Last day of Taupo Field Trip

Sunday

TOO EARLY! Once again, we’re up early at 7AM. I’m finally starting to get used to it, but then I realize my entire weekend has been wasted to early wake-up times. I’m getting a taste of the real world and I don’t like it.

LAST DAY: We make two stops before heading back to Wellington today. First, we visit the Waikato river, which isn’t that important geographically but is very nice to look at. The water is a crystal blue, almost turquoise, and rumbles down through a narrow cut in the land. I wonder aloud what rafting on it would be like, and our professor comments there is a dangerous undertow at the end of the rapid. Darn.

The river alone is responsible for 15% of New Zealand’s power generation, which is pretty impressive for a river. Since the country has a nuclear ban, it is now apparently on which forms of alternative energy generation they use.

WONDERLAND: Next, we stop at a park which has a whole slew of geothermal toys. The first attraction is the mud pits, which boil, churn, and bubble constantly. The high acid content of the steam coming from underneath dissolves the rock and keeps the area muddy. It’s quite impressive, as it reminds me of a hot tub full of mud. It also smells like hell because of the sulfur content. A handful of my peers (names carefully omitted), can’t handle the smell in conjunction with their hangovers and wander off into the woods to relieve their aching gastrointestinal tracts. Some are sneaky and we don’t find about it until later.

The final stop is at another conglomerate of geothermal attractions which were quite impressive in their own right. See the pictures for the highlights, but my particular favorites were the artist’s pallet and the devil’s pool.

After our romp in the Geothermal Wonderland, we load up and head home.

REDNECK CARNIVAL: One of the interesting rest stops we make is at a little place that seemed to located between two cities. I can best describe it as a redneck carnival – it had a little bit of everything but seemed to be run by a small group of people. It had a little restaurant, an ice cream shop, random chickens and peacocks running about, a maze, and even a jetboat track out back. Our bus driver claims their lamb burgers are good, but I decide not to wait in line for one.

When everyone is finally ushered back onto the bus, we make our now traditional last rest-stop at the Adventure Park in Levin, a cult favorite among us. We seem to beat the odds yet again with no major injuries.

After a long day, what more could one ask for than a Kebob? My 4^th met its demise shortly after we got back into town. Man those things are good!

--P