Geyser Watching at Te Puia, Rotorua

Watching geysers and seeing them erupt are something I haven’t experienced before. I’m not sure if there’s one in the Philippines. I read there’s an El Minit Geyser in Mindanao but I haven’t encountered any blog post about it yet. But it was in Te Puia, Rotorua in New Zealand where I experienced the amazing power of the geyser.

Since it was only Camille, my other co-winner (READ: Wonderful Trip to New Zealand), and I who availed of the Rotorua trip on our fourth day, we woke up early to wait on our tour bus that picked us up at the hotel. It was a small bus with about 11 passengers and with Fran as our driver and guide. We learned a lot from her as she shared so many information about New Zealand.

We briefly stopped within the Waikato region to capture the fog that has enveloped the lowlands. It was a breathtaking sight – the sun was rising while the clouds were settling. We went ahead to Matamata since the rest of the guests were bound for Hobbiton.

Fran dropped us at the Shire’s Rest Café, near the entrance of the Hobbiton Movie Set. But since we already took this tour two days ahead, Camille and I separated from the rest of the tour group and rode, this time, with Linda in a van that would continue our journey to Rotorua.

Frost in the Kaimai Ranges

The ride to Rotorua was smooth. I felt it was a bit colder that day than the previous days. As we went through the upland portion of the Kaimai-Mamaku Forest Reserve, we saw that the road side was white. Frost! It’s the closest I got to snow. Linda said it often snows in the mountains during winter but mostly, it’s just frost. (We were in the North Island. It’s colder in the South Island where there are lots of snow.)

We went through something like a tree tunnel at one point of the trip. Linda drove carefully since the road was slippery because of ice. Before we knew it, we were in Rotorua. Linda drove us around to see some sights in the city. (I’ll write this in detail in my next post.)

Geyser Watching at Te Puia

TE WHAKAREWAREWATANGAOTEOPETAUAAWAHIAO. This is the full name of the place with means, “The Gathering Together of the War Party of Wahiao.” It is at the Te Whakarewarewa Valley where Te Puia lies. The site is not just a geothermal treasure but it is also a historical place. Tribes used to dance on this part of the valley before going to battle.

The main attraction in Te Puia is the Pohutu Geyser, which can erupt to as high as 100 feet or 30 meters of up to 20 times a day. But when we were there, it seemed that the Pohutu Geyser never stopped letting out steam and shooting water to the air. Smoke filled the Geyser Flat, terraces of sinter or what appeared as hardened water or burnt rock, as hot water mix with the cold breeze of the New Zealand winter.

We went around the other parts of the site where dormant geysers, cauldrons, mud pools, hot pools, stone formations, and steam boxes (areas where food can be cooked using the earth’s heat).

Food, Arts & Kiwi

Speaking of food, we ate a chicken hangi at the Pohutu Cafe. It was cooked the Maori way wherein chicken and other ingredients were placed in a pit to allow the geothermal heat to cook the food. There’s a charred flavor into it, somewhere between grilled and smoked.

Another feature of Te Puia are the Maori culture and arts. They have wood carving and weaving schools. A large canoe that the tribe used when they migrated to New Zealand is displayed in the Te Puia grounds. Different house types are also found in the model Maori Village inside the compound.

We also stopped at the Kiwi House where we could view the Kiwi at a special nocturnal lighting. Photography is not allowed inside this structure since kiwis, flightless birds found in New Zealand, are sensitive to movement and light.

Not content of our geyser watching, we went back for another look at the Pohutu Geyser before we continued with our Rotorua exploration. More Te Puia photos below:

Read more at:
http://www.tepuia.com/new-zealand/
http://www.rotoruanz.com/

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