Today we left Taupo and made the journey to River Valley. We made several stops on the way... First was into the Whakapapa (wh is pronounced f) national park where we stopped off to see the waterfall and pools where Gollum found the ring in Lord of the Rings. Then we went for a walk down to a waterfall for a picnic lunch then hit Mr Wangs for ice cream. In the evening we had our kiwi family meal; sausage and mash and got through a few bottles of wine before bed. River Valley is a small retreat type lodge in the hills.. It's beautiful and scenic- a nice break from town hostels!