Whanganui River Expedition + other stuff

got my typing sneakers on and ready for another marathon blog. i will start by finishing the last blog which left off on Sunday, January 30. at this point I had just come back from the thermal park. after arriving back at 4:45 ish, I geared up for a run to Huka Falls... a big time water fall near Taupo. the route was estimated to be a 1.25-1.5 hour walk from the Tiki Lodge. by running, i made the trip to the falls in 30 minutes flat. i was pushing it because i wanted to make it back in enough time to make and finish supper by 7:30. NZ in general makes for difficult running conditions. lots of hills, up and down. intense terrain. very few flat stretches. tough to get any type of rhythm going but it makes for a good workout. i had a general idea of where i was going but the details were uncertain so i was running very quickly in case i needed extra time to find the way. i ran a good way, almost entirely up hill, up 'spa road,' found the entrance to the park, ran through that, found the walking path, ran down that for a ways, and then hit the bush. the bush is what people around here call the forest/country. the path through the bush was very narrow but it made for a great run. i was a combination of small rock and dirt. it ran parallel to a river which was full and moving swiftly that day. the river was perhaps the most beautiful blue-green aqua color i have ever seen. the waters close the banks were clear and i could see the bottom, the sand and the rocks there. there were many signs warning of strong currents along the path. sometimes the path would leave the water's edge and climb up above the river which had some great views. there were times where the path was a good distance from the river but since the river was full, water had overflowed, making mini-swamps. this was sweet because you could see trees, logs, shrubs partially or completely submerged but still see them clear as day since the water was so clear. the path was winding up and down all through the jungle like forest. it made for an incredible run. aside from the up and down nature of it, it was a path that i would enjoy running often if i lived here. it is always enjoyable when you get that lost feeling when you run, where you cant see your destination and you really don't know exactly where you are at any particular moment. it is also fun to fly past the trees, a feeling magnified by the close proximity of the vegetation on either side. the winding path keeps any sort of boredom from setting in. finally arriving at the falls, it was an impressive sight. it consisted of about a .5-1.0 mile long gauntlet of a skinny water way where the water flowed violently with great velocity, gaining speed and strength as it went, finally emptying through the mouth of the falls at the end of the straight away. the water was white the entire way with foam and waves crashing into each other. once in awhile a patch of sky blue water would emerge. it was very pretty. i spent about 20 minutes walking along the water way and falls, marveling at the display of power. the way back was more relaxed and enjoyable with the knowledge of the way back and enough time to return. supper tonight was stir fry... a bag of frozen veggies on sale + chicken breast. i have a new appreciation for meat now. we don't eat meat whenever we are not in town... ie expeditions or volunteer projects... so you definitely miss it during those days. i enjoyed eating out on the deck of the lodge watching the skyline turn to dusk. then the group left together for the thermal spa park. the sun was going down as we arrived so it was a pleasant evening, slightly on the chilly breezy side, perfect for a dip in the hot springs. the ones we visited were a series of three separate pools that flow into each other at three separate levels. the stream started from a place in the bush that could not be seen. it was no more than 3 ft deep at any spot deep enough to get your entire body under the water if you laid down. the bottom of the pools consisted of pebbles that moved over soft ground. the water was clear. it was hot tub temperature, id say about 100-110 degrees. the flow of fresh warm water across the body was very relaxing. it was like a gentle massage. no chemicals needed. small floating rocks called pumice regularly floated past. they were porous rock, almost looked like petrified wood. on the lowest level there was a large flat rock on the side of the pool that formed a table looking surface where people had made structures of rock that almost looked like chess pieces lined up on a chess board. cool. the rocks were all very smooth from the constant wearing of the water on them. you could slide past them or lay on them and find a comfortable position. the different levels offered different temps. i would get hot quickly so i would go to the lowest level where the spring drained into the river. the river was freezing. therefore, there was about a 3 ft transition area, where the waters of the warm and cold would mix and you would have a temperature similar to a regular pool that you could cool off in but still be comfortable. perfect combination of cool and warm places. amazing place. at one point i tipped my head back to have a look at the stars. man. fantastic stars. interesting the difference between here and home. since NZ is in the southern hemisphere, some of the same constellations can be seen but upside down. crazy. we probably hung out here for two and a half hours. my favorite part of the trip so far, just great chillin time. we met some cool people there too. some dude from NZ doing some traveling... had been at it for 2 years... seen Europe, chilli, canada, among others. just nuts some of the stories people tell that i have met here. some of the experiences people have traveling. crazy. not enough time to write.

