I Was Told That It Rained In New Zealand

Well rest day in Te Kuiti was much needed, and enjoyed. From there we headed south on a river walk section that was supposed to be very cool. Unfortunately were turned around at the start by the police. No we weren't in trouble, but there was a search and rescue going on, and we were not able to do that part. Instead we hit the road. We met the guy who sold Alice her boot in Hamilton on the road. He was part of the search and rescue. We missed an old steam engine that day too. We heard it blow its whistle and saw puffing smoke, but it was just out of view. The road section continued till Pureora where Dennis found a new friend. There was a dog that followed us to camp the second night. Dennis decided to call him Henry. We wondered if he would follow us into the mountains. After a night filled with barking and pig chasing I think that it was for the better that Henry didn't follow us. We summitted Pureora and Weraroa on this third day of this leg. It was a long cold day. It rained, and there were no summit views. We were very excited to see the Waihaha Hut that night where we dried our selves and gear by a coal stove. Nice and toasty. Our track out from the hut followed a river that gave us some awesome views and a beautiful place to eat lunch. All was going well until some logging roads that existed who knows how many years ago existed no longer. That made for a longer road section to Tongariro. We had our first camp fire during this leg. It was nice to enjoy the light and warmth of it. The day into Tongariro was filled with rain, rain, and more rain. As luck would have it there was a nice little camp ground with cabins just before the Tongariro Crossing. We were able to dry out and resupply. Bev and Rene were running the camp ground, and they again showed us the Kiwi hospitality. Bev drove us into town to buy food for our next five days, and they both sent us off in the morning with a care package. They gave us a package of chicken and veggie stir fry to have that night for dinner. Yumm it was very good and much appreciated. Well i think thats all for now. I hope everyone back home and in Tahoe is doing well. This trip is very exciting. I will have lots of stories to tell.

Hiking, Lane

Pictures:
Lane walking on road
Pureora Summit in a cloud
Lane by waterfall
Lake Taupo
Alice and Dennis crossing bridge