New Zealand

My trip to New Zealand started in Auckland with the arrival and notice that anything that was in the countryside begin brought into the country would not be allowed to come into New Zealand. I was hiking in Australia for 2 days and one of the two was the day before I left.  I hope that I did not have to give up my shoes and find a new pair in. New Zealand!  I check that I had stuff to declare and started waiting in line.  A young lady asked what I had and then said I should get into a different line and it was cut in 1/2. Then another young lady opened an additional lane and I was able to go to an even shorter line.  The customs agent asked what I had and I said my shoes and he wanted to look at the bottom of them and then had me too to a second screening area.  Needless to say I got through customs and then off to my Uber.  The key for my VRBO was in a lock box chained to a drainpipe in an alley next to the property.  A bit sketchy but oh well, I got into the property and have to say the halls are very narrow where 2 people can’t cross at the same time without going sideways!  The property was nice with high ceilings but a view of a strip club across the street, not the perfect views but what the heck I was not here for views out of my room.  I enjoyed walking around the Quay today which is a road with the city on one side and the sea on the other side.  It was nice looking at the sea and enjoying a nice quiet Sunday. 

Kiwi Rail – I took the train from Auckland to National Park, NZ.  The idea is to do some hiking and enjoy nature for a few days.  The train checking time was 0700 – 0730 and I had a 20 minute walk to the station with my bags.  As luck would have it a coach pulled up and disembarked just before I got to the station, two 40 foot shipping containers.  The line did not move very fast with all the pensioners in front and behind.  The tour guide got all of his groups tickets and they all walked around us making the line move well. The train had no overhead lockers so I checked my big bag and brought the little one with me.  A cool thing about the train is they gave you headsets to listen to tidbits about the towns on the way if you were so inclined.  The railway took us through farming communities and small hills which were very green. There was a mining town of Huntley we passed that used to mine coal, the was. It not good for energy production, but no more coal mining.  We had a couple of stops with the second stop we were allowed to get off for a few minutes, a welcome bit of fresh air.  The train like all good trains had a cafe/bar car for cold drinks and food.  There was a young man before me wanting to pay with a credit card and it took 4 tries to go through, bad cell service on the train, and I then asked if cash was OK to pay. The cashier said yea and it always works, once again cash is king.  The train has an open air car that is standing room only but you can look out at the countryside without glass being in the way, a place for me on the way back to Auckland.

Plateau Lodge – I booked a king pod with an outdoor tub!  The room is a 20 foot ocean container that has a king size bed down low, sofa, and a bathroom.  It is fully functional and with the sliding door and windows open it has gotten cool the way it should be in a room. The weather is sunny and a cool 60 degrees!  The high tomorrow is schedule for 56 and lows are in the 40’s. Guess the sweater and coat are good things to still have with me. I don’t think I will need them in Malaysia or Thailand but I need them now.  The lodge is in a little town called National Park and there is virtually nothing in town. I walked 25 minutes from the train station here, walked to the gas station for some snacks and will have another 10 minute walk to get a beer or two.  Tomorrow, I am hiking in the National Park with the shuttle recovering me at 0830 from the hotel next door to me.  I have a return at 1630 so a full day of hiking in the park is on order. The hotel/hostel is very nice and clean. I used the outdoor tub to soak my body in some cold water after a full day of hiking. The space heater in the room was a welcome item as it was cold outside.

Tongariro National Park

Alpine crossing is the trail that this park is known but it was closed on the day I was there due to weather in the area. Guess hiking to the top of a mountain in weather in the 40’s and raining for 5-6 hours is not advisable per the NZ park system.  I kinda agree with them so I choose to hike some hikes that are lower in elevation and shorter in distance.

With the weather I chose hikes that were only 2 hours long as I felt that I could hike for 1.5 hours in the rain without a problem, if it started when I was 30 minutes into the hike.  There is a hike to Tama lakes that was a 5-6 hour hike and I decided to not do it but it could be done in conjunction with one of the hikes that I did do, Taranaki Falls and it would have been a full day.  

The visitor center for the park is located in Whakapapa Village, a ski village.  It however is not much of a ski village due to most of the establishments being closed.  The only place to get something to eat/drink was a food truck.  There is a grand lodge that used to have 3 restaurants but it closed due to COVID and not being able to get workers.  It is a beautiful building and I am sure it has wonderful views of the surrounding mountains when they are not cloud covered.  I wanted to get a photo of the lodge with Mt. Ruapehu in the background but I waited too long and the clouds prevented me from getting the shot.  I guess I need to take the shot when I can and not wait in the future, hopefully lesson learned.   

