Saturday, June 13, 2009

Hell's Gate

Rafting took a lot out of us and we were really looking forward to our next day where we would not only get to relax, but see even more of NZ's unique landscape. Over we went to Hell's Gate, a thermal reserve with mud baths and spas. It was a little drizzly that day, but it surely didn't cool them down. We got a tour of the reserve and found out that some of the geothermal pools were over 90 degrees Celsius! Now that's what I call hot.

The reason for such amounts of this type of activity is due to NZ's tectonic plate motion. NZ rests above the edge of the Pacific Plate and the Australian Plate. As a result of the plates colliding with each other, NZ's south island has the Southern Alps and it's north island has high amounts of volcanic activity. The thermal reserve is just one example of how the plate movement is severely affecting NZ's geography. It's really interesting stuff!

After we got our chance to take a test of the mud baths and spas, we headed out to the bus to head back to the Kiwi Paka, where we were staying. And what should we see when leaving Hell's Gate but three enormous [and beautiful] peacocks just hanging out on the fence. A few of us went outside to take pictures and they didn't even move. It was just awe-inspiring how many natural things surprise me about this place. It doesn't matter if we are in a commercial area or not, the natural aspects of this country draw your attention away from whatever we get ourselves wrapped up in. It makes me wonder how I look and treat my own natural environment in my town at home.

With this in mind, we spent the rest of the day just enjoying the area and each others company and got ready for our last day of travel to Waitomo, our last stop for ISV 2009.

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