My hand is really going through the wars but it is worth the nuisance of wincing when I forget and use that hand to stuff things in a bag. Most of these were caused by River Valley (not sure what happened to the index finger) which is a cute little lodge set by a river, in a valley. I was the only one to stay 3 nights so separated from the crew a bit but got to see some old faces again. I surprised them by sitting in the lounge knowing full well when they would ...

Yesterday was the most lord of the ringsy day yet. Me and Angela and a variety of add ons walked a fairly straight forward but long walk across lots off terrains from scree to forests. Some magnificent views and geologic awesomeness. Including Mt Doom from the movies (where Frodo had to get to to throw the ting in). There were pumice stones which had flown kilometres from the recent eruption site. That was only 3 months ago apparently by the way so they had to ...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY EMMA! I have no wifi because all the NZ hostels so far charge for it and I haven't found a free wifi phone box hotspot yet... I'm sure I will in Wellington. So I hope you have a marvellous day and the kids treat you well and pie taille bake you a cake on which they put lots of smarties!!! I'm on a coach, a different coach, at 5 30 am on the way to Mount Doom. Everyone is in true tourist mode and it is easier to remember Mt Doom than Mt Ngauruhoe....

What a fantastic day. Had a nice walk this morning to intersperse the drive, short but sweet and Tom, Russ and I discussed our typical pre travelling days. When we got to Rotorua we got straight on the Luge gondola. I picked up a fantastic GF brownie for lunch. Outstanding. The life's were fast, scary at times when they tilted but ultimately great value for views, fun and entertainment. Racing wasn't allowed but we did make a thing of seeing who could get I the...

After a leisurely ride over the scenery to here with a quick stop for a bus walk through a pitch black cave surrounded by superb cliffs rocks and caves only accessible by a cave which only 10 people can cross at once. Everyone went mad in the dark cave, but in a fun way! After a well cooked carbo prepping lunch for the cave clambering I fitted in a quick walk down through the tony village of Waitimo to a viewpoint which was great but just showed how small the tow...