Monday, 1/31 Day 11
slept in a bit today which was nice... maybe 9 ish. had a good time going through romans 6. i was reminded of the power Christ has given His followers over sin, should we choose to accept it. just as He defeated sin, so can we... by the power of the Holy Spirit. that through His work in our hearts, and our commitment to that work, we dont have to be slaves to sin any longer... but rather slaves of righteousness (vs 16). there seemed a quiet challenge in the words to me... how convinced am i that through Christ I can over come some of my worst habits and hang-ups? when i look at my life, can i see the fruit of His work? am i becoming more like Him, or remaining more like myself? interesting to think about. today we made the trip from Taupo to Taumaranui, where we would hook up with the canoes for our river expedition. bout a 2 hr drive. when we got there we put all of our river and camping gear in plastic barrels that would keep our stuff dry. we took 6 canoes, two people + 4 barrels per canoe, or 'canadians' as they call them. we then drove the rest of the way to our put-in point. took another 2 hours... bumpy and curvy road. it brought a whole new light to the facet that there are more sheep in NZ than people. in our driving time we saw 3 other people in vehicles. few other signs of human existence could be seen... a few bridges, drive ways, small address signs next to long driveways that turned out of side, leading unseen houses. 99% was covered in green and sheep. very scenic. we were always driving on the edge of a cliff or bluff. miniature mountains all around. full of views... down into the valleys... when we would cross bridges you could see down narrow straight aways on either side.... just amazing. the sheep are everywhere. they are spotted on the hills like the blueberries in a blueberry muffin. so many. NZ is so much larger than i ever imagined it being. on this drive it seemed there is no limit to this wilderness. and the best part is its just sheep and plants, none of this touristy stuff. the bugs are minimal in this part of the country. when we finally arrived at the riverside, it was raining steadily. i was clad in rain gear and life jacket. i was paddling with Jake... he in the front, i in the back. supposedly the rule is the person in the back is the steer man, the strongest paddler. the person in the front is the pace setter. so i like to think i was in the back because i was the strongest but i am sure Jake would beg to tell you differently ;) interesting to re-learn the mechanics of proper paddling and steering, controlling the canoe. its an art for sure. the river was full and moving fast. the walls on either side are gigantic, straining your head to see the tops of them. trees cover the towering walls. the trees are often pines that are arranged neatly, so thick that you can not see the bank below them. sometimes the walls are large stretches of rock... gray, orange, tan, brown colors... equally impressive. the river was mostly smooth but occasionally we would hit some rapids and get a pretty good shaking, which was always a good time. the rain was actually refreshing on the face, yet i was very thankful for the rain gear. would have been sooooaked. occasionally we would hook up with another canoe and float together for awhile. good times. many small waterfalls would come flowing out of the walls as well, which were neat to look at. i enjoyed just floating the most... taking in the scenery and enjoying the calmness and peacefulness of the river... the gentle sound of moving water providing a soft background melody. the water is very cold and an earthy green/brown color, very little visibility to through it. after 2 hrs of paddle we pulled off the river at our first camp site. we dragged the canoes way off the water and pitched our tents. the camp site, more like a rectangular shaped area with shorter grass than surrounding areas, was very basic. there was a simple structure with a roof that rested on one wall and poles. this is where we made our meals. there was also a compost toilet house. this was a wooden rectangular out house that had rusty hinges and various levels of wood decay on the walls, door and roof. it looked like something from a horror film. if it had a sign above the door, the caption would read something like: 'if any man should enter, he shall never return.' oh, and the look was not enough to terrify, the smell was. horrendous reek. but i guess what should i expect, right? after all, this is no holiday inn out here. it was still raining when we put up our tents. i was in a foul mood. i did not take kindly to walking around in sandals when everything is wet and muddy... then tracking that wetness and mud into your nice, damp tent. ugh. keeping the rest of the gear and supplies dry was near impossible as well. to the side of the structure, there was a sink. this sink had a long ancient looking lever. lift lever up, push lever down = flow of water. it was like stepping back in time for water, but i was thankful for it. we made supper using portable stoves. interesting devices... multiple pieces that are assembled together to form a bowl over an apparatus that provides a flame. the flame is produced by lighting flammable fluid. when the pieces are in portable format, the are a small compact cylinder. really pretty slick. gosh it took me ages how to figure out how to assemble it took cook tonight though. rrrrr. it was a difficult task to know how to work it so the intensity