Mt. Karioi Summit Climb

I have little doubt that by the end of 2020 most of us felt the need for a break. I was right there with you, especially as work seemed to get busier the closer we got to the end. I am fortunate to work for a company that closes for a couple of weeks over the holidays. I opted to extend the break a bit and took off a few days early. 

Summer had arrived, flowers were in bloom, the sun was shining and I just felt the need for fresh air. I also wanted to go somewhere I had never been. I settled on venturing towards Raglan, which is a coastal town a couple of hours North of here. It is small and a bit out of the way, and is primarily known for being a fantastic surf destination. I was not the least bit interested in surfing, but figured I could find some alternate outdoor activity. After a bit of digging, I stumble on the Mt. Karioi summit climb. I have a friend that lives in the area who enthusiastically agreed to join me. 

Mt. Karioi is an extinct volcano that is just outside of Raglan. It does not have the traditional cone-shape of a volcano like Mt. Fuji, but was certainly still a challenge to climb! The summit is 750 meters high, and the views were well worth the effort. We opted to do the summit climb from the coastal side and return the same way. The track continues down the other side of the volcano for those who want to carry on but we did not have transport back to our vehicle organized so thought we would save that for next time. 

We were climbing a fairly steep track right from the word go. The first stage was through the back of a farm, so there was a bit of a breeze but the sun was quite warm so the heartrates got up pretty quickly. We persevered though and got into a wooded section after the first half hour. From there it was more up than down but had some flat or slight descending sections. There was one ladder to navigate, and two sections where chains had been installed to allow you to safely get up a bank. Right at the end we found ourselves needing to do a bit of rock climbing to get right to the summit!

The summit featured a helicopter pad, which make an excellent picnic spot for having lunch and re-hydrating. There were also stunning 360 degree views, I'll let the below photos do the telling :)

 

Local Leisure

 One of my favorite things about New Zealand is the annual Christmas shutdown period. I know that not everyone has the luxury of two weeks off but I am always thankful to be someone that does. My company always takes at least a two week period off, and with the public holidays you can enjoy the time off without using up too much leave time.

We often try to travel over the break period but opted to have a stay-cation this year. Troway had to work part of the time (the joys of being the newer employee) so we fit in some relaxation and local exploration around his schedule.

I enjoyed a hike at the Pukeiti rainforest. I have blogged about this a couple of times before, so will not do a play by play. However, I did want to share my success in finally reaching the Pukeiti summit! It is not a huge achievement since it is not a big climb, but it had been on the Taranaki hiking bucketlist for awhile so I was pleased to finally get there. Like many of the high points around the region, there are lovely views of the surrounding farmland and coastline. 

Pukekura Park was another excellent source of fresh air on lazy summer days. The park is one of my favorite summer destinations (think more of an inner-city garden) because there is adequate shade to keep you cool, or sunny spots to get some vitamin D. While Troway was at work one morning I packed up supplies for a picnic and off we went when he finished his client sessions for the day. After lazing in the sun a bit to let the picnic settle, we enjoyed a wander through the park. Ultimately we ended up exploring the fernery  and enjoying the aviary at the small zoo on one end of the park.