Mt. Taranaki

The first term of the school year is a wrap, and the first of four school holidays of the school year just finished. We had two weeks off and I was itchy to explore! Hatching a plan was a game of whack-a-mole with the weather; fall has descended on our southern hemisphere island, and the rain came with it... A LOT of rain. Add to that a global fuel crisis that has doubled-and-then-some fuel costs and brought worries of running out of fuel to this island nation, I didn't feel right about planning a long road trip south just yet. My idea of going to Northland for subtropical surfing, snorkeling, and camping was also thwarted by incessant rain. But I found one corner of the North Island that appeared to offer a four day weather window to have an adventure, so the boys and I headed off to New Plymouth to explore beautiful Mount Taranaki. (Bernard's office just opened and he didn't want to take any time off so it was just the three of us).

Mt. Taranaki is a picturesque almost perfectly conical dormant volcano, surrounded by black sand beaches. The mountain has erupted multiple times, and rebuilt itself as many times, most recently 250 years ago. Yes, it's dormant, meaning... yes, it will erupt again. Someday. The geology of the area is super interesting as a result. The mountain is also sacred to the Maori, and we tried to bring care and respect along with us on our adventure.

We opted for a popular track called the Pouakai crossing with two huts to sleep in along the way. We intended to hike it as a circuit, but some rangers advised me to stick to the high route for the views in case an incoming cyclone interrupted our hike early, so we made it a there-and-back crossing. With Cyclone Vaianu approaching New Zealand, I couldn't extend the adventure to be any longer, and we kept a close eye of developing weather, but we got lucky with three glorious days on the mountain. The first day was long and steep with many stairs, and rewarding views along the way. After 15 km we were all ready to put our feet up and enjoy a warm meal. Day 2 was much shorter so we added a visit to a nearby waterfall of freezing water that Ike plunged into and I soaked my legs in. No photo of that though as I left my camera in the hut.

The Dieffenbach Cliffs

The Boomerang Slip

The Ahukawakawa Swamp

This was our first time hiking hut to hut. We all agreed that hut to hut tramping doesn't hold a candle to the serenity and peace of backcountry tent camping, but the huts offered some great perks. The two huts we stayed in were great - nicely built, cool locations, and very clean. They had a community cooking and eating space and a few bunk rooms equipped with bunks and plastic-coated mattresses. The lighter backpacks were lovely as the only adult with two kids, as were the comfortable mattresses for a nice long rest. What I enjoyed most though was meeting other hikers, local and international, sharing stories and ideas, and making some new friends.

Pouakai Hut

Holly Hut

One highlight for me was being woken up by little Kobe massaging my neck, and asking if I want to go watch the sunrise. How can anyone say no to that!?

Day 3 we headed back out, and despite having walked up a thousand stairs on our first day, somehow this day was mostly uphill as well! Ha Ha Ha. Ike's a really fast hiker and was up ahead of Kobe and I all three days. He would charge ahead, and then find some awesome view spot to bliss out and wait for us to catch up. He seemed to really love the solitude and peace. Kobe was kept entertained by Montessori's Great Stories of the Creation of the Universe, Evolution of Life, and the Development of Humans. It was fun to tell these stories while hiking and findly remembering the excited faces of past students I've told these stories to so many times.

After we finished our hike and enjoyed the promised ice cream treats at the visitor's center, we headed to town to check into a hotel in New Plymouth and watch the Cyclone roll in. I wasn't about to drive back home on the small coastal Forgotten Highway through river canyons while the Island got walloped by a cyclone, so we loaded up on snacks and enjoyed a marathon movie session. Sadly, the storm kept us from more exploring of the beaches in the area or hiking any more of the magical tracks nearby. I guess we'll have to head back that way!