of the heat is what we needed as well. preparations took forever tonight. we made stir fry, with many cut up veggies.... so it was worth it but we didn't eat until about 9 tonight. the mood of the group was not a fun one. cold, dark, muddy. i was last to leave our 'kitchen' having some intimate time with the sink, mr. ancient pump, and our dishes. it was difficult task to see, hold a flashlight, pump the handle, hold the dish or utensil under the intermittent streams of water, and scrub it... all at the same time. needless to say i was making use of the teeth, elbows, wrists, 10 fingers, etc. then 'dry' them with a nice dirty sopping towel. lovely. it was at this time i had lots of positive thoughts in my head... and thought how much i enjoyed running water, dish washers, a house to put ur stuff in, places to put the stuff where you knew where they were actually located, warm showers where you can be clean and not feel smelly or disgusting, a bed that is comfortable where you have your own personal place to sleep and not breathing the same humid air in a tent that is slightly undersized for three people. i also thought about how much i liked clean toilets that flush and dont knock you over because of their stench. these thoughts and many others where running through my brain. all this to say: you can find out a lot about yourself.... where you are as a person, what character you actually have compared to what you think you have... when you are thrown into uncomfortable, unfamiliar, unpleasant situations with people who aren't seeing eye to eye. yes, this is when the rubber meets the road. and i was not impressed with the condition of my heart in this moment. i had not witnessed myself in such a foul mood or ugly state of mind in quite some time. it was a great lesson, a great thing to be reminded of, that i have a LONG way to go in the development of Christ-like character and unconditionally loving others. some of the best lessons are learned from challenging, not pleasant, circumstances.

Tuesday, February 1, Day 12
today was a grand improvement of the conditions of yesterday. second day on the water, perfect day... sunny, 70s, not a cloud in the sky. a guy couldn't ask for a better day.  romans 7 was the Word of the day. it is good to have scripture with me, like a drink of ice cold, frosty water on a muggy hot afternoon. sort of ironic... after yesterday's struggle of will, i can identify with Paul when he speaks illustrates the paradox of doing what he does not want to do (sinning)... and not doing what he wants to do (God's way). today my paddle mate was Steph. we had a good conversation on the river. we spoke about her living in texas, her family, parents, how the parents met, her brother and his experience serving in iraq, playing division one volleyball at rutgers university, how her first coach got fired the interim coach destroyed the program and her third coach restored it. she spoke very fondly of her parents lake house and writing in guests on the calendar to host each weekend of every summer. she talked of grilling out, boating, and hanging with family friends... sounded like fun to me. we broke off for lunch and a rock skipping contest. the most skips after three combined throws was declared the winner. after going into an over time throw with Patrick (who I call 'trick' for short) yours truly had the most skips. after lunch i had Fish as my partner. another good talk. she said the bravest thing she ever did was hold her father's hand when he died. i guess he went in to get a colonoscopy because he was 50, they found cancer, it spread to his bones and then to the rest of his body, and that was the end. tough story. this trip is quite challenging mentally and emotionally in that way. complete strangers trying to get to know each other a little more every day... so we ask each other all these random questions about our lives and it makes me really think about my life and how i live. a lot of reflecting on the past. what family is like, random things you like/dislike, what home is like, traditions, school, activities, traveling, hopes, dreams, preferences, friends, people, issues, problems, the world, experiences.... the extreme questions like bravest thing you've ever done, most embarrassing, stupidest thing, craziest thing, most desired super power, and the favorites like movies, food, music, people, places... i could go on. thinking through and sharing is a task but equally as challenging is listening to what everyone else has to say. everyone is so different, and very different than the type of people i'm used to flying with. really challenges your perspectives on things. after a pit stop, i got to try the kayak. it was sweeeeet. way more agile, light, and maneuverable than the canadians. it just slices through the water like a razor. the double ended paddle was different and an interesting thing to adjust to. it was fun trying to twist the bar to make smooth even stokes on both sides so the vessel would float straight... and do it quickly so you could get some good speed going. it was fun getting out in the front of everyone so you had some space... where you felt like you were the only soul on the water. all i could hear is the water moving, the slight breeze over the surface, soft crickets and locusts... not the loud obnoxious ones i am accustomed to.... this made for a quiet awe-inspiring feeling. a feeling of smallness. a mysterious aura of the land and the water. i loved the smooth parts of the river where