Day three began much the same as the preceding days, with a wake up around 8:15am (both boys) and an eventual migration downstairs for breakfast. We didn’t depart the resort until after 10am, with our first destination being the famous redwood forest just outside the city of Rotorua.
Our day’s itinerary in map form:
Unexpected Shopping
As we drove down the road towards the redwood forest, Toni spied an outdoor gear shop called the Outdoorsman. Since the weather forecast was nothing short of grim, we decided it was time to purchase some light rain jackets for us and the boys as an insurance policy against a repeat of yesterday. The upside is that we don’t own summer lightweight jackets, so we weren’t buying something we already owned back home.
The boys ran amok the shop, and we did our best to shepherd them and prevent utter chaos as we located and bought what we needed. We were given a voucher for a free coffee, so we wandered up to the adjoined cafe to redeem it, along with a babychino for Jake and a flat white for moi.
Unannounced shopping aside, we resumed our travel up the road to the redwood forest.
Redwood Forest Park
This was not our first foray into the redwood forest territory, we’ve visited Muir Woods in Marin County (San Francisco) on a previous trip back in 2007. This park had a very nice visitors centre, oh and did we mention the place is admission free? Bargain, and it was only a short drive south from the airport. These redwoods tower over everything, yet the forest floor was peaceful and serene. The path hewn throughout the area was well maintained – manicured, even.
We did the shortest path available owing to the stamina of our boys, who walked probably about half of the route on foot. We did have the travel stroller though, and the boys took turns riding along in it. At the end of the trail, we had a fairly long descent which Jake tackled on his own. He only fell over once!
Once we had finished at the park, the weather seemed to be staying away, leaving us with some random beams of sunlight. We decided to chance our hand and continue along the road we’d taken to get to the redwoods. There was a sign announcing Green and Blue Lakes, so we knew we would have to check it out.
Blue Lake/Lake Tikitapu
The road wound us out through closely cropped hills and rolling greenery complete with cows and precariously placed sheep, who appeared more like mountain goats. It brought us out at the foot of an expansive lake which had the most remarkably clear water. There was also a rather large children’s play equipment area above a terraced area, which had Jake and Damian engaged.
I took some photos along the shore before walking up to join Toni and the boys at the play equipment. We managed to make it back to the car before a wave of rain swept in from the south. Our road continued to take us further in, past the buried village and to the shores of..
Lake Tarawera
Which was even larger than anything we’d seen, except maybe Lake Rotorua. We found yet another set of play equipment, so the boys went to town on it. I took some more photos from the shore before returning to watch the kids playing on the equipment.
As we departed the lake, we had an opportunity to observe the landscape from a lookout. The road returned us to the buried village, and with time in hand, we decided to visit it. It wasn’t exceptionally cheap at NZD $32 per adult, but we paid and entered anyway. We had a quick lunch (grilled ham and cheese) and an iced coffee drink box.
The Buried Village of Te Wairoa
The village was once a thriving township before a volcanic eruption covered the unfortunate town in molten lava. Little remains of the village nowadays, but through patience and a lot of hard work, many structures have been successfully excavated. This provides a rare glimpse into what a 19th century village really looked like – a time capsule of sorts. On site and through the museum are many examples of unearthed treasures of the era, including millstones, anvils, saws and other tools.
The most stunning remains are of Maori whare (houses) which eerily still stand.
One of the highlights of the area is the Wairere Falls, which is encountered towards the end of the trail running through and out on the perimeter of the buried village itself. A fast running stream drops water over the top of a very steep rock face, producing a spectacular visual:
The hike back up to the museum almost killed me, but I made it in double time. We left the village just as another front of rain swept in. It was now approaching 3:30pm and we weren’t sure whether to head back to the resort or not. In the end, we decided to take advantage of the “fair” weather, and moved back to Rotorua to once again head south towards a hot springs in the mountains.
Kerosene Creek
The place is known as Kerosene Creek, and is highly rated on Trip Advisor. The instructions on how to get there are easy enough to follow, but they lack some vital information – that being that the road you need to pass is littered with thousands of potholes, making for an exceptionally bumpy ride.
We pulled up at what we thought was the “grassy verge”, but it actually wasn’t – it was too far upstream. We ran into a group of Irish folks who had doubled back, and sort of decided to check out further down the road. Turns out it was indeed a bit further along.
There were about half a dozen cars, and some German chicks in bathing suits, so we had a hunch we’d found the right place. We got out, swapped into swim wear and followed the path down. The creek ran swiftly down to another set of falls, spilling into a large open pond type area. It was about 1 meter to climb down, but once in, the thermal springs were welcoming. We stayed around 20 minutes paddling around and keeping close watch on the boys as they splashed around.
Once we returned to the car, we changed back into normal clothes and began the journey back north. We detoured to visit the “Volcanic Valley” only to realise that after 6kms of road, the destination was yet another place which charged admission. It was after 5pm, and the place looked deserted, so we took the road back north, and ultimately back to the resort.
Back to the Resort
Once home, there was a little time to watch Jake and Damian run around outside the townhouse, making sure neither of them got too close to the marina. Eventually, it was dinner time – so I gathered up and seasoned our steaks, and took to the communal BBQ which is directly opposite our terrace. Hand cut chips, sausages and steak accompanied by caramelized onion – divine. We showered the boys and eventually they went down for sleep. After a spell of tidying up the townhouse, I retired to the laptop to write this entry..
Check back tomorrow for Day 4!
Great photos and wonderful descriptions