BEANinNZ: Mount Wellington

This morning I packed up my bag with a snack, water, a jacket, my NZ phone in case of emergency, Leaping Lindsey (my rubber band girl), and of course my camera, then set off for an adventure all by myself! I was a little worried about catching the bus and getting to Mount Wellington and back, but I mostly felt confident about finding my way. The bus driver was so nice and helpful. From my experience so far, the people in NZ seem to be a lot happier and nicer than in the US. I told the driver where I was planning to go, and he let me know when to get off. We also talked the whole 30 minute drive there about what I was going to do and where I was from. Mount Wellington was only a short walk from the bus stop, then a long tamp (the NZ way to say hike) up to the top!

It was absolutely beautiful! You could see so far from the top! I could see the Sky Tower in Auckland and Rangitoto Island, which is another extinct volcano that I will be visiting tomorrow with my friend Shannon. There were volcanic rocks deep down in the center and the dirt was a deep reddish brown. There was a family at the top that brought pieces of cardboard to sit on and slide down. It looked like a lot of fun! They didn't go too far, but they were having a blast!

Any way you looked, you could see ocean!

I believe that is Mount Rangitoto Island

That's Auckland in the background. The tall skinny tower is the Sky Tower. You can get coffee up there, and I heard you can even bungee jump off of it!