North Island is much more volcanically active than the South Island and most of this is concentrated in the region around Lake Taupo which, itself, has formed in the caldera of a very old volcano.

We drove north from Palmeston North along the desert road which peaked at over 1000m and should have offered fantastic views of Mt Doom (not its real name) and the 2 other neighbouring peaks. Unfortunately it was raining heavily and the cloud was low so the only view we could enjoy was the reds and browns in the cake like mud which the road cut through.

At Turangi we visited a small area of thermal pools and bubbling mud that makes a fabulous noise. We camped by the marina at the southern end of Lake Taupo which was home to lots of black swans. It was unusual not to be camping either surrounded by trees or hills and the early morning sunshine was a welcome surprise and the views over the lake were quite beautiful.

We drove north to Taupo along the eastern shores of the lake. Looking back south we could see the volcanos across the lake and the colourful sails of a school regatta. We looked around the shops, relatively uninspiring as most have been in NZ, and had a tasty lunch at a cafe. In the afternoon we saw the Aratiatia rapids. The river was diverted from these in the 60's for a hydroelectric plant but at least 3 times a day the sluice gates are opened so that tourists can see what they looked like. We were expecting a raging torrent of floodwater but it was actually quite gentle as successive pools filled and overflowed and the resultant rapids were quite impressive (Anna reckons grade 5 at least). Having not had our fill of splashy water we drove slightly upstream to the Huka Falls - the most visited natural attraction in NZ don't you know. This is a narrow channel followed by small drop, down which lots and lots of water flows. Rather than a spectacular fall, it is the amount of white water that is produced that is so impressive. (Jay -Anna thinks you may want to check out a video of this being kayaked).

The following day we left the campsite promptly and headed to Wai O Tapo thermal pools and geyser. The early start was required because the geyser goes off at 10:15 each day. They know this because it is not entirely natural. About 100 years ago convicts were washing clothes in a pool and the washing powder broke the surface tension of the pool allowing the hot water below to escape. They decided it would be fun to make the pool smaller so that the jet went higher and a geyser was created. Rather than washing powder, we were assured that a more environmentally friendly option is now used. Whatever, it went quite high and made a good roaring sound. The thermal pools were really interesting and unlike anything we've seen. There was a mix of collapsed craters with boiling water and mud at their base, sulphur vents and coloured lakes. These ranged from almost crystal clear through milky blues and greens to neon green and red. They also gave off an eggy smelling gas which was rather unpleasant. Slightly further down the road there were further mud pools which again made a fabulous noise and were quite vigorous.

In the afternoon we drove on to Rotorua. It wasn't very nice so we didn't stay long; instead we drove towards Waitomo, which is coming up in the next chapter.