i could watch the gentle ripples formed by the nose cutting through the still, glass-like water... the soft flow of water around my extended finger tips, leaving miniature wakes behind them... taking in the silent landscape, enjoying the peace of the moment, wondering how it all came to be, admiring the massiveness of it all.... incredible. then came my favorite part of the river experience... the small break in the wall. it was a channel of sorts that cut into the land, the only one like it that i saw. it was a water way, no more than 20 ft wide that cut into the surrounding land. the walls of the inlet were high, probably 30-40 ft tall and they were STRAIGHT up on both sides. it looked like those bushes that are trimmed with straight edges, except it was rock instead of plant. it was a mysterious looking place. the first thing that popped into my mind was the movie "the secret garden." the water was completely still, nothing was moving in there. while getting the ok from Fish to check it out, i turned my kayak to make an entrance. the others passed by as i slowly made my way into a long stretching channel that curved, hiding the rest of the way from view. it was a bit of an eerie feeling, being completely alone now, gliding silently into this place, cautiously making my way further and further into the break in the wall. i was startled by a loud thump that broke the silence when a moss covered log, floating just beneath the surface connected with the hull of the kayak. at one point i became uncomfortable going on, not being able to tell what was in the water or when i might run aground / hit rocks but decided that the risk was minimal and the the desire to leave no stone unturned won me over. as i kept going, i observed some wreckage of some trees dead on the rocky beach that began to form on my left. it was an odd realizing how alone i was in such an obscure place, that probably few people have seen, so far from home. finally the water became too shallow to continue, leaving me only able to stare down the straight away as it cut further into the wilderness ahead. i turned the kayak around and slowly made an exit, stopping briefly at the mouth to look back at this marvelous place, sitting completely still in the shade. it was really fun. tonight everything went quite smoothly. warmed up some canned chunky soup and called it supper. no fumbling around in the dark tonight. camping can be quite pleasant when the weather is nice, you aren't in a hurry, and people are in good moods. we built are first and only fire tonight of the river expedition. fires are usually banned in the parks. we played a couple games around the fire which were quite entertaining, and gazed at the stars overhead. it was so cool. no artificial light out here. tonight it looked like someone took some very bright grains of sand, some brighter and larger than others, and flung a handful across the black sky... scattering thousands of tiny white pearls to completely fill the canopy... from directly over head to the edges of the horizon. strange patterns and clusters were made. it almost made me dizzy trying to look at all of them. kind of like looking at a movie screen that is way too big and you're in the front row. so much to look at over such a big space... hard to focus on any one part. it was fantastic. the coolest star gazing i have ever done.

Wednesday, February 2, Day 13
today's highlight was canoeing under a waterfall. the fall was small, about 4 ft wide and was pounding the water down pretty good. it was falling down almost flush with the the flat, straight up wall of the bank. this made the approach difficult, kind of like parallel parking a car. we were trying to keep going forward and position ourselves flush with the wall. we ended up not getting completely parallel so the nose struck the wall at an angle and we came to a screeching halt. conveniently, i was in front today, just inches away from the nose. i got pelted by water for a good 5 seconds until we could swing the back around enough to move forward again. 5 seconds is a long time when you are under a water fall. i am sure it must have looked quite hilarious from an observer's perspective. we had a strong 3 inches of water to bail from the bottom of our canoe after the encounter. i'd like to say: we came, we saw, we conquered! oh, random fact... it is not a good thing to say "fanny pack" in new zealand. apparently "fanny" is synonymous with the word "vagina" here, so it you plan on a trip to NZ, keep that in mind ;)  oh and for those who are unfamiliar with sheep as i am... i find the difference between a sheared sheep and a woolly sheep is amazing. the sheared sheep look so tiny, almost like white dogs. the long hair sheep look really fat in comparison. entertaining. to the easily entertained. we also made a stop to the "bridge to no-where." this attraction is, just as it sounds. a bridge in the middle of the jungle, headed to absolutely nothing. i guess back in the day there was a up-start town in this area where they thought there was gold or other things of value and they built a bridge to accommodate the hastening expansion of the town, only to have the town go completely deserted shortly after the completion of the bridge. thus, a bridge to no where. kind of an eerie sight, but a really nice bridge no doubt. concrete, with style to it. i finished the day today by cutting open my thumb while slicing an onion. rats. luckily i had my handy dandy medical kit that my lovely sister got me!

