In true Kiwi tradition, we went camping for the holidays.
On Christmas day, we packed our tent (and a lot of other things) into the car and headed to Wellington. After meeting our friends Chris and Killian at the ferry terminal, we made camp at Kaitoke Regional Park.
We cooked our Christmas dinner on a little grill we’d bought the day before. Keeping a little bit of tradition (at least for me) we made a lamb roast with roasted potato salad and stuffed peppers. Yum!
As it got dark we wandered along the river bank and made some new friends by joining their bonfire.
The next day we hit the road heading north. We stopped for groceries in Palmerston North, before continuing towards Tongariro. The scenery was beautiful and we enjoyed the drive.
Well, most of it… Less than an hour from our destination, disaster struck in the form of a clanking noise from our car’s engine. As we pulled onto the shoulder the engine stalled, and it hasn’t driven since. Bye-bye Subaru…
At least we had a nice view as we waited for Chris and Killian to catch up. We then had another wait until the tow truck arrived (apparently he had a very busy day)
Continuing in one very tightly packed car, we found a campsite and settled in for the night. The next day we had to adjust our plans slightly, as we now only had one car. Rather than doing the Tongariro Crossing, we decided to hike half-way, then turn around and head back the way we’d come.
The volcanic landscape was stunning, but the climbing (in my opinion anyway) sucked. We never made it to the half-way point. Instead, we got distracted by Mount Ngauruhoe.
Of course, we had to climb it.
Just to clarify, Mount Ngauruhoe, aside from being the second highest peak in Tongriro National Park, is also the cone of an active volcano. I’m only telling you this because we made it back safely, so there’s no need to worry.*
The climb was steep, and the footing not always the best. I was grateful for my new hiking boots (thanks Eddy!)
The view was stunning though, and only got better as we climbed.
After an extended snack break at the summit, we tumbled back down (not literally) and made our way back to the car.
And we can now proudly say we have climbed Mount Doom! Lord of the Rings set location 1 of I-don’t-know-how-many, check.
We ended the day with a quick dip in Lake Taupo to wash off all the dust.
*Mount Ngauruhoe is currently at an alert level of Zero, the lowest possible rating for an active volcano signifying that there is no volcanic unrest. AKA. it isn’t about to do anything scary.
Canadian Kiwis 
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