Taupo

We made an early start and took SH1 up through Porirua and the Kapiti coast, on our way to our Easter weekend in Taupo. We stopped of at Bulls for coffee, and then later at the Brown Sugar café in Taihape – the gumboot capital of the world – for some lunch, and finally arrived at our destination at around 4pm. We checked into our motel then took a walk along the lakeside and into town.

The streets are paved with gumboots

The town of Taupo sits in the north-east corner of Lake Taupo, New Zealand’s largest lake, which is formed in the caldera of a volcano. We are in the heart of volcano country here, having passed the three peaks on the way up: Tongariro, Ruapehu, and Ngauruhoe (better known as Mount Doom to “Lord Of The Rings” fans). These are where the North Island’s main ski fields are, but are also active volcanoes – indeed, Ruapehu has twice shown signs of activity in 2012, in August and November, and clouds of volcanic steam can still be seen on the hillside.

Volcano with added smokiness

The lakeside is lined with hotels and holiday accommodation, and there were still people out in the water and on the beach as we walked into town. The main area has a number of bars and restaurants, and we stopped for a refreshing beer in the Pub’n’Grub, before heading back towards our motel and then a little further on to find our dinner for the night at the Beach Brasserie.

Sunset over the lake