The Long Trip to Holly Hut

Okay... so you know in my last post, how I said that CDs were really expensive? Well... $35 is the normal price for CDs here! That makes me sad, but I guess that is a built in control to stop me from buying CDs. We just got back this morning from Mt. Egmont/Taranaki. The first day, we got settled in our hut. I remember saying, "I hope that we're not the only ones in this hut, that would be lonely." Then we set off to go on the Summit Track. We were told that it wouldn't be possible to go to the Summit because we would need crampons and ice axes, but we tried our best. The track was uphill pretty much the whole way. After hitting the first hut, we continued upwards for a while. Going off of the track for a bit, we just climbed a bunch of rocks. Once we hit the snow, we stopped. By we, I mean Sydney and I. Bretton tried to go a little further, which is okay. But I couldn't see her. So, after finishing my lunch, she still hadn't returned. I started shouting her name, kind of freaking out. She didn't answer. I shouted louder, really trying to project my voice... to no avail. I was really getting worried. Then, this photographer guy a bit lower down said, "I see her, she's okay, you should see her soon, she's headed down." Phew! I was not looking forward to going to through snow to find her. Once she returned, we headed back down to the hut and decided to take a track called the Holly Hut Track. It was really gorgeous. It felt like it was short, yet went on forever. We went out for a bit, then decided it would be smart to turn around and head back down to the hut. For the next day, we decided to go back on the Holly Hut Track and actually make it to Holly Hut. It was so beautiful! I loved it. I even endured the hundreds of steps down and back up. I think at some point, you stop thinking and don't feel anything. It just all blends together, becomes the same. Then we headed back. You know how I said that I didn't want the hut to be empty? Well... I must say, I've eaten my words. When we got back, there was this German guy staying there too. He seemed nice enough, offering some advice, talking about his hikes. But he just wouldn't stop. He traps you in conversations. There's no way out. Also, when we were trying to plan our next hostels and what we were going to do, he kept on cutting in. All of these things would be less annoying, if after every phrase he didn't say "mmmmmmmmmm?". It was killing me! "Did you have a good day, mmmmmm?" "The water is boiling over, mmmmmm?" Yeah, it was very fun. So we headed back into New Plymouth this morning. Today we're getting ready for the Tongariro Northern Circuit. We need to stock up on dried fruit and cheese and nuts and stuff. I think it will be good, but I worry about not having enough food. As many of you know, I love food, and I love to eat. I don't want to carry too much, so I have to consider everything I will eat. What if I don't have enough? I'm sure I'll be okay, but I just like to worry about things like this. Everything will be good... I think. Anyways, talk to you guys in about a week. Wish me luck in the land of volcanoes.