Roadtrip

After last week at the Berryfarm, Theo and I headed first to Hobbiton, the film set. We were blessed with great weather and had a tour of the fantastic Hobbit world. The attention to detail and authenticity down to the smallest aspect was fascinating. To wrap up, we enjoyed a beer at “The Green Dragon Inn” before continuing our journey to Taupo. Upon arrival, we coincidentally ran into Jonny and Paula, who were also staying at our campsite. After Theo and I stopped by McDonald’s, we played cards together.

The next morning, we visited the impressive “Huka Falls”. Afterwards, the four of us played a round of disc golf in the park and then headed to “Lake Taupo”. There, we snorkeled, cooked, and relaxed until Theo and I continued on our way to the “Tongariro Crossing”.

We conquered that brilliantly the following day, even though the weather was not optimal, it was a lot of fun to hike through the magnificent landscape. Unfortunately, there were too many people for our liking. After 6.5 hours, 19 km, and nearly 800 meters of elevation gain, we returned to the parking lot. On our way towards the West Coast, we stopped at the “Taranaki Falls”, and the short cooling break felt especially good after the hike.

The following days were regrettably marked by bad weather and a lack of energy. As a result, we only explored New Plymouth and continued south. Unfortunately, we were denied the truly beautiful view of “Mount Taranaki”. We had actually planned a hike to its summit, but that was literally washed away due to the bad weather.

Yesterday, we made a stop at “Stunning Rock Beach”, where you could swim between the rocks in the coves. Today, we will continue to Foxton, where we will spend and celebrate Christmas in a group of about 20 people.

I wish everyone back home a blessed Christmas.