Probably. I thought I would go out with a bang...so here are some good ones I got during my trip last week.
Mt Ruapehu contains the highest peak on the North Island. It's also an active volcano, erupting as recently as last September (when I was just a few hundred kilometers north).
![](http://lh3.ggpht.com/justinrgilmore/SFg1RpIAqEI/AAAAAAAABP4/jrbybrBsDZs/s800/IMG_2392.JPG)
Cathedral Cove, Coromandel. This is one of the country's most famous landmarks. It's a beautiful beach, with a cave hewn out of the rock nearby. This cave is featured in the new Chronicles of Narnia movie as the place through which the children enter Narnia.
![](http://lh3.ggpht.com/justinrgilmore/SFg1FnCA9ZI/AAAAAAAABPw/3oFPm6Nd7Uo/s800/IMG_2416.JPG)
![](http://lh3.ggpht.com/justinrgilmore/SFg0tcUd3tI/AAAAAAAABPo/neckzGztEO4/s800/IMG_2420.JPG)
![](http://lh6.ggpht.com/justinrgilmore/SFg0dg3nu8I/AAAAAAAABPg/kDHCFHCqnqc/s800/IMG_2426.JPG)
Off the east coast of the Coromandel. Lots of little islands.
![](http://lh4.ggpht.com/justinrgilmore/SFg0Uncd_OI/AAAAAAAABPY/sfZCCq54HIE/s800/IMG_2433.JPG)
Hot Water Beach. Just a brief drive south of Cathedral Cove. A couple of geothermally heated pools rise to fill the holes that are dug out of the sand at low tide. It can get scaldingly hot--up to about 140 degrees F.
![](http://lh4.ggpht.com/justinrgilmore/SFgzsaiafUI/AAAAAAAABPQ/LMRbGeuWUGU/s800/IMG_2434.JPG)
![](http://lh6.ggpht.com/justinrgilmore/SFgzi6KyePI/AAAAAAAABPE/z6ILPF2zh88/s800/IMG_2437.JPG)
Along the beach where I stayed in Coromandel.
![](http://lh3.ggpht.com/justinrgilmore/SFgzYMHaDOI/AAAAAAAABO8/2x6BhilhWXE/s800/IMG_2440.JPG)
I finished my trip with a drive out around the East Cape on the Pacific Coast Highway. Lots of nice views along the coast.
![](http://lh6.ggpht.com/justinrgilmore/SFgzL6iSvbI/AAAAAAAABO0/gjy9pc8cwgU/s800/IMG_2445.JPG)
...including an isolated Anglican church.
![](http://lh4.ggpht.com/justinrgilmore/SFgzFO3X93I/AAAAAAAABOs/g_J3AbjVa9A/s800/IMG_2447.JPG)
Only three more days left. I'm spending them with a shitload of children. There's a big
kapa haka competition in town right now, and a couple teams are staying here--at least 60 kids. They are dictating when we can eat and do our laundry. It's cool to see them practice, but I do like it better when the hostel is empty.