Road Trip

Mount Ruapehu

Yesterday evening Gary and I returned to Auckland from a 4-day road trip to Tongariro National Park and Raglan, a small town on the west coast, known for its left hand point break(s). We had planned to take advantage of the reduced lift tickets on the last couple of days of the ski season on Mount Ruapehu. Unfortunately the lifts were closed both days we were there due to high winds. We were joined by four of Gary's friends from Wellington and stayed in a lodge in the quaint mountain town of Ohakune. We did have a nice 3-hour mountain biking expedition in the national park. Later that evening at a bar we bumped into many of the actors from the movie "The Hobbit." They were having a crew party (I guess to celebrate completion of filming?). Both Gandalf and Bilbo were there (I don't know their real names) along with a bunch of other soon-to-be famous actors. After two days in Ohakune, Gary and I drove to the small town of Raglan where we had  nice evening surf session at Manu Bay. Gary's friend, Laura, was kind enough to let us spend the night at her (and her roommates') place. The next day we had another surf session at a beach break nearby and hit the road back to Auckland. Here are some photos.