Waimungu Valley
After breakfast we boarded our bus for a half-hour drive to the geothermally active Waimungu Valley. This place was once a tourist destination for it’s famous pink and white terraces. In the late 1800s a nearby volcano erupted to bury the terraces and a large rift formed the valley. Initially the hot springs lake disappeared into the rift, but eventually craters along the rift refilled with water that is intolerably warm. It is a very scenic, if somewhat stinky, place. Note that you can click on the photo to see a larger version, and scroll through the roll.
After our stroll down the the valley floor and lunch, a sub-set of us went to Hobbiton.
A view from the entrance to the shire.
Remarkable detail everywhere.
Maybe Bilbo's abode is familiar?
Bilbo's pipe and book. There are flowers everywhere!
New this year, one can walk inside a hobbit home.
So many details. A little Hobbit (elvish?) Scrabble, anyone?
Know your mushrooms.
Hobbit bathroom
And bathtub
Comfy bedroom
Mill, at end of tour, on the way to the Green Dragon for a beer.
Finally, our day ended with a group dinner at a restaurant in downtown Rotorua. Tomorrow, we leave for Auckland.