Day 7: Wanganui River Tour

Well, today started off much like yesterday, windy and rainy, making double sure the Tongariro Crossing was an impossibility.  Not wanting to spend the majority of the day indoors again, Brian and I decided to take our chances on a Wanganui River tour.  We dressed in our best rain gear and headed out this morning through the countryside.  Once again, the I spent the drive with my jaw hanging open wondering if I will ever get used to the sheer beauty of my surroundings. 

Ken was our guide on the river tour and met us at the put in at Pipiriki.  We were being transported up river via jet boat.  As it's rain incessantly for several days now, the river level was quite high, washing out the vast majority of the river rapids (taking some of the excitement out of the whole thing).  But either way, we were out of the house.  We had one other couple on our tour, Alex and Alex's husband (can't remember his name, obviously), so it was nice to have the undivided attention of our tour guide and I could see the potential for our boat to be rather crowded if a full load of people had come along.

We jetted up river, surrounded by sheer cliff walls covered with lush vegetation.  At one point Ken took us up one of the tributaries feeding the river for a little side excursion.  He gave a through history of the area.  Our end destination was the "Bridge to Nowhere" which required a 40 minute hike through the brush once we reached the landing point. 

The surrounding hillside had been leased to soldiers returning from World War I who cultivated the area.  In the 1930s, the bridge was built to connect the community to the rest of the area, as the only access up until that point was via the river.  However, by the early '40s, rain and mudslides made the road so expensive to maintain, that the government abandoned the area and the inhabitants were forced to relocate.  Thus the bridge now leads to nowhere, however if you stand on the other side of the bridge, it leads to somewhere, where ever that may be.

Brian and I were quite lucky for the entire day over all, as it only misted a bit on our way to the bridge hike. In fact the sun did come out for a short period while we were doing our hike!  However, our ride back down the river was a different story.  The rain decided to come down in a more serious fashion, pelting our faces like tiny daggers.  It was a real test of our rain gear and I believe both of us weathered the storm very well.

Tomorrow, we set off for Queenstown on the south island to meet up with the rest of the people we will be traveling with for the next two weeks.  Looking forward to a relaxing evening of laundry (which Susie is doing for us) and hopefully a dip in the hot tub!

As a side note, the folks here in New Zealand as the nicest people I've ever run across.  And they set the standard when it comes to being polite.  Every time we pass through a construction zone, the sign at the end says "End Construction, Thank you."  Puts a smile on my face every time we pass through.