18th December
So I hadn't really realised that New Zealand straddles the Indian Australian & Pacific continental plates, resulting in a strip of land, 'The thermal explorer highway' being the centre of geological & volcanic activity & earthquakes.
The pictures don't do it justice, but the drive to Wai-O-Tapu geothermal park felt like I'd gone back in time. The tropical landscape & mist from the hot springs made it seem primordial.
You could almost imagine a dinosaur crashing through the trees!
I stopped off at some mud pools on the way.
There was a helicopter flying around, you can probably hear in the background.
At the park, the colours & sights of the craters & sulphur crystals were amazing
Sinter terrace:
Apparently, recordings from this crater were used as sound effects in Lord of the Rings:
The Champagne pool:
It occurs naturally too, but the story goes that in the 1900's some prisoners went to wash their clothes in the water here, as it was hot, & they dropped their soap down the hole, which proceeded to shoot water into the air, and gave them a shock!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lady_Knox_Geyser
Not satisfied with one geothermal park, I wanted to visit Orakei Korako park, said to be less touristy & it certainly was more peaceful, but no less stunning, hidden the other side of a lake, you had to catch a little boat to reach it
They give you a warning of the dangers of the park & a card you have to carry, to accept liability if you are injured....Some of the areas have boiling water, & the ground is thin so you have to keep to the walkways. Also, if you hear a siren, it means you must evacuate the park as there can be noxious gases emitted....
The 'Artist's Palate':
Wiki camps came up trumps at Hipapatua Reserve, with a great free carpark by the Waikato river. It got packed but I got myself a nice spot.
The river water is incredibly clear.
There's lots of birds around too, some very tame.
I met an Austrian family again who I met in Rotorua car park - before I got moved.
I had got chatting to them as I had gone into the space they were waiting for (at Rotorua car park for campers) - kinda pinched it - then felt guilty so was about to move elsewhere when the people left, from the space next to me, so it was all good.
I told them about how I got moved in the end - we laughed that it was Karma for nicking their space.
They said they had seen people getting fined $400 for parking in the wrong direction in some of the Freedom Camping sites.
For Freedom Camping you need a 'Self Contained' sticker, which I don't have. It's a process you have to go through & tests etc. Lots of New Zealanders have them, even in converted cars - basically you need a toilet & some kind of water system for waste etc.
I'm still a little unsure of the rules but will stick to definite free sites without the need to be self contained, like this one.
I also helped a very sweet French girl who didn't know how to use her camping cooker.
She'd gone 3 weeks without cooking.
I only heated up some baked beans & had it with bread & butter.
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