Part 4B: Post-Festival Wasteland, The Rugby Museum, and Lake Rotopounamu (14 photos, 2 videos)

We were amazed, disappointed, and disgusted with how much trash was left behind. If we had more storage we would’ve have packed out a few of the dozens of tents left behind and sold or donated them. But we only had our motorbikes and nowhere to be so we hung out with whoever else was delaying the return to real life. Eventually, we hit the road, heading north for a bit, and taking another much needed roadside nap. When we reached Palmerston North, it was decided that more recovery was needed from conclusion of 2013 so we splurged on a hostel so we could shower, sleep in beds, and finish recovering.

The next day we visited the Rugby Museum. I was in awe about the New Zealand All Blacks from a century ago, particularly “The Invincibles” squad who had a tour spanning September 1924 through February 1925. The team played 32 games including four test matches, one each against Ireland, England, Wales, and France. They won all 32 games, outscoring their opponents 838 points to 116. Absolute domination! After gaining some more culture and knowledge, we saddled up and rode another 200km to the town of National Park which is like base camp for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, home to Mount Ngauruhoe, AKA Mount Doom. Along the way we took a detour to ride through the Manawatu Gorge which is home to the Te Apiti Wind Farm. It was built there for a reason. It was extremely windy and we were riding sideways to balance against the invisible forces. We reached a gas station at National Park and learned that the Tongariro Alpine Trail was closed due to freezing temperatures and high winds. After some debate, we concluded we should postpone this hike, spend a few days heading north to Mount Mauganui to catch a show and play on the giant adventure mountain, then head back south for another attempt at this trek.

We grabbed some food and took off in search of a good spot to freedom camp. We found an old trail stemming off of a road and set camp just inside the tree cover. After eating, we were enjoying a campfire as night fell, when we saw a headlamp deeper in the forest. It began bobbing in our direction and we were thinking we were about to be in trouble. Maybe there is a fire ban here, or we were too close to city limits for freedom camping. It is always a little unnerving when you’re out in the middle of the woods at night and some stranger approaches. The man had a rifle over his shoulder and was decked out in full camouflage. Turns out he was hunting all day with his uncle, they got separated, and he was trying to find him or a road. We pointed him towards the road and wished him luck.

Lets take this abandoned trail into the woods.

I hope this trail is abandoned and nobody tries to drive it at night.

January 3rd was a great day after being denied a Mount Doom summit. We traveled up Route 47 and hiked a loop trail around Lake Rotopounamu. It was a full on jungle with gorgeous trees and ferns every direction you looked. We crept out on a fallen tree that hung over the lake, took tons of photos, and contemplated a swim but it was a bit too cold. However, a little further North were thermal pools that sounded promising. After paying an entry fee we were peeved to discover that it was just an average swimming pool with slightly warm water that was, allegedly, heated by geothermal springs. It was a massive letdown. After a short stay we continued north along Route 1, which followed the East bank of Lake Taupo, until we arrived at the town of Taupo. Sam needed to find a shop to get a new tire since his super nubby off road tire was starting to fall apart from the strain of paved roads. While searching, we somehow all got separated and Nick was still the only one with a working phone so it took a solid 45 minutes of us cruising around aimlessly until we randomly met back up. We checked in at Base Hostel which had a huge deck overlooking the lake, prepared a feast, and then went across the street to an Irish Pub to enjoy some Irish sodas all night.