Taranaki Falls – The trail is a trail that is a 2 hour loop trail, distances were not given just time.  Being a loop trail you would think that the start/stop is at the same place but it is not.  From the Visitor Center follow the road sign for Taranaki Falls and on the left about 1/4 mile up you will see a trail head, which you can take.  I choose to continue onward for an additional 1/4 mile to take the other trail head.  The journey is on a hard packed gravel path through some tall brush and has some up and downs.  You do cross a stream or two before you get to the falls but they have bridges.  After one of the crossings of a stream there is an uphill hike that will allow you to have a 360 view of the area and it is worth taking some time to enjoy the views.  It is not really a stop to rest but take in the beauty of the area.  After you have enjoyed the views of the area go onward towards the falls.  You cross a stream that feeds the falls and this stop has some vault toilets for your comfort but be sure to bring your own paper, it is not supplied.  You can go to Tama Lakes from here or continue downward to the falls.  The journey then is down steps to get to the falls viewing area (see why I said skip the first trail head as down is better than up.). The falls are really nice when I was there as it had plenty of water and I enjoyed the time watching the water.  I also made friends with a group of school children who were on a trip with their teachers hiking and enjoying nature.  After viewing the falls it is now the home stretch to the end of the hike.  The trail follows the stream of the falls in the forest and you get to hear the water going over rocks, through rapids and just flowing.  It was nice to listen to nature and enjoy the time in the woods.  You also get to see some nice views of the mountain Mt. Ruapehu, a ski resort Whakapapa.  You can also see Mt. Ngauruhoe and Mt. Tongariro when on the hike.  This part of the trail is more up and down than the other part of the trail and there are many steps both up and down.  Along the trail there are a few other offshoots to other trails if you are so inclined, I was not so back to the first trail head I can across.  While on this journey I ran into a young New Zealander who told me I should take the Silica Rapids trail in lieu of the Whakapapanui trail I had planned.  Off to the end of the trail and back to the visitor center I went.

Silica Rapids trail – this trail is a 2 hour hike on the trail but the trail is not really a loop trail, more like 3 hours.  From the Visitor center you head up towards the ski area and on the right is a campground.  Just past the campground is a small parking area and with a trail head for Whakapapaiti Valley.  You start here and after you cross a stream there is a Y in the trail for that will take you to Silica rapids.  You have about 1.25 hours of hiking up hill to get to the rapids this way but you are following the stream of the rapids in the woods.  The park service also has many markers for you to stop and learn about the area along the way.  I however choose to go to the second entrance to the trail which is about 2km up the road away from the visitor center.  The trail head for this entrance is also on the right and is just opposite a small car park on the left, there is a sign for the trail head but it is hard to see, blocked by the foliage.  There is also a cross walk sign on the left to get you exited to see.  The 2km hike is on the road and is up hill the entire way!  Once you get on the trail I was thinking the rapids were close but they are about 3/4 of an hour hike from the road.  Getting to the rapids this way you do cross a stream and have some up and down hiking with steps in both directions as well.  The rapids is where I had lunch listening to the water and enjoying the view of Mt. Ruapehu.  The rapids are very colorful due to the minerals in the area that are in the water.  After rest and relaxation I went on the journey back to the village.  I have to say that there is no way to make this trail a loop without the 2km on the road so choose your poison on if you want to start with the road or end with it.  I would say yes a hike to do again.

Ridge Track – this trail starts just up the hill from the visitor center and is on the left near the restrooms.  The trail is all up to the viewing point and is rated at a 40 minute walk.  After about 10 minutes there is a bench for your resting pleasure and I thought it would have a great view, nope just the forest that you are walking in.  Onward I went and at the top of the trail is a platform to sit/stand on and then you get a great view.  Well the clouds were in now and the rain was threatening so not much of a view of Mt. Ruapehu nor Mt. Ngauruhoe or Mt. Tongarino.  I stayed and enjoyed the lower views of the landscape and made my way down.

Kiwi Rail back – I had the same crew on the train going back to Auckland that I had going to National Park. While waiting on the train a young g lady came and tagged my luggage. She is a van driver and does the tagging as a favor to her friends who work the train. She was the shuttle driver for the now closed Chalet in the national park but is still trying to make a living.  She mentioned the National Park and the National Park village have both not been able to recover from Covid.  She did mention to me that after Christmas the weather will be better and the tourism will get a bit better.  She also said that the Alpine trail was open today!  The train arrived and my bag was placed in the baggage car and was told that I had a window table seat. I asked about the number of people on the train as I did not want a window.  I was informed that the train would be full but Tahoe would try and help me.  I took my seat with two German ladies and a new passenger at sometime.   It wanting to miss out on the open air car I got up and my ticket friend stated I could move to seat 7A and B since the two for that seat did not turn up.  I was excited about that and moved to my own row.  There was a man and woman behind me who wal so took the train South and she had a laugh that you could never forget.  She laughed for hours on the way south and the north route started just like that but thankfully she and he stopped talking and it was peaceful once again. If you are going to travel on the island please check into Kiwi Rail is is a nice way to travel, although it takes time but you can see the countryside.