From Wellington to Mount Egmont

Hello everyone,
around noon, we left the ferry in Wellington and went on a hunt for burgers in the city. We enjoyed them from a mountain with a fantastic view of the city. After being well-fueled, we continued our journey north on the wine route. In the early evening, we made a stop to shower before heading to a riverside campsite. The night was very clear and gave us the opportunity to admire a beautiful starry sky, but it also got quite cold. During breakfast, we set our next destination, the Egmont National Park by the sea. So we hit the road, passing through many coastal landscapes until reaching Stanford. We visited the tourist center in town to get information about a hike on Mount Egmont and decided to do a nearly 20 km hike the next day. We quickly bought the necessary provisions and arranged for a driver who would pick us up the next morning at the end of the hike and drive us to the starting point. Before finding a place to stay for the night, we drove to the other side of the 2500 m high mountain and took a short walk to the Wilkie Pools. Then we went to New Plymouth, where we found a nice campsite by the lake. Early in the morning, we went to the end point of the hike in the parking lot. Our driver arrived as scheduled and the hike began at 8:30 am. It started with a steady climb for about 2 hours until we had our first sandwiches at a great viewpoint. The rest of the trail led us through the mountain range connected to Mount Egmont. This part was very pleasant and not very steep, so we made good progress and could enjoy the beautiful weather and the views. Next, we reached a swampy plateau, which was easy to cross on a wooden path. Then came the most challenging section, a long ridge with steps, sticks, stones, and a lot of roots, steeply uphill. At the highest point, we had a great view over the whole region and the sea. After descending for a few minutes, we took the opportunity to have our lunch at a shelter before continuing towards the destination. We reached it after 19.5 km and not even 6 hours including breaks. Since the weather was very good and warm, we first went back to the sea for coffee and then back to our campsite for a swim in the lake. In the evening, we went to the beach and watched the numerous surfers and the sunset. Today, we slept in a bit and after a short city tour, we continued our journey into the interior of the country. We have already reached our destination, the first national park in New Zealand. We have also planned another hike here for tomorrow, which we will be picked up for at 5:30 am tomorrow morning. To be well-fueled for the day, we have already prepared our backpacks with water and provisions and enjoyed a delicious dinner consisting of a sirloin steak, rice, and coleslaw. Now it's time to go to bed to have the necessary energy for the challenging day tomorrow.
See you soon,
Malia