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Look before you lean

‘Why are there so many people here?’ I wonder to myself. I have been driving around for ten minutes looking for a parking spot. Mount Maunganui, the beachside town at the base of the similarly named mountain, is flooded with people. Looking at my phone after finding a spot, the reason becomes obvious. It is a Saturday. A beautifully sunny Saturday on a double beachside downtown area. I would be more surprised if it were not crowded. I realize that while camping I have lost a sense of the calendar entirely. All days are the same to me without the routine of a normal life and a reason for the days to matter.

Mount Maunganui, the mountain, stands alone at the end of the peninsula. Deceptively small at only seven hundred sixty feet, its height does not impede the mountains ability to be imposing. A lone volcanic mountain set against the pristine blue of the Pacific Ocean is an impressive site.

A quick hike up the mountain presents a stunning view. New Zealand vistas truly feel out of movies and paintings. The gently curving beach is punctuated a couple small islands, one with a footbridge spanning the small gap separating it from the mainland. Little swarms of people dot the beach, adding peppery dots of color to the sandy shore. I pause for a few minutes at the top to appreciate the scenery and remind myself where I am.

Far from home, I feel no uncertainty. Nor am I lonely despite being alone. Well, alone except for all the other tourists and locals who decided it was a nice day for a hike. And not a small number decided so. I am simply comfortable and content. Serenity settles over me for a time, here on the mountain.

The beach and boardwalk are crowded with people out for the morning sunshine. A volleyball tournament is taking place, competitors jump and dive after the balls. A line of food trucks and ice cream stands line the boardwalk, offering savory snacks or cool refreshment. People stroll by, going this way and that. Some off to the beach, some up the mountain, some onto the small island. Half of them wearing no shoes or sandals. That is one thing you notice about New Zealand. There is a curious lack of shoes from a great deal more people than you would expect. I love being barefoot myself, but for many locals, it is the norm, and everyone accepts it. Rain or shine you can see people going about sans footwear, in stores as well as down the road.

I head down the beach to hop over the bridge to the connecting island myself. But it is a bit disappointing. Nothing special, I spend a few minutes trying to convince myself it is more than it is. I fail. I move on, time to get back down to Rotorua anyway.

Mt. Maunganui

“Any luck on finding a farm or anything?” I say having met up with Kyle and Elvis a few hours later. They have been hanging around a few natural hot springs and mud pools for the day (the mud pools are too hot to swim in though).

“Yeah, we got one promising one,” Kyle says. “It is down in Hastings, but we won’t be heading there for a few more days. We’re not really sure what to do till then.”

“Let’s head down towards Lake Taupo then. It is in that direction anyway, and the lake is supposed to be great.”

Standing on the shores of the lake the next day, it is a bit hard to tell. The lake is supposed to be framed by mountains, but all we can see is fog and clouds in the distance.

“Stunning,” I say. When I return in a few weeks, it is a clear day, and the mountains are visible at the far end of the water. I think it is stunning to myself, there being no one around to mention it to that time. But now it is simply a lake with some fog, and I am left only with my sarcastic comment. “Anyway, I’m getting a coffee while we’re in a town. I haven’t had one since I got here and we can bum off a café’s Wi-Fi to figure out what to do.”

Actual stunning view of Lake Taupo

Kyle and Elvis are still unsure about the farm they want to go to. Kyle is consistently non-committal, not seeming to want to do anything on his own for now. Elvis is regularly indecisive, never sure what he wants to do. A few more farms look promising but have yet to message them back. Others that have messaged them they will not commit to. With Christmas coming up I am considering other options as well, thinking perhaps camping by myself is not the ideal way to spend the holidays though I do not need the work. Kyle and Elvis are looking for a bit of stability, especially Elvis, who is running out of money.

“Look, there is a mountain a short way away from here. Let’s go hike it, you can figure it out after.” Procrastinating their decision appeals to them. They agree.

Standing at the top I wish we were here on a day with better weather. The view of the lake and surroundings would be breathtaking.

Kyle takes in the view.

Driving south along the river reminds me of the drive around the Coromandel Peninsula. Rocky roads winding along the water. I imagine New Zealand to be fun on a motorcycle, though learning to ride one here would be difficult on these roads.

“Is that your third cup of tea? Aren’t you going to wake up a bunch in the middle of the night again?” Kyle asks as Elvis does pour his third cup of tea.

“Yeah, probably. But I’ve started just leaning out of my car to take a piss instead of getting up and going to the toilet,” Elvis says. Kyle and I make disparaging remarks. “It’s easy. I was doing it the couple nights I was staying in the tent too. Just opened the flap and leaned out. Though, one morning I realized I left my Birkenstocks right outside my tent. When I got up in the morning they were bloody soaked in piss.” It is hard to remember another time I laughed as hard as that.

 

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1 Comment

  • Elizabeth 6 years ago Reply

    I so look forward to the day that I too “ have lost a sense of the calendar entirely. All days are the same to me without the routine of a normal life and a reason for the days to matter“

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