Good Guys .

[Collector Inspector]

Seat covers look a bit G....................uncumfy for Chilli?

[Chilli Dog]

So the Chilli dog team went testing down at Lake Arapuni on the Waikato river . The Waikato is fed from Lake Taupo and has several hydro dams , Arapuni is the penultimate dam to Karapiro from where the Great Waikato Seagull race is held to the sea every Easter . The weather hasn't been that settled and water conditions were less than ideal , but the country looked great due to recent rain and excellent growing conditions and after visiting this lake I continued up the river to check out other spots with a view to future expeditions or events .

[Chilli Dog]

Having a break from driving

[Chilli Dog]

At the dam

[Chilli Dog]

backside

[Chilli Dog]

here's a sign

[Chilli Dog]

getting ready

[Chilli Dog]

View south of the main body of water at lake Arapuni

[Chilli Dog]

This area is the southern part of the Milk bowl of New Zealand , with mild winters and moderate rain fall , cows are predominantly pasture fed

[Chilli Dog]

I then travelled to Taupo , which is more elevated and mainly devoted to forestry and dry stock operations . This part of the country is world renowned for it's geothermal activity

[Chilli Dog]

Near Atiamuri

[Chilli Dog]

At Orakei Korako which is a site of geothermal interest on the river , and of late commercial control means you can now not launch or retrieve boats here , but I did find another spot a little further up stream .

[Chilli Dog]

beside the road on a siding is a small ramp and jetty

[Chilli Dog]

This is Lake Taupo at the top of the Waikato , as you can see no small puddle

[Chilli Dog]

It is fed by many small streams and the melt from the mountains in the back ground. While this river doesn't supply all the North Islands power it goes some way . I walked beside the Tongariro which is one of the rivers that brings the water from the mountains at the southern end of the lake to Taupo ,this area is famous for the rainbow and brown trout which are "land locked" and treat the great lake as the sea , fisherman come from all over the world to test there skills here. Of note is the streams and rivers are virtually unpolluted an available to anyone who has the time and purchases a daily or seasonal license for a small fee.