Taupo the "crater city."

February 9 / 10^th (LakeTaupo)

Beauty within the Beast!

As much as we hate too leave the eastern central coast of the north Island, we do not have enough time to further explore the northern coastal communities. Therefore next stop moving into the center of the Island will be the site of the most devastating volcanic explosion in the entire southern Hemisphere…Mount Taupo! All that remains today, however, is the site of the massive crater lake of Lake Taupo and its lake side community of Taupo. Once again the “Top 10” Holiday parks have not let us down, we have found a great spot to settle & explore the fantastic thermal activity that this area possesses. On of the highlights of my NZ adventure was the 41/2 hr hike that the boys and I took to “HukaFalls”. We managed to find a natural hotspings emerging from a spot along the Huka River which enabled us to soak our sore tired legs in the 45+ thermal springs emptying into the refreshing chilled waters of Huka River which was equally enjoyable as the day has been without wind or clouds! An absolutely outstanding father / son bonding adventure that I will not soon forget!! We also managed to have an almost equally enjoyable day hiking the “Caters of the Moon” provincial park; the landscape was almost eerie at times, as steam vents and mud pools were doing their thing everywhere you turned! Unfortunately the reality of our fast approaching departure date has once again forced us to pack up camp, way to early and leave behind the many unseen sites & experiences that the Taupo area possesses. I have found this area to be extremely interesting & beautiful despite its violent volcanic past.

Please see the pictures for further explanation of this phenomenal area of thermal activity!!