After a slightly silly diversion via the Waitomo Caves we reached the strong Sulphur smells of Rotorua – great campsite near the lake unless you value your children more than I do – hazards at every turn, with scalding steam in the bushes, boiling water rivers, violent boiling mud behind the tent and so on! On the plus side there were unlimited hot showers and some toasty on-site spa pools plus a steam cooker which was great for Christmas dinner, Em wore the gloves and braved the steam. Due to it being summer we found it hard to feel festive but after a marathon of Disney Christmas CDs in the car we got there and it’s amazing how just a little tinsel and some stockings can make the difference. Christmas Day we awoke to torrential rain and had to dash for the kitchen to eat breakfast and this theme continued with more in the evening and into Boxing Day. In between monsoons we did fit in a paddle on Lake Rotoiti searching for elusive glow worm caves and a waterfall walk to the impressive Tutea falls. Other days were spend learning about kiwis at the excellent kiwi sanctuary at Rainbow Springs which built up the tension nicely with some history, followed by meeting a baby kiwi in the hatchery (Sara was in love) before looking for the grown ones in the nocturnal rooms. This contrasted nicely with the Big Splash ride outside. Final trip in Rotorua was the excellent and colourful Wai O Tapu which is an action packed volcanic walk with geysers, and coloured volcanic activity galore and we finished with a dip in the (slightly smelly) waters of nearbyKerosene Creek which had a great natural rapid ride and waterfall though a bit exciting at times as the children got swept down the river and had to be grabbed before the waterfall!
The campsites so far had been a bit too holiday park feeling, in that you could have been anywhere but the next one on the shores of Lake Taupo with views across the lake from the tent, this will be an excellent base to spend a few days…
Harrison Family Adventures Down Under 