After River Rats dropped us back at the studio, we quickly went to shower an pack for our next activities. We arrived at Te Puia, the Māori Arts and Crafts Institute and geothermal park around 4:30. We were told we only had an hour before the parked closed to the day passes, so we had to move quickly. The park was a wonder filled with native art, cultural artifacts, and geothermal formations. The the self-guided foot tour was a few miles long with over 20 major stops and even more small hidden paths and vantage points. It was raining most of the time, so we were soaked by the end of it. We saw the big geyser, sulfur pools, bubbling mud pools, hot cave seeping steam. You could hear the water bubbling up from hidden holes and cracks in the ground.
The park had a kiwi nocturne exhibit, but we couldn't take pictures due to the darkness. Kiwi's are strange little flightless birds that look more like giant fur balls with legs and long beaks.
It was getting close to closing, and we had still not seen the entire park. We began taking the hidden paths to avoid the park crew in ATVs that were rounding up visitors. We were able to finish the entire park, but were seemingly the last day pass visitors when we left around 6:30. We had to pass through the gift shop in the way out. Kaylea bought a cute kiwi mug to add to her collection.
We ran through the rain back to our car and went in search of food. Kaylea found a little Italian restaurant on the way to our next destination. We walked into the empty restaurant, but were turned away due to not having a reservation. Ridiculous! We ended up at a Turkish Kabob eatery that severed a variety of Mediterranean food. Our waiter made great recommendations.
Next on the list was Hell's Gate Mud Bath Spa. It was essentially a smaller geothermal park, but with mud and surfer pools for soaking. We were limited to only 20 minutes in the mud pools for safety reasons. There were boxes of mud at each end of the pool for lathering yourself. We completely covered ourselves in mud and goofed around in the heat for 20 minutes. After the mud bath, visitors are required to take cold showers to remove all mud before entering the sulfur pools. The sulfur pools were relaxing, but smelled like rotten eggs. Kaylea hopped the rope to dip her feet in the foot spa. It wasn't until after the sulfur pools that we read the warning signs. Apparently visitors are warned not to wear any jewelry for 24 hours following the pool dips, as the sulfur will seep from your pores and tarnish it. Also, the signs told visitors to expect to smell like rotten eggs for a couple of days and clothes might still carry the smell after a few washes.
It took two washes to get the smell out of the swim suits and our skin had a faint aroma for days.
The park had a kiwi nocturne exhibit, but we couldn't take pictures due to the darkness. Kiwi's are strange little flightless birds that look more like giant fur balls with legs and long beaks.
It was getting close to closing, and we had still not seen the entire park. We began taking the hidden paths to avoid the park crew in ATVs that were rounding up visitors. We were able to finish the entire park, but were seemingly the last day pass visitors when we left around 6:30. We had to pass through the gift shop in the way out. Kaylea bought a cute kiwi mug to add to her collection.
We ran through the rain back to our car and went in search of food. Kaylea found a little Italian restaurant on the way to our next destination. We walked into the empty restaurant, but were turned away due to not having a reservation. Ridiculous! We ended up at a Turkish Kabob eatery that severed a variety of Mediterranean food. Our waiter made great recommendations.
Next on the list was Hell's Gate Mud Bath Spa. It was essentially a smaller geothermal park, but with mud and surfer pools for soaking. We were limited to only 20 minutes in the mud pools for safety reasons. There were boxes of mud at each end of the pool for lathering yourself. We completely covered ourselves in mud and goofed around in the heat for 20 minutes. After the mud bath, visitors are required to take cold showers to remove all mud before entering the sulfur pools. The sulfur pools were relaxing, but smelled like rotten eggs. Kaylea hopped the rope to dip her feet in the foot spa. It wasn't until after the sulfur pools that we read the warning signs. Apparently visitors are warned not to wear any jewelry for 24 hours following the pool dips, as the sulfur will seep from your pores and tarnish it. Also, the signs told visitors to expect to smell like rotten eggs for a couple of days and clothes might still carry the smell after a few washes.
It took two washes to get the smell out of the swim suits and our skin had a faint aroma for days.
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