The Business of Mountain Shuttles

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We missed our shuttle back to town from the end of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing by less than 10 minutes. We had paid $30 in the morning for the full round trip ride. A one-way ride costs $25.

The morning bus driver for the Plateau Lodge Shuttle had told us to call the company late in the day to give them an update on our location. Cell service was near impossible to find on the mountain. Only when we reached the end of the track did we have a clear signal. The bus driver had given us the impression that cell signal was available all the way through. Knock one on them.

So to come back out to pick us up was going to cost $25 a head. We tried hitchhiking, but all five cars in the parking lot seemed to be headed the other way. Luckily, a friend’s boyfriend had come up with his car. They came back to pick us up, and we gave him $7 a head for gas.

The next morning, I busted out my best Indian haggling skills to see if I could be refunded for the portion of service we didn’t use. The wife of the shuttle company’s manager said I must be really hard-pressed for money if I was essentially trying to make the argument that a sandwich shop should give me my money back because I didn’t end up eating half my sandwich.

While my effort clearly fell flat, I did pick up a few tidbits. The driver is paid $20 an hour for about five to six hours of work at least a day. That comes out to about $3,000 a month.

The shuttle company gets passengers mostly through referrals from the local hostels. He has to give back a 20 percent commission to those hostels. So that’s $6 off a $30 fare. A 15 percent goods and services tax takes away another $4. So the company basically does not make money until the third passenger off the day, accounting for two hours of pay for the driver.

The manager also made the argument that he charges $5 less than the other operators in the area, keeping him in a precarious position. If you end up doing the crossing, just be sure to be prepared to keep your shuttle company happy in the morning. And on your way back, you should find signal at the Katehai Hut. Make a call from there.

Northland Roadtrip

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Twenty-four of us divided across a minivan and three campervans roadtripped to the northern part of New Zealand’s North Island. The four-day, three-night trip took us from Paihia to Ahipara to Cape Reigna and finally back down to Pakiri Beach.
What I’ll never forget:
  • the old people who run campervan/camping parks. They charge you $10-$20 a head for some running water and a patch of grass. Then, they yell at you for being loud. I’m not sure why the government doesn’t just have a special spots for rowdy teenagers where they can keep a watchful eye on them?
  • hiking and watching people jump off a cliff next to a waterfall. Then being bombarded by rain and forced to slug through muddy terrain back to our car. By the end of the run back, it was all sunny again. Typical New Zealand.
  • Cape Reigna is the very tip of New Zealand, where the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific Ocean. Maori legend has it that one body of water is female and the other one is male. You get the picture.
  • A 45-minute hike down from the lighthouse at the cape is arguably the best beach I have ever been to. Its seclusion means no one was around. The path into the water wasn’t terribly rocky, far or full of shells. The beach was surrounded by rocks and tide pools, which was perfect for spotting these purple crabs that liked to hide in the crevices.
  • When the clouds aren’t out and you’re sitting on the beach in pitch black, you have no idea how many stars you can see.

Do Buses In Auckland Arrive On Time?

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Yes, Auckland’s regional public transportation system, known as MAXX, almost always arrives at a stop right at its scheduled time. I haven’t had to wait anymore than five minutes past the scheduled time. Even in the worst cases, MAXX stops in urban areas generally have an electronic signage board that lists estimated arrival times of the next few buses.

The buses are also amazing clean. They definitely do not smell as nasty as L.A. buses.

The Power of TV

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The Norwegian who enjoys ABC’s Revenge. The Kiwi who likes CBS’ How I Met Your Mother. American television is a hit around the world with the mates in our apartment building. It’s also how people from non-English speaking countries, except for in Asia, seem to be so much better at English than one would expect from them.

 

Things You Won’t Find In New Zealand

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Police officers who carry guns. There’s also no local police forces. It’s just the nationwide NZ Police.

Lots of car crashes. Maybe it’s the left-side driving or the calm kiwis behind the wheel, but haven’t seen any fender-benders yet.

Barren hills. All that rainfall goes to good use, sprouting trees everywhere. The random palm trees imported from America, I guess, and the pine trees grown here to sell elsewhere stick out like sore thumbs.

Natives who don’t have a bit of a tan. The weak ozone layer at the bottom of the globe means solar radiation is exceptionally strong here.

A boring night sky. We camped at several dark, desolate beaches. That left unimaginable views of the Milky Way and what we learned were a couple of planets.

Fat locals. Everything here is a workout. Auckland is known as the City of Sails, though City of Hills could work too. That’s why it reminds me so much of San Francisco. Of the 12 days we’ve been here, I’m confident there’s only been two days that I haven’t been bruised, scraped, bitten by a bug or left sore.