Thursday, February 3, day 14
Final day on the river. with an early rise, i teamed up with Trick today to finish the final 3 hours of paddling on the menu. today was cloudy and sprinkling. we stopped at a cave on the side of the river... pretty massive. there was a waterfall that could be seen a small distance into the cave and it was really sweet looking. a waterfall in a cave, what more could you want! after the cave, my travel mates had plotted to slop me from head to toe with mud from a nearby slime pit... and they succeeded. a good mush to it. i felt like a coach after winning some sort of championship except instead of ice water it was.... mud. the exit point was not far from the cave and we had a quick lunch while we loaded up the canoes on a trailor and transferred all our gear from the plastic barrels to our bags which we had the privilege of re-uniting with. we drove an hour to a Maori (the native people here in NZ) "marae" or settlement. this was in the middle of no where. rolling hills, green pastures, sheep, cows, horses, and a small single lane road were the only amenities that accompanied it. the marae consisted of a church, a shower/bathroom house, a small museum of maori artifacts, two maori meeting houses for sleeping, and a kitchen/dining hall building. very interesting place. it was fairly modern, the buildings where of maori style with many carvings of warriors, animals, varying shapes and patterns, all of wood. there was running water in the bathroom house which was a plus. also cooking appliances. oh, everything felt ancient. tables, chairs, eating ware, appliances, carpet, odd trinkets and decorations. it had an old smell to it as well. this stuff had the character of a grandparent. we had an interesting entrance into the marae. our host stood on the other side of the lawn while we stood just outside the main gate/entrance. she began to sin in a low tone that had very little change in pitch, speaking in maori. we were previously instructed to take three separate moments of silence as we proceeded to enter the marae. we walked forward about a quarter of the way and stopped for our first moment of silence as she ceased singing. the first pause was to think of all the people we have left behind for our travels... family, friends, people who have already passed on, etc. the second moment was for appreciating nature and the things and animals around us. the third moment is escaping me now... maybe ill come up with it later. we finished the entrance by making the customary maori greeting... which consists of touching foreheads together. sort of an odd feeling. the approach is almost like you are going in to kiss the person, aligning the noses. then you gently bump heads, and pause. the maori believe this connects the spirit of each person together. the thing that stuck out most to me was how surprisingly firm the surface of another person's forehead is. i dare you to try it with someone. a highlight of today was definitely the long walk i took on the single lane road among the rolling hills. it is fun to sing in places like these because there is no one to hear but the sheep. it was inspiring to study the angry looking, stormy clouds rolling over head. how they roll and tumble over each other. if you havent taken a long walk to connect with your Creator recently... i recommend doing it. well worth the time. by the time i returned to the marae, it was dark. it is an odd feeling... hearing farm animals make their noises in the darkness around you when you cant see them, coming from random directions and distances, it makes you feel like you are walking right next to them.

