Rangitoto Island

Soon after we arrived in New Zealand, we decided to hike though the lava caves and to the summit of the now dormant volcano of Rangitoto. Rantito Island erupted from the sea in a series of dramatic explosions around 6,000 years ago. The volcano dominants the local seascape and is one of Aukland's most recognizable icons. The hike to the summit is only about 1-hour, but the view from the top is amazing.

Stepping onto Rangitoto Island is like stepping onto another world. The landscape is very unique as the sides of the mountain are covered with hardened bits of volcanic rock and ash that still remains from the volcano's active days. Growing from the rocky landscape are over 200 species of native plants (including over 40 different species of fern).


















Along our hike we met two travelers from Isreal. Itai and Elad were part way through their several month journey that began in Australia and included New Zealand and areas of Indonesia. As we came out of one of the lava caves, we noticed Elad hanging from a tree branch that straddled the exit of the cave. Always the competitor, I decided to hang upside down from the branch - then Itai decided he would impress us with a pull-up onto the branch.



















We had some laughs then continued to hike towards the summit with our new traveling friends. At the top, we were treated to a truely spectacular view of Aukland's skyline and the bay below.
















Upon completing our hike, we took the ferry back to Aukland City and Christine's house. That night, Christine and her flatmates hosted us and several of their Kiwi friends for a BBQ. We had a great evening, but Sara and I fell asleep fairly early. (I think the jet lag finally overtook us at about 10:30 pm).