For the week following our time in Auckland, we stayed on a dairy farm seemingly equidistant from the small town of Otorohanga and the black sand beaches of Marokopa. On this farm, we milked the cows, grubbed the fields, cooked the meals, cleaned the homes, and fed the calves. In the evening we hung out with the owners, David and Claire Carey, and their son, Mike. Dan, Greta, Casey, Katie, Caroline, and Alistair stayed with Mike at his house, while Krysten, Avery, Andrea, Ruby, Francesca, Matt, and I stayed at Craig’s house just down the road. Sadly, we never got to meet Craig for he had been out of town, but he let us stay in his house anyway. Also staying with us were two Australian girls, Emma Elmslie and Ella Bateman. Both were very friendly and fun, and we all became friends very fast. Once work was finished, there was plenty to do to keep from getting bored. We went on walks through the hills and into the trees, we watched countless American movies, we went to a cave about 50 metres up the road and the largest waterfall any of us had ever seen, and Claire took us on a 6k walk through the bush to a natural tunnel about 100 feet tall in the middle of the jungle. Perhaps my most memorable moment occured on our last evening together, when Mike took us target shooting with what is “legally the smallest rifle your allowed to shoot an elephant in Africa with.” Needless to say, it was a pretty big gun, and we definitely practiced gun safety. I hit the target both times, which I’m pretty proud of. We also went the spectacular black sand beaches on the western coast. We walked about a mile down and sat on these rocks and took it all in for a few hours. I got stuck on a cliff and had to have Dan and Alistair help me down. Later I went up on a huge sand hill and took a nap. It was unbelievably peaceful. In the parking lot of the beach this cute dog came up to us and rolled over on its back. You could tell it wanted to be pet, which we did. We ate meat every night and it was absolutely delicious. So fresh, so succulent. It was the most fun, informative, and enlightening week of the trip thus far (in my opinion). It was UNREAL. Right now we’re at the Blue Mountain Adventure Centre, and Avery will tell you more about that.
Trent Jones