Out and Around Taupo

Fog enveloped us at the Equestrian Centre in Taupo this morning – everything had that slightly smudged look.  It was hard to see several feet in front of us.   In fact, fog covered quite a bit of the country this morning, with Auckland Airport being particularly affected.  About 70 regional flights were unable to land or take off after fog blanketed the airport from early in the morning.

A foggy Taupo morning

The fog cleared and we drove into bustling Taupo.  My morning was spent at the Great Lakes Centre checking out the large number of beautiful quilts on display, while Robin decided to tour the car yards, admiring this one, that one, and maybe that other one over there.  A brand new car would be great – but what about the funds?  We’ll just keep buying the Lotto tickets, I think.  Driving back to camp we stopped at Aratiatia Rapids.  Water is released down the rapids several times a day, but we were too late to see the afternoon surge.  It looked lovely and peaceful, but we could see from the wet rocks just how high the water had been.

Aratiatia Rapids in a reflective mood

Taupo is a geothermal area and we could see quite a head of steam away in the distance.  Let’s find out if we can get closer, we thought.  Down a country road we drove, stopping at a barred gate.  No unauthorised access, the sign stated, and the area is under 24 hour surveillance.  We were at the site of the Rotokawa Power Station.  Luckily, no guards in full riot gear charged out of the gates to chase us away. 

 

Rotokawa Steam Field

It was just a short drive back to our camp site at the Equestrian Centre.  This is situated 8kms northeast of Taupo on 73 hectares of land, and has three all-weather arenas, four polo-cross fields and a cross country course with 250 obstacles.  Each year the Centre hosts 120 days of local, national and international equestrian events involving an estimated 5000 horses and 20,000 competitors and spectators. A further 100 days per year are used to host other activities such as squad development and training.    There were no events happening during our stay, but luckily there were a few horses close by.

Horses close by our caravans

This is a lovely peaceful place to stay in the countryside and other than us two, there are only a couple of other caravans down by the stables.  Power is available, with an ablution block close by.  And just a short drive to town, so we have the best of both worlds.