Goodbye to Summer

It’s true. As the mist begins to great us in the morning, the rain begins to fall, and the hot weather heads to the Northern Hemisphere, I realize that fall is finally coming. The days are getting shorter, the weather is turning cooler, and the last summer vacation has been taken. Yes, the yearly Kloss Family Vacation has come to a close. As two have passed since the family boarded the plane to travel back across the Pacific Ocean, with my attempts at reliving the vacation ever dwindling, I realize the best way to memorialize it is via a blog of the events.

Arriving in Napier as the first stop, we managed to hit beautiful weather to tour the Art Deco capital of New Zealand, enjoy some fine winery dining and even finer wine tasting, while avoiding the two thousand cruise ship passengers who arrived the following day for Art Deco Weekend. Then we were off to Turangi, south of Lake Taupo, to trek across the “best one day hike in New Zealand”, the Tongariro Crossing. Ascending to amazing views of geothermal-color induced red craters and emerald pools, then down through the native palm forests, after 17 kilometers the beauty waned just a bit, as did our energy levels. Thankfully the following day brought low exertion fly fishing for the father and son of the family and lounging for the others. Then it was off to Hamilton where we caught a few semi-final heats of the New Zealand Rowing Championships (a must for the many rowing aficionados of the family), and a meeting of the in-laws over a picnic in the park. Enough said about that. Then we traveled north to Pahia, in the heart of the Bay of Islands, just in time to catch one of the two major storms to hit the area each year. It brought out a heated game of Monopoly and some interesting carnage (aside from those defeated in Monopoly), including a huge catamaran that was swept up on the rocks requiring a crane to hoist it to safety, and a sunken wooden boat. Something felt vaguely familiar watching them save that wooden boat from the ocean floor. Perhaps my father could elucidate… Failed engagement opportunities come to mind. Fortunately, the weather cleared for the last two days so we could cruise out amongst the islands with the dolphins swimming at our bow. Unfortunately, the churning swells left over from the storm did not sit well with some on the cruise. Oh well, at least we got lots of pictures. Then it was back down the coast to Auckland with a quick stop to view a local glow worm cave, leaving us just in time to get caught in the 5 o’clock traffic through Auckland. Luckily, the plane was delayed.

And so Jason and I said goodbye to the Kloss Family once again, in what may be the last time we vacation together in New Zealand, making this farewell to summer just a bit more bittersweet.