Big Trip

First stop today was Craters of the Moon, a small thermal area just outside Taupo run by the Dept of Conservation, and therefore free. It turned out to be a great little walk through a surreal landscape of scrubby bush and coloured soils interspersed with plenty of steaming fumaroles and craters, bubbling and steaming water pools, and even the odd mud pool glooping away. Good value, but a bit smelly. Then we popped over the road to the Volcanic Activity Centre, where there were all sorts of little interactive displays - a good 3-d map of the Taupo Volcanic Area, a good 3-d jigsaw where you had to fit tectonic plates onto a globe and a slightly inferior earthquake simulator in which you just sat down and were thrown about a bit.
After lunch we went down for yet another jet boat ride (yawn... easy entertainment...). On the Aratiatia Rapids. It was fantastic. We actually boated up & down the rapids several times, and this is one of the few jet boat rides we've seen where the photos actually live up to the experience. I got the prize for being the wettest on the boat, which was... well... more water than anyone else. For tea, we treated ourselves to fish & chips, including gluten free battered fish for Max. It was excellent. Needless to say, Max was chuffed to bits. I think Taupo wins the prize for best gluten free options so far.