Anxious to leave behind the smell of Rotorua, we hopped in the car Thursday and stopped, at the recommendation of the hotel owners in Rotorua, at Huka Falls on our way south to Wellington.
Powerful falls!
Some videos of Huka Falls, courtesy of Ryan:
After Huka Falls we got to Lake Taupo - a HUGE lake right in the middle of the north island. It was beautiful!
And it provided an (already much needed) break from the car:
Just south of Lake Taupo the scenery changed from the rolling hills we'd grown used to, to a very twisty road. Dana mastered driving all these hair pin turns:
As we made our way south on the Desert Road, we had to stop to capture these gorgeous mountains! Mount Ruapehu:
Mount Ngauruhoe:
We just pulled over to take pictures and then started a trend - there were about 3 other cars lined up behind us.
We stopped for lunch along the way, and after several more hours of heading south, we got our first look at the Tasmanian (or Tasman, as the Kiwis call it) Sea! When we could tell we were only a few km away, we turned and followed the road west to a small town - I think it was Raumati Beach. We parked and walked around the beach for a while:
And frolicked in the sea:
Captured on video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPln_0CFgBQ The island you see in the video is Kapiti Island.
Powerful falls!
Some videos of Huka Falls, courtesy of Ryan:Then it was Dana's turn to get behind the wheel! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOkXANZNLc0
After Huka Falls we got to Lake Taupo - a HUGE lake right in the middle of the north island. It was beautiful!
And it provided an (already much needed) break from the car:
Just south of Lake Taupo the scenery changed from the rolling hills we'd grown used to, to a very twisty road. Dana mastered driving all these hair pin turns:
As we made our way south on the Desert Road, we had to stop to capture these gorgeous mountains! Mount Ruapehu:
Mount Ngauruhoe:
We just pulled over to take pictures and then started a trend - there were about 3 other cars lined up behind us.
We stopped for lunch along the way, and after several more hours of heading south, we got our first look at the Tasmanian (or Tasman, as the Kiwis call it) Sea! When we could tell we were only a few km away, we turned and followed the road west to a small town - I think it was Raumati Beach. We parked and walked around the beach for a while:
And frolicked in the sea:
Captured on video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPln_0CFgBQ The island you see in the video is Kapiti Island. After enjoying an ice cream cone in town, we hopped back in the car for the last stretch into Wellington. We stayed two nights in town at the Quality Suites hotel. They had a coin operated laundry room and we took advantage and did a load, being warned that they lock the room at 10pm sharp, so we ended up pulling our stuff out while it was still damp, just to make sure we wouldn't get locked out! Our hotel room was quite large, with a kitchenette, and it was nice to spread out. The first night we walked down Cuba Street (a little sketchy at night) to Flying Burrito Brothers for dinner. Ryan and I agreed it was one of the best margaritas we've had! Plus, the food was also amazing.
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