White Island to Wellington

July 8, 2008
This was a really big day for us – the expedition to White Island. This is one of the things we were most looking forward to and it absolutely exceeded our expectations! We went with PeeJay Charters and the staff and facilities were outstanding – truly excellent.
The weather cooperated beautifully – it was a gorgeous day, blue skies for the entire trip. We embarked at 9:00 and the trip out was really lovely. Whakatane is a very picturesque town – it reminded me a little of Hot Springs NP. We saw Whale Island and heard about its exotic history – environmentally destroyed by various commercial endeavors, by the time the government took it over it was overrun with rats and goats and all native fauna had been obliterated. It is now a conservation reserve and thriving.
We landed on White Island by zodiac and scaled a rusted ladder (everyone’s tetanus booster is I believe up-to-date) and tiptoed across a terrifyingly corroded metal plank and then scrambled over a boulder field up to the beach. White Island is New Zealand’s only active marine volcano. It is the site of intense study by volcanologists and we saw their cameras and several of the markers and equipment they use to monitor its activities. Once on the beach you are confronted with the ruins of the sulfur mine destroyed by an eruption in 1914. You can also hear the hissing of the countless fumaroles. Our walk took us on a circuit of the crater floor. The number of steaming holes in the ground is beyond reckoning. Each one is surrounded by delicate yellow crystals of sulfur. In some places these crystals begin to build up into chimneys above the hole. The smell was at times unendurable and we had to resort to the gas masks thoughtfully provided by the guides. They also distributed hard candy to combat the hacking cough occasioned by inhaling too many sulfurous fumes. (Let me not malign sulfur. We learned that pure sulfur is odorless. The horrific stench associated with sulfur (that foul, rotten egg, brimstone smell) is sulfur dioxide or sulfur combined with carbon dioxide.) In many places the ground is covered with a crust of sulfur, silica and gypsum. There are channels cut by rainwater runoff where you can see the layer of volcanic material ejected over the years. During its most recent eruption, in 2000, the volcano covered itself with a foot thick layer of scoria (volcanic pebbles). In the middle of the crater is a jade green lake that steams like a cauldron. Its temperature is about 57 degrees Celsius (134 degrees Farhenheit) and has a PH of -0.1. The guide told us that if anyone fell in there would be a “big splash, a short squeal, and a long silence.” The environment is very acidic from the countless fuming holes that dot the island. The guides told us that their t-shirts start developing holes in just a couple of weeks. It is very hard to describe – sort of a cross between a moonscape and a post-apocalyptic , geothermal wonderland. We all had a great time.

July 9,2008
Another gorgeous day! We left Rotorua and headed towards Lake Taupo. Enroute we stopped at Orakei Koraku another geothermal wonderland. The “Emerald Terrace” descends into Lake Orakei and a continuous cascade of heated water flows over its sparkling silica surface into the lake water. We ferried across the lake and landed beside the terraces. A boardwalk path led around a series of geysers, mud pots and fumeroles. The landscape was wonderfully lush. Lichens, moss, and ferns densely covered the trailsides. The plants apparently love the hot, mineral rich environment as they were everywhere - algae over the terraces, moss and ferns all around the edges of the fumeroles and mud pots.
The Ruatapu cave was a wonderful feature. We descended a series of switchbacked stairs to reach the entrance. It was a craggy, enormous cavern with birds nesting in the upper reaches. At the base of the cave was a tiny jewel-like pool. The water was a deep, clear aquamarine. It was too clear. Poor Zada didn’t realize where the water began and waded out up to her knees by the time she realized she was in!
After this we made our way to Wairakei and the Volcanic Activity Center. This place was wonderful. I wish we could uproot the entire thing and bring it home for the kids. It had hands-on interactive displays for every conceivable type of geologic phenomena. There was a giant globe that had removable tectonic plates. An earthquake simulator, where you sit in a mock living room and are subjected to a tooth-rattling 6.3 quake! They had a cone volcano simulator, geyser simulator, and a tornado simulator as well. We overheard one gentleman trying to explain to his children that tornadoes were some sort of meteorological thing that they have in America all the time. They also have a series of videos about Mount Ruapehu and its eruption cycle. Several kiosks were receiving data from geologic tracking stations around the country, so that you could get real time data on White Island, Mt. Ruapehu, Mt Ngauruhoe and other sites. Everything was amazingly kid friendly and highly informative at the same time.
Driving on we headed to the Huka Falls. The falls vary from 7 to 9 meters in height based on the amount of water going through the hydro-electricity plant upriver.
The final perfect moment of the day came with the stunning views of Mt. Ruapehu, Mt. Tongariro and Mt. Ngauruhoe across Lake Taupo.
