Burp, bubble, hiss ...

The north island is like no other place. The ground emits all sorts of sounds (and smells). Mud bubbles, water boils, and ponds are green, orange and teal. It is too cool! Check out these cool photos:

Boiling mud.

Boiling colorful water.

Even Flat Sandy got in on the fun. Here she is at the mud pool:




Today we had planned to hike the Tongariro Crossing. Sadly, Mother Nature had other plans for us so we opted to take a much easier and shorter hike to a waterfall. As you can see, the day did not lend itself to the "breathtaking views" that the Tongariro Crossing is famous for. Oh well, we'll just have to return another time ....

To see more photos and a video of the bubbling mud, check out our web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/jenniemerrill/NorthIsland?authkey=XHBmgQSuDGg#

Tomorrow we are off for the south island to go on a 4-day hiking/kayaking trip. We'll check back in once we return.