Karangahake Gorge!

Karangahake Gorge was our first real "a-bit-out-of-our-comfort-zone" experience.  The night after visiting Hobbiton we camped at a primitive, "freedom" campground above the gorge in freezing temps.  We woke to very cold, dewy ground, and a ranger knocking our our tent door informing us that this was not actually a freedom spot and we owed her $24.  Oh well. We packed up and then spent the morning hiking in the beautiful scenic gorge on a track that follows an old railway line, ambling along the Ohinemuri river and in and out of old mine tunnels.  We also crossed the river numerous times on narrow steel cable  truss bridges which swayed a bit much for our tastes.  The sign said maximum load one person, but the sign may have been unnecessary. If someone else had gotten on at the same time we are pretty sure the person already on the bridge would have been screaming back to get OFF. NOW. It was a great first NZ Frenzy experience (the guidebook we have been using) and set the tone for our vacation.

The story of the gorge was that it was used at the turn of the 20th century for gold mining. So it was not only a scenic hike but an educational one at that.  Most of the mining equipment and infrastructure was still there, as you can see in this pic (in which Flat Elaina is taking a ride on a seriously old rail cart). We have been entrusted by some Colorado friends to take Elaina along on our trip and show her a good time.

The hike reminded us a bit of being in an Indiana Jones movie. We had to bring headlamps to be able to see, because without it, the tunnels were pretty much pitch black.  And since their were tunnels leading off from the main tunnel, it got...interesting.  The sounds bounced off the walls in such a way that you couldn’t really tell which direction people were in relation to you, and at one point, Lauryn, Kendra and Pete got split off from Lindsay and Jen.  We were not sure where each other were, and Lauryn and Kendra walked further into the darkness of a mine while Pete just stayed put.  He Channeling Harrison Ford, he imagined a giant stone ball rolling down the tunnel at him while arrows shot out of the walls!

Here are some pics of the kids at the end of the hike near some abandoned mineworks and equipment.

Kids can pull these kinds of poses off in a way that parents cannot!

PS While typing this post we are watching the NZ All Blacks slaughter France on TV in the World Rugby Cup quarter finals. It was cool to see the ABs do the Haka (traditional Maori war dance) prior to the game.  Rugby is a crazy physical game.

P, J, K, L and L