Exploring the North Island

Lots to report on our adventures from the North Island since you last heard from us.

This week we have explored Tongariro National Park (home to many Lord of the Rings scenes, including Mount Doom), WWOOFed, and visited Raglan and Rotorua. Autumn has hit New Zealand in full-force. The air is crisp, the leaves are changing and pumpkins are in every dish you can imagine. Kiwis pretty much call anything a pumpkin, even the stuff we call 'squash.'


Shortly after our sad departure from Fay's house, we headed to the Tongariro National Park. There are 3 volcanoes there, and a very dramatic landscape with large, powerful waterfalls. We didn't get to do the famous "Tongariro Crossing" (one of the world's best day walks) due to low visibility and snow cover, but took an excellent hike around different parts of the park with stunning views.





After our short vacation we headed to the outskirts of Hamilton, one of NZ's biggest cities, to participate in a 3-day permaculture intensive. Our host Judy has an organic asparagus farm, as you can see sunrise over the fields in the photo below. Judy brought in an American teacher named Nelson who is currently pursuing a PhD in sustainable education. We worked intensively on her permaculture gardens, and along with night-time mini 'lectures' over dinner, we learned a lot about being "lazy farmers", i.e. doing as little work as possible while getting the most out of the land.



We spent a night in Raglan, which according to the locals is where every surfer in the world dreams of visiting. It's small town, very relaxed. Most of the people here look like their lives are lived on vacation. Lots of tanned people with blonde highlights, just about every vehicle is either a station wagon for carrying their surfboard or has a roof rack for the same reason. We spent a couple of hours watching them out there. It's so interesting to see what everyone is wearing when they arrive before changing into their matching wetsuits.





After Raglan we headed over to Rotorua- NZ's volcanic activity center. The whole town smells like sulfer. Alyssa didn't care for it much. Steve started craving hard boiled eggs, so me made some. Thanks to Fay's nephew Neil and his fiance, Brook, we had a clean, safe drive to camp for the night, and running water in the house. We are greatful for their hospitality. The next morning we spent cleaning out the ENTIRE van. All the dirt and grime and cobwebs that have piled up over four solid months. It was perfectly spotless, ready to be sold.


Our lovely hosts, Brooke and Neil




Two days in a dark, dingy garage trying to sell the van to backpackers didn't help our spirits much, as busy Auckland bustled outside. We decided to be more proactive, posting the van on NZ's website "TradeMe," which is their version of Ebay. Within 2 hours we got 5 phone calls, and one guy came down. We eagerly pushed the sale on him for less than half the price we bought it for, but that is unfortunately the nature of the 'low' tourism season. In the end, we still saved a lot of money with the investment, so we're feeling okay about it. At least now we are free to explore the city.

Today we head over to the Coromandel Peninsula for our last NZ WWOOF.

Moving on...

Well, we have happily spent over a month at Fay's and are not that eager to leave but know that we must move on as we only have 2 weeks left in New Zealand!

We had a great time. The greenhouse is 'practically' finished (enough for Autumn to already plant Strawberries on one side); the winter garden is fully planted; the chooks (chickens), rabbits, ducks, turkeys and sheep are well fed; and so are we.

We conclude our stay here with a beautiful Easter weekend and 60th wedding anniversary for Fay's parents. Sunday we will have a party where their 6 children, 13 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren will all attend. Alyssa is making some gluten and dairy free goodies for the party, including a chocolate cake and pumpkin pie (yes, pumpkins are ready!).

On Monday we head over to Hamilton for a 3-day permaculture intensive 'bee' where we will work hard while learning even more about organic living. Then it's time to sell the van and get ready to come home.

We also just got word that we will be WWOOFing in North Carolina from May 15-June 15, and then attending a friend's wedding in West Virginia on a farm for 1 weeks. It looks like our summer is filling up already, which is weird because we're enjoying fall here in New Zealand right now!

(here we are collecting timber from the local mill for the greenhouse)