7/10/2008
Yet another beautiful day – moderate temperatures and blue skies held sway as we headed into Napier in quest of Art Deco architecture. I want to insert a quick unpaid advertisement here about the unbelievable excellence of New Zealand’s campgrounds. Their facilities are amazing! Pristine grounds with excellent playgrounds, family rooms/communal dining rooms, fully equipped communal kitchens, clean showers/spas, laundry, and so on and so on. All the campgrounds in thermal areas like Rotorua, Whakatane and the Taupo region have thermal pools also. My only complaint is that Kiwis are apparently much sturdier than your typical American and do not feel the cold. They keep opening all the doors and windows in these marvelous facilities rendering them all Arctic Adventure Centers.
Anyhow, Napier was very charming. We went by the Art Deco Trust and collected all the pamphlets and information. The city has been wiped out by natural disasters a couple of times, most recently in the 1930’s when earthquake and fire leveled the town. It was rebuilt in the prevailing style of the day. It looks like a binky Metropolis without Superman. We did the walking tour and took appropriate note of all notable architectural features. The city is rife with sidewalk cafes, locally produced craft boutiques and decorative fountains. I was strong and did not go into the Opossum World shop. I would have squandered all our remaining funds on merino/possum blend wool products. Possum socks for everyone!
We next headed to the Marine Parade, a lovely promenade along the Pacific Ocean featuring cream colored arcades and another gorgeous fountain. Eight foot waves were breaking deafeningly on shore.
We had to cut our time here short as a four hour drive to Wellington was ahead of us and no one wants to pilot “The Beast” (as we not so fondly call the campervan) around the mountains in the dark. Along the way we did stop in Greytown – another really charming (I’m beating that word to death, but “quaint” always seems to have a slightly condescending flavor to it to me, and it really is all absurdly charming, so blame the Kiwis for my repetitiveness) hamlet about 80 kilometers from Wellington. It is all Victoriana and we stopped at a chocolate shop called “Schoc”. It was truly phenomenal. They are famous for their limechili chocolate. It is amazing! As was the lemonwhite, the pink pepper and the lapsang souchong smoked chocolate – they had sample crumbles of all their amazing flavors in an antiques pharmacy chest. Each drawer held an incredible taste sensation. I freely admit, they all SOUND terrible, but they were all divine. I will post a link to their site in the “links” sidebar - check them out.
July 11, 2008
RED PANDA ATTACK! Today was marvelous. We took the bus into Wellington and headed for the zoo. Ah! Workable public transportation! We had bipolar/Seattle weather all day. It was blustery with blue skies, except every 15 to 20 minutes it would mist and or drizzle. Anyways, it was perfect red panda pestering weather.
The Wellington Zoo is a very nice facility. It is a small zoo, but all the enclosures are well done, the grounds are immaculate and the staff is all very friendly and knowledgeable. They host these incredible animal encounters. You can get up close and personal with one of several different animals. We booked the Red Panda encounter.
We met Paul, the zookeeper at the enclosure and he briefed us on safety and basic behavior protocols and the let us into the pen. The zoo has a very successful red panda program. They have 5 red pandas currently: a retired breeding pair, a current breeding pair and a six month old named Sir Ed (after Sir Edmund Hillary, who had passed away just before the cub was born).
First we met Rika, a 13 year old female (1/2 of the retired pair). She was coy for about 3 seconds and then she scented the pear slices we had. She was then all over us. They are unbelievably precious – so furry, and snuffly and gosh-darn cute! They are ridiculously adorable and you can hardly stop gibbering baby talk and other nonsense at them as they crawl all over you for pear slices. Their primary diet is bamboo, but their treat preference is absolutely pear. They rejected the apple and would only condescend to their fiber cake when they were completely sure the pear was all gone.
As we fed them, Paul told us about their many adaptations and the threats they currently face. They are extremely endangered due primarily to habitat loss. They have thick fur to keep them warm in the Himalayan ranges – even their feet are fur-covered instead of having pads. They are pigeon-toed and have semi-retractable claws to facilitate tree climbing, as they spend most of their life aloft. The scientific pendulum swings in trying to place these wonderful animals – they are currently said to be most closely related to raccoons. In the past they were believed to be related to bears. Overall they are incredibly charming and it is tragic to think that indiscriminate logging for timber and farmland are threatening them with extinction.
After the zoo we explored the Botanical Gardens – really lovely with camellias everywhere. We rode up by cable car and then wound our way down via the 40% grade trails and paths. After that we wandered the shopping in the Lambton Quay area until we landed in an All Blacks store and all our money magically disappeared.