some photos from a lookout at the top of the hill heading out of Taupo.
And then we went to the hostel. Where there was a dog. Called Jess. She was cute.
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