Hamilton - Taumarunui

Vi blev om morgenen afhentet ved vores motel, hvorefter vi kørte knap 1,5 time i bus ad små, snoede veje for at køre 82 km i en gammel, ombygget golfvogn langs nedlagte togskinner i Forgotten World fra Republic of Whangamōmona til Taumarunui.

Den 7,5 timers tur bestod af guidede stop ved forskellige tidligere eller mindre nuværende byer: Matiere, Ōhura, Tokirima, Heao og Tāngarākau Gorge, hvor vi hørte Māori-historier, og hvordan krig og minearbejdere ændrede byerne. Derudover skulle vi køre igennem 21 tunneller og 90 broer, hvoraf den længste tunnel var 1,5 km. Under turen ramte vi en topfart på 20 km/t, så der var god tid til at se omgivelserne.

Vi bidrog med at hive aldersgennemsnittet ned på turen, da alle andre var 50+.

Det var for en gangs skyld tørvejr! Men vinden var en smule kold, så vi var pakket godt ind langs turen.

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In the morning, we were picked up at our motel and then drove almost 1.5 hours by bus along small winding roads to ride 82 km in an old converted golf cart along abandoned railway tracks in the Forgotten World, from the Republic of Whangamōmona to Taumarunui.

The 7.5 hour trip included guided stops in various former or now very small towns: Matiere, Ōhura, Tokirima, Heao and Tāngarākau Gorge, where we heard Māori stories and learned how war and mining workers changed the towns. We also travelled through 21 tunnels and over 90 bridges, with the longest tunnel being 1.5 km. On the trip we reached a top speed of 20 km/h, so there was plenty of time to take in the surroundings.

We helped bring down the average age on the tour, as everyone else was 50+.

For once, the weather was dry! But the wind was a bit cold, so we were bundled up throughout the trip.Read more