Taupo, National Park & Whanganui

We woke to a wet, drizzly day at the Taupo NZMCA park and a cold wind soon developed but we were able to enjoy a cosy welcome at our friends Sally & Dave's house with coffee and delicious freshly baked cheese scones. They have a  lovely house close to the lake edge and it's always good to stop over when we pass through Taupo.

Being such a bleak day we decided to spend some of the afternoon at the movies - A Star Is Born - which we both enjoyed although it gave me a good cry.

On our way out of Taupo

Then it was on the road again and we made the decision to head down the western side of mountains this time, stopping at the Station Cafe in National Park where we could treat ourselves to a special dinner - lamb for me and fillet steak for Len, both of which were nicely cooked. I just often feel that the plates are short of vegetables and this was again one of those occasions. It was still wild and wet outside so it was great to be able to stay overnight in the large parking area by the restaurant. Being right beside the railway line we did hear a few trains in the night but being light sleepers we are used to waking several times during the night.

The next day, Tuesday, we drove through the Paraparas to Whanganui being delayed not far into the journey by a motorhome with NZMCA wings lying on it's side right across the road.

We could see the tyre marks running along the ground on the roadside and some destroyed white markers and maybe a  sign so it appears they were travelling south, as we were, and lost control flipping onto the road. Nobody seemed to know if anyone had been injured.
Cars could edge their way around the motorhome but there wasn't enough room for us or any of the large trucks in the queues to do the same so it was a case of waiting patiently for the tow truck to arrive. It was a nice feeling to be relaxed about this as we weren't in any hurry. I guess we waited about an hour.

Upon arriving in Whanganui we had trouble finding the free overnight parking in town  by the river and after going around the block a couple of times I went into the I-site to enquire and found it was very close by.  The people in Whanganui and many other parts of NZ felt quite a big earthquake (6.2 @ 200km depth, around Taumaranui) mid-afternoon that day but I think it must have happened just when we were reversing our bus into the space and we never felt a thing!

After a coffee we walked over the bridge, up Durie Hill and up the tower for some great views of the city and river.

We were tempted to take the lift up the hill but fortunately it was closed so we did the 175 steps and about the same again to get up the tower. There were 3 lads from Christchurch smoking up the top and there a strange smell wafting about. When I said 'Hi' a couple of them had a bit of a laugh as we think they were!
We enjoyed a peaceful night in our riverside car park- such a privilege to be able to park in these places.