January 9, 2006 - page 2

The next couple of days we found ourselves traveling to Wai-O-Tapu and Waimangu geothermal valleys.  The Wai-O-Tapu Geothermal Wonderland was home to Devil’s Bath, which is the color of nuclear-waste-green (also found in the crayon box with 847 colors).  It looks as if Swamp Thing would rise up from beneath the green acid.  At the Waimangu Valley, the class met up with Barry, a very knowledgeable geologist who lectured us as we walked about the valley on foot.  We learned all about the formation of the hydrothermically active area, the interrelated cyclic hydrology (don’t worry, I can’t pronounce it either) between Inferno and Frying Pan lakes, the world’s biggest hot spring, reaching unbelievable temperatures closer to the bottom.

We also had our first free day!  Though much of the month here in New Zealand will be spent studying volcanoes, just as the students on campus get a free day or two from their Centre Term classes, we too got a day this week to get away from the usual volcanology.  Many of us spent the day on a mountain bike, riding up embankments and jumping off ramps through a large forest, while others spent the day white water rafting or swimming in a nearby lake.