Friday, February 4th, day 15
woke up at 5:30 this morn, for a long run! needed to take advantage of the semi flat ground that is around these parts, since flat ground is a rare thing so far in NZ. it was dark when i started but the light came quickly. at one point i had gone out about 6k and i realized that the probability that there was another human being between me and my starting place was very slim... me by my lonesome in NZ... sweet. i had a neat encounter with some sheep on the run today. i came right up on a pack of 20-30 sheep grazing all together right by the fence, which was maybe 6 ft from the road, real close. i was running briskly and quietly so they did not notice me until i was right on them. they took off, and i couldnt help myself to speed up and match their pace. for a few moments which remain etched in slow motion in my mind... we ran together. me, with the leaders of small heard of sheep, side by side. these sheep were not the most brilliant animals. it took them a bit to understand that they were not increasing their distance from me by running parallel with the fence. just before they finally turned off, a comical picture came to my mind. from a distant view this must have looked very odd... a random guy, running, in the middle of the boonies, who is apparently being chased by a group of sheep. hmmm. not something you'll see everyday. after i returned to the marae, the others were having a hard time waking up. Holly went into our meeting house and mimicked a rooster... making loud and enthusiastic crowing noises. quite funny. after breakfast, we were off to Wellington. Wow, what a happenin place. Wellington is hip. pretty clean tho i feel Auckland is cleaner. we had arrived to see Wellington as the host of the World Cup of Rugby Sevens... the "Sevens" as it was commonly referred to. 30 minute games of intense 7 on 7 rugby, all weekend long. and the city was one big party. i guess when you go to a sevens game... you dress up in crazy costumes like halloween, you buy a lot of alcohol in the stadium, and you get very drunk. these people knew how to dress up. great costumes, some of the best ive ever seen. had a little bit of everything: chewbacca, edward scissor hands, super heroes and villains of all kinds. many did group costumes such as jenga blocks, french fries, whoopee cushions,  barbies (box included) and dominoes. it was great. the games were on TV everywhere. we ended up getting to watch the U.S. team beat the Cook Islands in this bar called "Murphy's Irish Pub." it was totally sweet. never seen much rugby before. very intriguing game. also interesting to watch because half of the entertainment was watching the people in the stands. with all the costumes and people acting ridiculously intoxicated, the camera was constantly scanning the crowd and sending the spotlight to reporters interviewing random spectators. totally crazy. we took a very interesting of their Parliament buildings... our equivalent of going to the U.S. captiol building... where we saw amazing old english architecture and learned about NZ's unique history and style of government. top political issues in NZ right now... 1. drinking age (considering increasing it. current age is 18). 2. country assets (such as airlines... should government control/own/run certain things or not) 3. land disputes (ownership rights, what land should be used for, etc.) fascinating. wish i had time to describe. but i do not.

Saturday, Feb 5th, day 15
Free day in Wellington! today i was all over town. had to figure out the bus system so that was an interesting experience. first stop was this park called Zealandia. i could write forever about it, but in short it is a completely fenced off, Jurassic Park like compound, where they are attempting to restore the land to what New Zealand was originally, before man entered the picture. as many of the original birds, animals, and insects of the original NZ. there i watched a 10 minute film about the history behind the project, the New Zealand's history, the consequences of human settlement in NZ, and a imitation on what NZ most likely looked like back then. pretty crazy. very cool stuff, walked about for a few hours on a path in the forest, seeing interesting animals, listening to staff members talk about certain animals, visiting exhibits, etc. very strict security. there was absolutely no tolerance for pest animals like rats... who were introduced by early settlers and were responsible much of the destruction of the natural ecosystem of NZ. Second visit was the Botanical Gardens of Wellington. Awesome place. Huge. We're talking multiple square miles. of flowers and other growing things. nuts. so many different types. they had one complete garden reserved for different types of roses. i never knew so many types or colors of roses existed. wow. they also had a planetarium which i visited... why not, right? i watched one of the shows. at the end of it they did a star gazing session where they digitally showed you different constellations. then they took us on a digital tour of the universe... at least as much as we have been able to see with telescopes. this "tour" started on earth, then our solar system, then our galaxy, then the neighboring galaxies, then all the galaxies that we know to exist. one of the last images was a three-dimensional model of what we believe the universe looks like... it looked like a cluster of hundreds and hundreds of stars, except the "stars" were actually galaxies. can you say brain overload? because mine was. to top it all off, the gal who was talking to us had the most mysterious, low toned, quiet voice... all for added effect! the third and final stop today was the Weta Cave in Wellington. This was basically a small building with tons of authentic props and models used in making films. Weta was started by these people that hooked up with Peter Jackson to make films... props, costumes effects, minatures... pretty much everything minus the actors.... Weta does. this place was full of stuff from movies like the Lord of the Rings, District 9, the Narnia series, and King Kong to name a few. really neat stuff. thats it for this entry... hope all is well back home! i will do my best to catch up, sorry i am so behind! cheers!