Ohakune Road Trip

Two weeks ago during the Queen's weekend, Gwyn and I headed up north to the Carrot Capital of New Zealand, Ohakune.

You know you're at Ohakune when you're greeted by a massive carrot.

Ohakune - Carrot Capital

That's how massive it is.

Carrot business is serious business in the Carrot Capital.

Sure, we like our carrots, but we're certainly not obsessed with them. So what made us drive for 4hrs and 280km?

Clue: Beaver.

Beaver reunion.

Friendship brought us here. It was good to catch up with one of the original Beaver gang, Stephanie, who is now based in Ohakune.

No prizes for what's the nose.

The lure of snow was another factor. Coming from Singapore where it is summer all year long, snow was a whole new world. While Ohakune is known for it's carrots, it is also famed for being the gateway to the snow mountains during winter and ski season.

We were about 2 weeks early. Ski season hasn't officially started and the snow mountains were closed. But we were greeted with a lovely sight that morning.

Snow mountains!

We had to head up towards the mountains.

Frosty conditions. Drive with care.

Majestic

The view was majestic, though we came to a point where we felt that we should head back as the road conditions were beginning to worsen. There was ice on the roads and safety was a concern. Next time, we'll return with our snow chains.

Ohakune train station.

Here at the train station, we met a special resident.

When Kevin met Harry.

Local celebrity dog, Harry.

It turns out that Harry has a book written about him.

How amazing is that? Free spirited, friendly and never on a leash. Wanders around the town and enjoys chilling by the station. If you are ever in town, do drop by and pat hi to Harry.

See ya soon Ohakune!

Ohakune's a really interesting town, usually dead but comes alive during winter. We bid farewell after 2 nights, knowing that we will surely be back for more and this time for some ski action!