Becoming Hobbits and Finding Free Things

My Lord of the Rings education had begun, as I’d watched the first film in the days leading up to our trip to the most iconic spot in Middle Earth. Esme drove us down from Hot Water Beach, and we made a couple of stops on the way to explore and stock up on supplies.

Our first stop was Karangahake Gorge, which we saw from the road when we decided to stop. We parked up and took a little wander in the misty greenery over a couple of suspension bridges. It was very atmospheric and the stream was beautiful and clear.

We then did some grocery shopping and ate lunch in Matamata, the closest town to Hobbiton. We explored the visitor information centre, which was designed like a hobbit hole, and picked up some leaflets. The whole town had Lord of the Rings decorations and references. 

The day brightened up as we reached Hobbiton. We checked in on arrival and received printed tickets. As we were early, we explored the gift shop before lining up for the bus. The set is part of a working farm, so we were driven a fair way on the bus through gorgeous green hills covered in sheep and lambs. A video played as we went, introducing us to the land. 

Off the bus, it was time for the tour to begin. We were guided into Hobbiton and gathered surrounded by beautiful little hobbit holes. Each is uniquely designed with various coloured doors and stylings. We awed over little gardens and chairs, chess sets and flowers. We were told facts about filming – the recruitment of hobbits and horses in New Zealand, and how they used ‘forced perspective’ to maintain the height differences between characters and between characters and the set. We were taken around the whole area, learning as we went, and picked out our favourite hobbit holes.

We took a picture which perfectly represented the forced perspective we’d been told about.

As we couldn’t visit Bag End due to ongoing works, we were given a complimentary Green Dragon mug instead, which we picked up from the inn itself. To get to the pub, we walked around the lake and over the bridge by the mill. A drink was included in the ticket, and I had a non-alcoholic ginger beer so I could drive us to our campsite later on. Esme found a harp in the corner of the inn and played a tune, and then we dressed in some hobbit clothes and got photos taken behind the bar. We sipped our drinks surrounded by flowers, with a view of the lake.

When it was time, we picked up our new mugs and got on the coach back to the entrance. We meandered through the shop again and took a seat in the cafe. There were pies for sale for NZD$4 so we each had one as we looked over our photos and chatted about the experience. 

I drove us to our free camp which was on a lake, not too far away. I reverse parked us so we had an uncompromised view of the water, keen to catch a pretty sunrise. Esme and I had a swim, and then we played a few games of cards before cooking dinner. 

The following day, I caught the pretty sunrise through the van’s rear window, and then went back to sleep for an hour. When we did get up, we were quick to get ready and keen to get on the road for a day of budget-friendly adventuring. 

We decided to stop en route to treat ourselves to a morning coffee / tea. We found ourselves in a little town with some cool op shop buildings! So we had to have a browse after our brew.

Then we headed to Whakarewarewa forest in Rotorua for a wander through huge redwood trees. We chose one of several tracks, following the colour coded arrows into the forest. Known for being a geothermal city, much of Rotorua smells of sulphur. As we walked through the trees, we came across patches that smelt deeply eggy. Stagnant pools of blue-green, but also clear, water exuded the awful smell. We hiked up for beautiful views and walked under the treetop walk platforms. The forest floor was springy and soft. After an hour and a half, we finished our trail and returned to the van to eat lunch.

Our next budget friendly activity was a free talk about jade at a store in the city. There, we learnt about pounamu, jade found natively in New Zealand. Pounamu is rarer than other types of jade, as in New Zealand they no longer mine for it, they ‘take what mother nature gives’ them, as the person at the shop explained. We learnt and held different types of the stone. I loved the deep green of the kawakawa, named after the plant it bears the same colour of. We were shown some beautiful carved ornaments and around the workshop where the carving is done, which was so interesting.

Our third activity of the day was swimming in the naturally hot waters of Kerosene Creek. There are loads of geothermal hot pools in Rotorua, and most of them you have to pay a fee to explore. Kerosene Creek, however, flows freely and anyone can park up and explore. The creek smelled like a muted version of the scent in the forest – still eggy, but not as offensive. We found our way via a steep decline, into the shallow, but warm water. There were lots of people milling about there. We spent a while soaking in the water, half swimming, half crawling, chatting over the running water. It was such a fantastic experience, although my swimsuit stunk for a long time afterwards, despite going through the washing machine several times. 

Later on, when we were shrivelled from our time in the water and finally left, we were soon headed to our next campsite on the shore of Lake Taupo. The drive was so scenic, along the glassy water with blue hills in the distance. We camped with a stunning, open view of the lake and after a swim we were treated to a gorgeous sunset. We were so grateful for the beautiful nature we were continually encountering, and especially excited that today it hadn’t cost us a thing.