After Napier, we drove back inland heading to the town of Taupō, which is on the banks of a large freshwater lake of the same name. Being a Saturday, we saw more camper vans and caravans on the road, all looking very different. We passed the mountain range and gorge again, but this time it wasn’t raining so we stopped at a scenic overlook to see a waterfall. As typical in New Zealand, it was incredible – just your average kiwi wayside rest…
On the outskirts of Taupō was another falls called Huka Falls, a very popular tourist spot on the Waikato River. We stopped there for a picnic lunch and to hike around the falls a bit. While not nearly as tall as the one we saw earlier, it was very powerful with an impressive flow. Moreover, the water was an incredible aquamarine blue color. There were lots of tourist activities around the falls including jet boats, helicopter rides, etc.
After visiting the falls, we went into Taupō city center to do some shopping. I finally found a New Zealand bike jersey I had been looking for all month in a local bike shop. We also made a final grocery store run to pick up fruits, veggies and bread for the remainder of our trip. While at the grocery store, we saw they had green-lipped New Zealand mussels on sale, so we couldn’t pass them up. They make the perfect supper dish to accompany the Chardonnay we bought in Napier. Yum!
The next morning, we booked a sailboat ride on Lake Taupō. It is New Zealand’s largest lake, the source of its drinking water and it is great for trout fishing. The water was very clear and blue, the winds were good and we had a fun ride. Our destination was the Ngātoroirangi Mine Bay Māori Rock Carvings. The carvings are 45 feet tall and were carved in 1980 by the artist Matahi Brightwell to depict the Māori navigator who legend says led two tribes to the Taupō area. In the carvings, Ngātoroirangi is surrounded by ancestors and guardians that were pivotal to the history of the local Māori tribes. We had great weather on our ride and enjoyed chatting with the other passengers.
As we were leaving town, we drove by the most unusual McDonald’s restaurant. It has a 1943 Douglas DC-3 airplane sticking out of it. We stopped to discover that it was voted the coolest McDonald’s in the world – and you could sit inside the airplane to eat. We decided to get lunch there and have to admit that the New Zealand angus beef burgers are the best – as is Sophie’s favorite New Zealand McDonald’s discovery from two years ago, the McDip cone.
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