Loren What was my favorite part of the trip, you ask? Even if you didn’t ask, I’m going to tell you it was Whakapapa. Whakapapa was not what I expected and truly surprised me, which probably contributes to it being the best. After a day of driving and fixing a flat tire, we basically sprinted up the long and steep trail so that we could make it to the top before sunset. I’ll be honest, I was not impressed at first. It was just a foggy, flat area with a few small hills. Then, all of a sudden, the fog lifted and WOW—we could see Ruapehu and Ngauruhoe towering above us. I was in awe, and it only got better from there. We finally reached the top, which was well worth the sprint. Surrounded by sparkling lakes and impressive volcanoes, I knew this week would be a good one. Not even the promise of a mapping exercise later that week could discourage me! The entire next day was spent on Ruhapeu, learning the basics of volcanoes. I had been excited about the volcano portion of the cour...
May 28th— the long awaited day—the big day—the only day—Conrad’s 19th birthday. Unfortunately for him, the weather was rainy and chilly and mushy on his day; but fortunately for him, he was one year older and could finally kick it with the rest of the big kids. After wishing our first of many happy birthdays to C-rad, we GABEd it up for a day at Wai-o-tapu. “Wai-o-tapWHO?” I hear you scream. Dear readers I’m so glad you asked. A bubbly geothermal wonderland, Wai-o-tapu was the perfect example of New Zealand’s incredibly efficient magma sourced geothermal system that produces 1200 megawatts of power. For scale, just one megawatt powers 1,000 homes. If that doesn’t make you say, “wowie!” I don’t know what will. After learning from our resident experts about the thermodynamics behind the system, we had time to romp around the park and watch the mud bubbles rise and pop and boil, resisting the urge to jump into the steamy mess. We did, however, get to s...