Divine Appointments on The Road Less Traveled and Around the Lakes in Rotorua and The Redwood Forrest

Inspired by the unending beauty of this area, I set out to see as many of the fresh water, pristine lakes as I could. This is one of the many astounding sights God has placed in this small country of New Zealand. The fresh, crisp, yet to be polluted lands and waters of this area continuously give me motivation to start each day earlier than the last with an excitement not knowing exactly what I will see, but confident my mind and heart will be full by the end of the day; mind full by everything my eyes are taking in and heart full because for some reason God has placed this blessing upon me to experience what many never do and not just once but over and over again for several months now on end. And I’m still not exactly sure why me; why the woman who would have been content with staying in Hawaii, getting married, and having 2.5 children (or whatever the average is now). Why this journey, why this girl? I’m still not sure but I love watching His story unfold…

My first stop was the famous Tikitapu (Blue) Lake and Rotokakai (Green) Lake.  There is a look out hill in between the two lakes and when you look to one side you see just how blue the blue lake is and just how green the green lake is. It is quite incredible to see two lakes so close together be such vibrantly different colors. I see that Lake Tikitapu is supposed to have a walking trail the entire way around so I decide to go for a long, long walk. It was a beautiful sunny day out and I think to myself I can find my way. About 20 minutes in I am thoroughly confused as to where I am and if I’m even still on the right track. It had rained for several days on end just prior and I begin wondering if now the lake has pushed its boundaries over the trail. I look around and see a couple coming out from the bush and I ask if they know. It turned out they are guessing their way around the lake as well. We begin talking and I opened up about what I was embarking on and that I was blogging along the way. I talked about how I loved writing but it was something that I had put on the backburner for too long. We ended up talking about travel and life the entire way around the lake. Isn’t it just phenomenal how that happens? Relationships built in mere minutes, and all because we were enjoying nature, open to life, open to talking to each other, and got lost, haha. We stopped and all took photos on our trek and just enjoyed each other’s company learning bits and pieces about each other. They let me know they owned a New Zealand outdoors magazine and the wife, the editor, would take a look at my blog.

We parted ways for the day; I continued my adventure to Lake Tarawera, which out of all the lakes is probably my favorite, its span is broad and the trail around it leads to salmon streams, lots of bush, and a sandy beach area perfect for swimming during the warmer months. I took my picnic lunch to include a celebratory bottle of wine, and a blanket and had my lunch in a near secluded area of the lake front. I watched a man flying fishing from a semi-near dock, and a couple of paddle boarders paddle by. These are the peaceful moments I unendingly crave.

After exploring the lakes, I went into the nearby Redwoods forest that is filled with treks that will fill anyone’s day and potentially get you very lost. I headed into the woods and soon felt lost. There were families and people passing by so I wasn’t too worried. I stopped and asked a man who was bent over putting creek water into a test tube which way was out. I was intrigued at what he was doing and found out he is a German scientist who coming once a year to study this area of New Zealand and monitor it. He told me all about it but if you asked me to regurgitate any of it, well that wouldn’t happen. I admired the scenery of the way back out and decided to have dinner then come back for the lantern and lights canopy tree walk they do at night, and oh was it more than worth it. This is something I highly recommend if you’re in this area and it’s not too crowded. It truly magical.

When I got home late that night I checked my email and the couple who own the New Zealand magazine had emailed me. The editor told me one of my articles greatly touched her and I had a gift; she loved my writing. This couple, the editor and owner of New Zealand’s longest standing magazine, were soon to become one of my greatest encouragers and advocates for taking steps to become a writer. One simple chance meeting, with an open heart, leads to further divine moments of destiny.

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