Traveling Ninja Notes: Lake Taupo

When I got back from my visit home, I was lucky to still have a few days off before returning to work, so I took a weekend trip to Lake Taupo.

Taupo is close to the middle of the North Island. It used to be a volcano, but roundabout 26,000 years there was a supervolcanic eruption which resulted in it becoming a lake. It is the largest known eruption in the world for the last 70,000 years. The lake is the largest body of freshwater in New Zealand with a surface area of 238 square miles (616 kilometers).

I didn't have nearly the time I wanted to spend there, once I arrived and realized all I could spend my time doing, but I did manage to pick out some highlights and have a wonderful couple of days.

One of the big stops was taking a sailboat out to a spot in the lake that has Maori carvings in a rock-face (we did not have to sail it, got to sit back and relax). The carvings were completed in the 1970s by local artists as a gift to the city. In true Kiwi fashion, once we were out there we got to sit for awhile and enjoy the scenery while having a cup of tea.

Our sailing vessel

The other major sight seeing endeavor was out to see some waterfalls. Upon consulting the map, it seemed like a long-ish walk, or a nice leisurely bike ride. It was a delightful summery day so renting a bike from the hostel seemed like an excellent idea. And it was, it just turned out to be a bit more than originally bargained for. What the map does NOT tell you is that bicyclists must take the longer, more rugged mountain bike trail to get there, instead of the well-kept flat-ish sidewalk. So off we headed, telling ourselves we were tougher than the track. Which we were, it only took us over an hour of the predicted 26 minutes :) I have no mountain biking experience, so for a seasoned rider it would probably be a piece of cake. But I found many of the uphill climbs to be quite tiring, and the rather narrow path along the side of the mountain to be a bit disconcerting. I must admit there were times I walked so I could get up the hill. I will be so much more mentally prepared next time!

The destination was Huka Falls, which is part of the Waikato River which heads north from the Lake (NZs longest river). Just before the waterfall, the river enters a narrow ravine, which results in 220,000 liters of water per second crashing through a very small space. It was quite spectacular to watch.