Today we drove from Richmond to Pohara Beach. The drive through the mountain was 
daunting. The limestone land
scape of Takaka Hill is also known as Marble Mountian. It is a 
surreal lim
estone landscape with superb views over Golden Bay and the Tasman Sea. 
We drove past bee hives and saw swarms of bees. They were swarming over the road further down...luckily we had our windows closed. 
We took a two and a half hour walk up the beach as the tide was going out.
Wading through knee (my knees) deep water, we reach sand bars far out into the bay. 
Along the shore the rocks were a
mazing. Many contained large fossils of sea shells, particulary scallop shells.
The Waikoropupu Springs, located just out side of Takaka, are part of the largest spring system
in NZ. The water is protected from the public. You are not even allowed to touch the water as they plan on preserving it's purity well into the future. It is a pleasant walk into the springs through the flowering Manuka shrubs. The main pool is breath taking. I can certainly understand why this is considered a spiritual spot by the Maori. 
These springs discharge 14,000 litres of sparkling water a second. Eight vents in the main pool, the largest of which is 1.5 metres wide, supplies 3/4 of this water. These are known as world's clearest fresh water springs.
Further down the trail is a very unique bridge. It is only six inches off the water. It zigs zags back and forth along the spring giving you the opportunity to view the clarity of the water. I loved this part!
Later we went to Pupu Hydro Station. ... 
what a name! To get to Pupu Hydro Station we took a course gravel road back into the bush, past Pupu Springs. We came across a sign that said "Ford" with an exclamation mark. Yes, this meant we had to ford a river! What an adventure.
Pupu Hydro Station orignally was part of a gold mining operation in the early 1900's to sluce gold from river gravels. It was converted to a hydro station in 1929. The water race carried water 3.7 km from Campbell creek to the penstock (pipes) dropping the water 107m to the hydro electric station. It still produces power today.
Later in the day we explored the other direction of the beach as the tide was coming in. We walked out past rocks, watching the tide carefully as we could have been trapped. These rocks look like they tumbled off the cliffs above. They are twice the size of a school bus in size, or larger. What an incredible view. We had to roll up our pants well above the knee on our return trip, as the tide was quickly coming in. Tomorrow we will explore this side at the right time of day!
daunting. The limestone land
scape of Takaka Hill is also known as Marble Mountian. It is a 
surreal lim
estone landscape with superb views over Golden Bay and the Tasman Sea. 
We drove past bee hives and saw swarms of bees. They were swarming over the road further down...luckily we had our windows closed. 
We took a two and a half hour walk up the beach as the tide was going out.
Wading through knee (my knees) deep water, we reach sand bars far out into the bay. 
Along the shore the rocks were a
mazing. Many contained large fossils of sea shells, particulary scallop shells.
The Waikoropupu Springs, located just out side of Takaka, are part of the largest spring system
in NZ. The water is protected from the public. You are not even allowed to touch the water as they plan on preserving it's purity well into the future. It is a pleasant walk into the springs through the flowering Manuka shrubs. The main pool is breath taking. I can certainly understand why this is considered a spiritual spot by the Maori. 
These springs discharge 14,000 litres of sparkling water a second. Eight vents in the main pool, the largest of which is 1.5 metres wide, supplies 3/4 of this water. These are known as world's clearest fresh water springs.
Further down the trail is a very unique bridge. It is only six inches off the water. It zigs zags back and forth along the spring giving you the opportunity to view the clarity of the water. I loved this part!
Later we went to Pupu Hydro Station. ... 
what a name! To get to Pupu Hydro Station we took a course gravel road back into the bush, past Pupu Springs. We came across a sign that said "Ford" with an exclamation mark. Yes, this meant we had to ford a river! What an adventure.Pupu Hydro Station orignally was part of a gold mining operation in the early 1900's to sluce gold from river gravels. It was converted to a hydro station in 1929. The water race carried water 3.7 km from Campbell creek to the penstock (pipes) dropping the water 107m to the hydro electric station. It still produces power today.
Later in the day we explored the other direction of the beach as the tide was coming in. We walked out past rocks, watching the tide carefully as we could have been trapped. These rocks look like they tumbled off the cliffs above. They are twice the size of a school bus in size, or larger. What an incredible view. We had to roll up our pants well above the knee on our return trip, as the tide was quickly coming in. Tomorrow we will explore this side at the right time of day!
We spent the day at the hot springs outside of Rotorua. The gorge is beautiful. We walked along it on a long trail. There was quite a variety of hot springs and craters. 
