Taranaki, NZ
Tongariro Part 2
The demographic of people I meet in New Zealand is much different than I expected. I originally thought I would be running into mostly Australians, but the majority of travelers I meet are from Germany. An overwhelming majority too, probably about 80% of the people in hostels are from there. The next large portion is either the Dutch or French. And then all other nationalities, including American, come in last place, with a couple I can count off in each place.
In addition to spending time with Regina in Taupo, I also had the pleasure of meeting two lovely ladies my age from the United States; Sharon and Astrid, two Californians on a short trip to New Zealand. The four of us had gone out in Taupo on our last night together, indulging in dinner, drinks, and deserts. It was my best hostel experience so far, and we had a great time together, chatting about anything and everything well into the night.
The next morning we said goodbye to Regina, and Astrid, Sharon, and I spent the day together. We met up at a place called Tawhai Falls, a spot used for filming a scene in Lord of the Rings where Gollum sings at the Forbidden Pool while killing a fish.
Afterwards we wandered on a short hike in Tongariro National Park to look at yet another waterfall. It’s always more fun to walk with friends because hikes are very quiet when you are alone. It’s especially great with new people because there is so much to talk about! I’m starting to become an expert at rehearsing my life story.
We ate lunch at the waterfall and watched some people strip down and go under the falls. After we took some pictures behind and around the waterfall, I also started imagining what it would be like to get splashed by the water. It seemed wild to me to do something like that, but in the company of my new buddies, it didn’t seem like such a far-fetched idea. I expressed this interest out loud and Sharon said she also would go in the water with me. It’s much easier to do risky things if you have a friend to join!
I felt kind of crazy, wading into the pool in just my underwear, but I figured why not? What’s the worst that can happen? I’ll just get wet. It’s not everyday that I’m near an easily accessible waterfall. We held hands and ran under the falls for a moment, shrieking and giggling after emerging. I felt such a rush doing this, and it fits into my theme of this trip; being bold!
In the afternoon, the bittersweet moment came when I separated with Sharon and Astrid; they headed to Wellington while I wanted to drive to the west coast to see a mountain. We both had long drives ahead of us, almost four hours. Unfortunately, for the next 24 hours or so, I had a number of things go wrong for me.
First, I stupidly listened to Google Maps again, taking me on the “fastest” route to my next town, New Plymouth. I reached a gravel road about halfway through, stopped, and desperately searched for another route. The only way to avoid it was to go back and do a three hour detour, and I didn’t have time for that! I had to get to my hostel soon, so I needed to face this road, much to my dismay. I was the only driving on this 30 km stretch of rocky dirt road. I saw maybe two farms on my way. If something had gone wrong and I had to walk to get help, it would have been miles until I found someone; basically the beginnings of a horror movie. I finally arrived in New Plymouth that evening, with enough time to check into my hostel.
New Plymouth
The hostel seemed nice, we even got towels! Most hostels do not provide towels and I’m used to using my microfiber towel to dry off. It works fine, but a normal towel is much more cozy. I hung out on the patio of the hostel, chatting with some people there, and it seemed like a cool place, so I booked a second night on my phone. Bad idea.. I should have slept first. Turns out this hostel is right next door to a karaoke bar, and it was incredibly loud into the late hours of the night. Even with my ear plugs, I could not tune out the terrible singing next door. Sleep-deprived in the morning, I told myself there was no way I was spending a second night there, so I checked out. I found an Airbnb online and sent a request for it. Normally I get responses within the hour, but several hours went by with no response so I didn’t know if I had a place to sleep that night or not.
As I went to move my car in the late morning, I saw that I had a parking ticket. I had left my car in a bus loading zone that begins at 10 AM, and I got a ticket with a time of 10:01. I was so angry at myself for not moving my car and having to pay the fine. I parked in the garage next door and headed to the i-SITE to get some information. The main reason I wanted to visit New Plymouth was to climb a single mountain in the area, a volcano called Mount Taranaki or Mount Egmont. It is one of the most symmetrical volcanic cones in the world, and sits at an altitude of 2,518 m (8,261 ft).
I inquired at the i-SITE about the hike to the summit of Taranaki, and the guide told me that the conditions are supposed to be bad the next day to walk to the summit and it would have been perfect to do the hike today. I couldn’t believe my luck; after having driven on terrible roads so far out of the way to hike this mountain, now I was being told I should not do it!
But slowly, my day improved. I chatted with friends and family on the phone, and my Airbnb host finally responded to me, saying the room was available. Relief passed over me, knowing that I had a place to stay the night, so I set off to do some sight seeing in New Plymouth.
This town is known for art and graffiti, so I paid a visit to the Len Lye Centre, a contemporary art museum. The artist (Len Lye) is known for his experimental kinetic art. The most interesting exhibitions to me were rooms full of steel rods with attached weights at specific points. On the hour, the rods are turned on to shift back and forth in a line, at various speeds. When moving quickly, it appears that the rods are spinning, thus creating a cylindrical shape.
Some of the rods also have little bells attached, so when they are all spinning at the same time, there is an echoing sound vibrating off the walls. I was impressed by this museum as it was so unique and different from art I had seen before.
Mount Taranaki
The next morning, I decided I would attempt the hike, not heeding to the warnings I was told from the previous day. Careful to avoid the miseries of the Tongariro Crossing, I came prepared with all sorts of warm clothing for the walk, and I brought food that would be easy to open and eat. I commenced the walk at around 7:30 in the morning at a slow pace.
It was an incredibly steep walk. The path is about 6.4 km to the summit, or 4 miles, and 1.6 km (5249 feet) of elevation gain. It took me about 5.5 hours to get to the top. In that time, dozens of people passed me.
On one particular exposed part of the hike, there were small rocks and pebbles, causing me to slide and fall every now and then. I even ripped a small hole in my favorite hiking pants during one unfortunate slip. Every time I approached a large rock that was stationary, I would hold on and rest before the next vertical stage.
The weather was just fine, but there were strong gusts of wind occasionally. These gusts knocked me off balance several times. Overall, it was a clear day, so you constantly had views of the surrounding towns and sea. I loved staring out into the horizon on my breaks.
The last portion of the hike involved using your hands to climb large boulders, which was difficult. In general, the walk seemed pretty dangerous to me, but I treaded slowly and carefully until I made it to the top.
At the peak, there were cold temperatures, wind, and snow; probably the only snow I will see this season.
I put on all the warm clothing I had been lugging around and sat at the top of the volcano smirking at myself for being prepared for once. I’m not sure if the extra weight I carried around for the 30 minutes of mountain-top comfort was worth it, but it sure felt nice to not be cold during that time.
I enjoyed my well-deserved lunch at the top, admiring the views. I just love the feeling of being on the summit of a mountain!
The way down was just as difficult, if not more so. On the exposed part where I had been sliding earlier, the safest way to descend was honestly to jog down, light on your feet. Otherwise you would slip and lose your balance if going slow. Descending the mountain seemed like it took forever, and my knees and shins were screaming. I finally finished the hike, and it took me about 11 hours and 15 minutes. The sign said the hike takes about 8-10 hours, so I was certainly the slowest. But I felt accomplished at the end, having taken on that volcano, and felt at peace that evening.
The next day, walking was a struggle. My incredibly sore legs felt like jello. I took my time getting ready to leave, spending some time writing. My hospitable Airbnb host provided a wonderful breakfast of bread with various jams and tea. It was just what I needed.
Despite a rough beginning to my time in New Plymouth and Taranaki, I accomplished what I came there for and felt very happy during my departure.
-Anastasia