The Three Day Taupo Thunder (3 of 4): Huka Falls Jet

Another day, another set of Taupo exploring to do. This particular day saw us dressed and ready at 10:30 AM waiting at the hotel lobby for our Huka Falls Jet pick up. 

Whenever we'd try to look up "Things to do in Taupo..." this attraction always came up as a popular choice. Even our local friends were quick to say that this is a must-do stop, so "do" we did.

Mid 360 Spin

The drive from the hotel to the activity site took less than 10 minutes. Our driver was tall, dark haired, pleasant, and all I could think of was how good it would be to match make him with my other BFF (Bru, you know I am talking about you...).

I appreciated that they had this pick up service and it was free of charge too! We brought our car with us to Taupo, but just saves this lousy navigator having to find the attraction and getting lost at least a dozen times along the way. Plus, this is specially good for those who didn't drive to Taupo and would need a bit assistance getting around this little sweet spot.

So a few minutes pass and we were driving into the parking lot. We passed two large signs flanking the driveway -- a model huka falls jet on the left, being reeled in by a giant prawn from the prawn park on the right. As soon as I saw this, I mentally rolled my eyes (yes you can do this folks) and correctly predicted what PIC said in the next breath. "Let's go prawn fishing after!"

There simply was no escape. One way or another, he is going to get his hands on a fishing rod, set bait, and feed something. So I thought, hey, why not? It was close to the hotel, we can easily drive back to this spot after our pick up service drops us off at the hotel and I get to make the big kid happy.

More of that later though, for now, we concentrate on getting into the Huka Jet.

Walking into the Huka Jet center, it was a small space that had a counter for ticket sales and reservations on the right, a small video along the wall showing what the experience will be like, toilets, a small seating area near the door, and the remaining space covered with souvenirs you can get to scream that you've been to this part of Taupo and braved a ride on the Huka Jet. Almost directly across the entrance though, was another set of clear glass doors that lead out onto the water.

So straight through the glass doors we went down a small pathway and a little shed by the water. There were attendants there checking our names against a list, getting us kitted out in life vests and stinky (they smelled of wet clothes left to dry inside a closet) "rain" gear that will help keep us dry, and splitting us into groups. Luckily, PIC and I fell in lot with the group that goes first.

So up into the boat we went, and sat in the last row for maximum impact and experience. It was literally a boat with simple enough seats, no seat belts, but there was a steel bar you can hold on to. The nice part about these bars was the fact that they were heated so you don't freeze your hands off holding on to them in the elements and all the water spraying on you.

And then we met Steve -- our Huka Jet driver -- who incidentally is a bit of a lunatic, but is possibly the best Huka Jet driver ever!

The whole ride takes you across the river with a quick and educational stop at the dam and at the thermal water area near the Huka Jet center, then speeding on to the majestic Huka Falls itself. Along the way, your driver tries his best to either give you a heart attack or flip you out of his jet.

Our man Steve was a particular nutter. He was picking out trees jutting from out the water and trying to ram into them and waiting till the very last minute to veer away. Then starts looking for the tightest spaces to sail through or ducks and swans to swerve to and avoid a hairsbreadth away while they frantically try to fly out of the water and give us the evil eye. Yes, the local bird life weren't too impressed with Steve's shenanigans. As if these hairpin turns and close calls weren't enough, he also does 360 degree turns which raise the jet almost vertically and gets the back row (us) the maximum spray of river water and good ol' ducky loving. It was awesome.

The whole experience was made even more awesome by the fact that I counted at least 12-14 360 turns while the second jet just behind us were obviously doing a lot less. Needless to say, as my adrenaline got pumping, PIC was commiserating with the ducks and swans and giving me the evil eye too for making him sit at the back of the class were all the action was happening.

Steve lecturing us on safety?!?!?!

Once at the bottom of Huka Falls you notice that its not massive or particularly tall. But man, it seems powerful enough to me. The water was so clear and so frothy, it was like being at the end of a giant jacuzzi jet stream! It would have been really cool to be able to swim and see how the froth would feel, but you'd be crazy to attempt this -- if trout can't swim upstream of this thing, I highly doubt you can manage to wade around in its frothy aftermath either.

[At this stage, you've already seen the falls, but if you want to see it from the top, the lookout point is not far from the Huka Falls Jet center. So if you have your own car, go for it! The signs are plenty, and it will take you less than 5 minutes to drive to the all access, free lookout point.]

If you squint hard enough you see the jet's rotors

The whole ride lasted 30minutes, and while my clothes were dry from the stinky rain gear, anything else that was exposed was sopping wet. My hair, face, and arms included. Top tip, bring a small towel and stash it with the rest of your things at reception. This will feel like a godsend once you're done. Plus, try not to bring or wear anything that will fly off your person once you're on the ride... so far eyeglasses and sunnies have good staying power, but caps are a no go particularly if you're sitting out back.

So ride over and souvenir snaps in hand, we were up the van and driven back to our hotel, only to drive out and back to the same park again in our own car this time for a shot at the oh so exciting sport of prawn fishing.