Tuesday, 14.01.20, Day 58

Freedom Camping at Lake Rotomanu

At 1:30 am the alarm goes off and at 3 am we take the first step towards Mount Taranaki. Since we can hardly see anything in the dark, it's now "Step, step, rock, step, bridge". Arnd leads the way and thanks to his commands we safely reach the sunrise at Pouakai Tarn, a small mountain lake with a great reflection of Mount Taranaki in the lake (in calm weather). Although we unfortunately cannot see the reflection due to the weather, it is still a beautiful moment to stand after the adventurous night hike in the cold but refreshing wind. After about an hour and a small breakfast, we start going down the numerous steps again, where a hot chocolate is waiting for us. After that, we continue along the coast for a while and relax for the rest of the day at a campground right by the sea. We take a walk along the cliff coast to a nearby lookout. After a cold dinner - of all days, the gas runs out today - we go to bed early to recover from the eventful day.