We enjoyed Hobbiton so much last night that we came back this morning for some souvenir shopping in the gift store.  (No seriously, that was the plan all along!)  With nothing else planned for the morning, we made a leisurely drive southwards through farming country to our next lodging in Rotorua.

Located in one of the largest volcanic regions in the world, Rotorua is dotted everywhere with fumaroles, bubbling mud pits, and steaming hot pools in an array of different colors depending on mineral content.  There is a lot of sulfur in the area, and at any given moment when walking through town, your nose may be suddenly assailed by its distinctive odor.

There are multiple places to see the geothermal features up close, both publicly and privately operated.  We decided to go to Whakarewarewa, a living Māori village built over a cluster of hot spots that offers visitors a network of self-guided trails.

The diversity of ways that the volcanism expresses itself is impressive, from furiously boiling springs and elaborate mud sculptures to beautiful lakes whose clear waters steam serenely.   Numerous signs warned us not to step off the boardwalk and path, lest we suffer severe burns.  In fact, the local Māori use the steam for cooking food; one blurb on our map noted that a particular spring was hot enough  to roast the hair off of a pig’s back!

Speaking of pigs, we had dinner at the Pig and Whistle, a local pub established in a former police station.  Afterwards, we decided to stroll along the shores of Lake Rotorua as the sun was setting.  On the way,  we saw yet another fabulous playground; New Zealand is a great place to be a kid (of any age)!  

The lakeshore was teeming with birds.  In addition to black swans and various gulls, we also saw a rare mama float plane with her baby. We followed the shore walk as far as the aptly named Sulfur Point, which had more geothermal activity.

Our final planned activity for the day needed to wait until dark. You can visit the Redwoods Treewalk during the day, but at night it comes alive with an array of illuminated lanterns designed by a professional artist based on natural forms of local species. The location is a grove of California redwood trees planted in 1901 as part of a forestry experiment. They have been growing strongly ever since, and have now reached a substantial size. Without harming the trees, the operators of the site have managed to suspend a series of platforms up to 20m high, connected by bridges (28 in all) to form a loop. Walking through the forest canopy at night surrounded by the lights is a surreal and beautiful experience, reminiscent of our visit to the Parc de la Gorge de Coaticook.