Te Aroha - mist and mayhem

This weekend I headed out of town to the very pretty little town of Te Aroha in the heartland of the North Island. Every garden was full of flowers and the day was blue skies and sunny so we were all ready for the hike. Little did I know this hike would mean 2 and 1/2 hours directly up a steep hill into icy mist and wind but felt that amazing sense of achievement you do when you push yourself beyond what you thought were your limits. Then it was another 3 hours back down, we think around 12kms in total. I did manage to slip on my butt twice - someone had to and one poor gal twisted her ankle but in general everyone was only a little achy in joints and muscles. We also stayed at the most awesomely condiment packed motel and ate at the most yummy restaurant.

The next day brought with it a well needed soak in the local therapeutic mineral hot pools and a lovely scenic coastal drive back to Auckland.

We hiked from the bottom to where the tower is

The mist made the forest look kinda mystical and spooky

Beautiful Kowhai tree in bloom

I am loving the amazing colour of the grass in spring