Bridal Veil Falls - Raglan

On the way from Kawhia to Raglan, I visited the Bridal Veil Falls. It is a quite tall waterfall that was formed about 2.5 million years ago after a volcanic eruption. The lava had flowed partially through a riverbed until no liquid lava was remaining. As the outer layers cooled, hardened, and shrank first while the inner, still liquid lava continued to move, cracks formed in the rock, which led to the creation of regular structures. Meanwhile, a small river obviously flows over the lava again, cascading down at the spot where the lava ceased to flow (or a bit before, since over the millions of years, lava has also been eroded by water).

I found it very impressive and viewed the waterfall from all three lookout points. At the top, there was already a note that there are 135 steps to the middle platform and 265 steps down to the very bottom. And halfway down, there was a sign indicating that you are now halfway down - or halfway up, depending on which direction you are coming from.

Raglan is a surfer town and has a rather unique mentality. I already knew that there is only one Freedom Camping site in Raglan, which, unlike usual, wasn’t marked by the district. However, I saw many signs in various places explicitly prohibiting Freedom Camping. Feeling a bit uncertain, I asked a local about the Freedom Camping situation in Raglan, and he said that I could park wherever I wanted, as there are so many campervans in Raglan that nobody really controls it. And that turned out to be true.

In Raglan, I wanted to hike Mount Karioi but decided to get advice at the Visitor Center in the morning after the peak was shrouded in clouds (I had not yet overcome my bad experience from Mount Egmont). The ladies at the Visitor Center advised me against the hike because an 80% chance of rain was predicted for the day. So, I just explored the town and discovered several workshops: pottery, leatherwork, a sewing shop, and even a brewery. At the brewery, I could taste some exotic beer types that wouldn’t even be called beer in Germany - but only small samples. The brewery does not have a liquor license. If they wanted one, among other things, they would need to have restrooms and offer snacks. However, buying beer to take away is allowed, which I did.

Throughout the day, I was really glad I had informed myself again in the morning and especially listened to the two ladies. There were recurrent showers. However, in the evening, when it stopped raining, I was able to take a short walk on the beach.

The next morning, I was awakened by the rain and spent almost the entire day in the library writing for my blog. It rained non-stop. The forecast predicted that the cyclone would pass over New Zealand during the night, so I actually wanted to stay one more day in Raglan to explore the beaches a bit more and also because there’s supposed to be a very nice viewpoint as well. However, the forecast also indicated that two days later, there would be nice weather for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, so I spontaneously decided in the evening to head to Hamilton for a better starting point for the Crossing. Or to go in another direction from there, depending on what the weather report says the next day.

When I finally arrived at the campsite in the dark, I just had a quick bite to eat and then fell into bed, tired.