Apollo 7

December 9, 2007 Andy 0 Comments

Having heard that there were some good deals to be had on rental van relocations I spent a bit of time phoning around the different rental companies to see what was on offer. As time went by these offers just got better and better. Basically the companies are desperate to get their vans back to Auckland as most of their customers pick up the vans there and dump them at Christchurch. The problem of rental companies having all their vehicles in the wrong place really played into our hands and after several calls it seemed that Maui/Britz and Apollo had the best deals. Initially the best offer was a four day relocation at $5 a day with the added bonus that the company would pay for the vehicle on the inter island ferry while we would only have to pay for passengers but by the time we came to sign up we managed to get a 7 day relocation for $1 a day (less than 40 pence) with the ferry and passengers paid for. The seven days worked out perfectly for the time we had left in the country.

Booked with Apollo for a large four birth camper van (meaning we wouldn’t have to convert the sofas and table into a bed every night) with shower and toilet (complete luxury for us) we were pretty content, but it was not to be. When booking, Apollo insisted on a contact phone number and email. I gave them both stating that the phone number is of no use as it is a UK number, as obviously I was not there. They said not to worry they wouldn’t call, it is just required as part of the booking process.

Unfortunately the 4 birth van we were due to collect was involved in an accident before I could get my hands on it and we were offered a two birth instead. No real problem but Apollo tried to contact me to tell me the good news via email and phone. So, picture this, my poor mother in the UK receives a phone call at 1am from Apollo saying the the vehicle for Andrew Place has been involved in an accident. Not very tactful, and you can only imagine what would run through most mothers minds having been woken up in the middle of the night to be told news of their son and an accident!

Anyway, we picked up our smaller van, which was still the largest we’d had yet and set off Northwards. Unfortunately I was suffering from food poisoning from the previous nights dinner, a special night out as Espe and I were celebrating our three year anniversary, and as a result found the drive very hard work. Espe, who had been happy driving Matilda and Mauilda handed back the keys to this Apollo Transit within minutes as it was an absolute dog to drive. I can’t blame her, as the beast had a great tendency to stall and required a fair strength to work the steering wheel.

After sleeping very well we made it to the ferry with no problems. The ferry journey is pretty interesting as for the first hour of the journey it threads its way through the beautiful Queen Charlotte Sound just out from Picton. After spotting a couple of dolphins leaping in front of the ferry we were out into the windy Cook Straight.

Once on the North Island we passed through Wellington and continued northwards noticing immediately how much more densely populated the north island is. After another solid day’s driving we made it to Tongariro National Park ready to tackle the highly rated Tongariro Crossing.

This 17km day trek is considered by many as the best in New Zealand. Having completed it I can see why. We were immensely lucky with the weather with a clear sunny day. Until a few days previous the crossing had not been possible for over a month due to bad weather and too much snow and ice.

We started the gradual climb at eight in the morning along with other bus loads of walkers. Soon we were surrounded by bizarre rock formations created from the lava of previous eruptions. I guess I should have mentioned that this crossing has been somewhat active on the Volcano front. The climb became steeper as we rose to the pass between two Volcanos, Mt Ngauruhoe (2287m) and Mt Tongariro (1967m). Mount Ngauruhoe being an awesome sight looking perfectly like your stereotypical volcano.

After the pass we dropped down a little and crossed South Crater, site of a previous eruption, and then rose again up to Red Crater (1886m), so named due to the red colored rock visible inside the smoking crater. The walk up to here was hard work due to the unstable scree like stones that moved under foot. A case of two steps forward and one step back, I heard someone remark.

South Crater

Red Crater was the highest point of the walk and afforded the best views, not to say that the views from any other point were substandard. Even more impressive was the steam coming out of the ground around the crater rim. I’d never seen anything like it and was amazed at how hot the ground was. More so, realising how much snow there was still about. The walk down from Red Crater was good fun, traveling a couple of metres with each step as the stones slid away under foot. Good fun but I can’t imagine the damage the 1000 or so per day walkers do.

We stopped for lunch by the beautiful Emerald Lakes, although still suffering from the afore mentioned dodgy stomach I didn’t eat anything. Not a bad effort, doing a 17km trek on only some coco pops and a single energy bar.

I continued to be amazed by the diversity and beauty of the walk as we reached Blue Lake Crater, yet another eruption site with the lake not looking so blue as it was near completely frozen.

The rest of the walk was a long steady descent through volcanic, then shrub and then wood land. Along with views of Lake Rotoaira and Lake Taupo, I was treated to the spectacle of concrete for path maintenance being flown in by helicopter. Once again transfixed on the skill and ability of pilot and machine. (Still waiting for that offer of sponsorship on my license, although I’m beginning to fear that I might have to settle on an Air Hogs Havoc Heli RTF which can be flown without one.)

The last stretch through the woodland seemed to drag on some having got the false impression that the walk was over after arriving at the tree line. Still, we eventually made the pick up point, very tired but happy, a good eight and a half hours after we set off.

The remainder of trip was spent around the geothermal hot spots of Lake Taupo and Rotarua. This really was quite bizarre, seeing the different fumeroles, bubbling mud pools, spewing giesers and vibrant colours generated from the minerals forced up through the earths crust. Of further interest was a massive Geothermal power station (renewable energy generation was of great interest to me at school) and a waterfall which, although only drops 10 metres or so, was impressive for the volumes of water gushing through it.

We finally had time for a brief peek at the Coromandel Peninsular before returning the van in Auckland and catching our flight onto Fiji. And so ended our trip in New Zealand. A truly incredible country with so much to see and do with a very familiar culture and good food. I could definitely live here and believe it or not even the rain was quite welcome giving me a chance to do nothing, relax, reflect, read and write. It is so easy to travel there especially with the freedom of a camper van. The place comes highly recommended and the only real negative I can think of is how far away it is from home.

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