today was the lord of the rings tour! we did the full day one which costs $225 per person. not bad because it really is all day. we left around 8am and didn't get back until 6:30pm. they supplied refreshments, including biscuits, hot water for tea/coffee, cold water, juice, etc. the guide was nice and very helpful. not to mention knowledgeable. they point out some of the incorrect information in the location guidebook and take you to the proper spot where filming occurred. in addition, you learn about the area. we went all around tongariro national park. north, south, east, and west.

view from the first hut encountered on the 1 day crossing

tawhai falls

the first place we went to was to pick up another person for the tour, then we started to walk the tongariro 1 day crossing. we walked only the first 30 minutes of the 17km hike. we did this to get a good view of mt. doom and an appreciation of the area. the weather was nice and the view was very good. the first part is the easiest part of the 1 day crossing. we could see up about 4 hours into the crossing and the weather was not so good. you really got to be prepared on this challenging walk. maybe one day i'll do it but not just yet.

the next place we went to was tawhai falls. part of gollum's chasing and beating a fish on the rocks ("so juicy sweet!") was filmed there. it was a nice little waterfall and stream. the rocky stream among the trees reminded me a lot of a particular mountain in southern california. i'm not sure the name of the mountain, but it's the same one that big bear is located at. my family used to have a cabin there and the tawhai falls area evoked childhood memories.

look carefully for hobbit footprints

after that we went to the ski slopes of whakapapa. of course, it's not winter yet so there was no snow. there's really nothing much more than rocks and moss. a lot of snow has to fall before you can ski the area. the terrain on one side was quite barren and mordor-ish so it was used to film orcs marching and the prologue scene of the mighty battle where isildur cuts the ring off sauron's finger. the terrain just next to there was used to film emyn muil, when sam and frodo are lost and make camp, their encounter with gollum, and after gollum takes them through the dead marshes.

no fish around today

mangawhero falls: a gorgeous view but a deadly drop

that was the end of the trip for the other person. they only signed up for a half day tour. they got dropped off and we continued on with the tour. good 'cos they were british and brought up the strong pound/weak dollar thing. i held back my fist... on to the next location: mangawhero falls. it was the other part filmed for gollum chasing a fish. it's the one famous for snowfall the night before filming, so they had to physically melt all the snow that was in view of the shot. a real pain. they also had to be careful that the actor who played gollum did not get carried away trying to catch a fish and accidentally fall down the falls for he surely would have died.

our lunch break was spent in ohakune. we had prepared some sandwiches and enjoyed more of the juice and biscuits provided. i don't think they were vegan but i didn't want to use up our food. hell, they're included with the tour and we have to start getting real frugal if we want to hit all the places on our ambitious trip itinerary. ohakune, like many small towns, has a giant something in town, usually of the main product produced in town. their something is a carrot. i know ohakune more for being a base camp for the whanganui journey. it's one of the great walks but it's a kayak/canoe journey. i'd really like to do it because i want to glimpse as many of the great walks as possible, (glimpse as in experience a part if i cannot do the whole), but the timing is not in my favor. i really cannot afford it right now and right now is the time to do it.

watch out, the orcs are near

then it was time to put the 4wd into use. we drove the rocky road in the rangipo desert, heading towards the tukino ski slopes. the rangipo is as close to a desert as new zealand has. the new zealand army uses it as a training area. it served as mordor for "the lord of the rings". the new zealand army got into lotr costume and marched for the film, free of charge. nice to have the army at your disposal, isn't it? anyway, close by is where the big black gate to enter mordor was and sam and frodo hide and watch from the side of the hill.

we continued on the path to the tukino slopes, past a locked gate because this tour lets you go there. we paused there for a bit and the clouds really started coming in like fog from a movie. we had a clear view and next thing you know it was a white out. it was quite cold too. a warning of how dangerous new zealand alpine weather can be if you are not prepared.

clouds blocking the view of what lies beyond

rainbow at sunset

after that our tour was pretty much over and we headed back to forest lodge. close to the lodge is the whakapapa river so we asked the guide if he could drive us to there so that we could see what it looks like. the sun was starting to set, so the sky was red, but there was also a rainbow. pretty cool view i must admit.

we got back to the hostel for a shock. a lot more people there than we had expected. the lot was just full of cars. it looks like the others have returned from their river trip. oh well. at least we had 1 night of peace and quiet by ourselves.