Day 4 Waimangu Volcanic Valley

Another beautiful and spectacular day in Kiwi-land. Driving out of Rotorua to the nearby Waimangu valley we passed through gorgeous scenery, some of which looked very Shire-like for those Lord of the Rings fans, and in fact the Hobbiton which was created for the movie is not too far from here (sadly no time to visit).

Arriving at Waimangu we found what is billed as the newest geothermal area in the world with much of the scenery derived from eruptions that occurred within the last hundred years. It is much smaller than Yellowstone but was quite a different experience as the "park" was quite untouched with narrow pathways and very few barriers separating us from the natural beauty. In addition, the number of visitors is quite small compared to the crowds you would encounter at a U.S. national park. In fact, we were mostly alone with our guide as we enjoyed the amazing views.

Our guide Phil was funny and informative with a lot of the local history and is part of the family run business that still looks after the valley. He is a descendent from the original discovers of area. His ancestry includes both British settlers and native Māori. His great uncles together experienced the last great eruption of the local volcano in 1903. One brother warned the other of the imminent eruption but was too late as the younger brother perished while the older brother sadly watched in horror. We saw lots of wildlife including some cool frogs and lots of birds including black swans and this Pukeko (known locally as a blue chicken!) My brother Tom will appreciate the birds! At the end of the tour, we were taken on a lovely boat ride on a lake, that was part of the park, that had stunning scenery and lots of active thermal features. We were treated to a mini "Old Faithful" as a geyser erupted right in front of us (see below).

Attached are some videos of the cool geysers and hot springs (hopefully will work in the blog)

Our geothermal spirit inspired us to top the day off at the "Polynesian Spa", a nearby spot that offered an array of acidic and alkaline mineral baths that were fed from the local hot springs. Steve was a bit hesitant as it isn't really his thing but was a good sport to go along. The vibe is about relaxing. There are lots of "Quiet Area" signs. However, on the stone Reikl path that we started out on, Steve started yelping "OW OW - I HATE THIS!" as he tried to rush over the stones too quickly. We soon redirected to the mineral baths for a more relaxing experience and overall, we were both glad we had the experience. Day 4 was a huge success!

NZ Fun Fact: New Zealand does not import any food. They grow and farm everything they need!