We spent two nights at the home of some dear friends in Taupo the first week of February. The morning of the day we were there was spent doing some sightseeing in the area. Our first stop was the Aratiatia Rapids on the Waikato River. A dam was built there to produce hydroelectricity; because there is such a drop in the river at that place, the dam does not have to make a very big lake. The gorge below the dam has very little water in it because of the dam, but several times a day, at set times, water is released so that tourists can see the gorge fill. That was fascinating to watch! When we first arrived, one of the gates was open a little, so there was some water in the gorge, and that was beautiful. Then, the gate was closed for ten minutes, and almost all the water drained out of the top of the gorge. Soon, the siren started going periodically, to warn people who might be in the gorge below that the water would be coming soon. Then, both gates were opened, and we watched the river fill up. What a sight!
I put together a few video clips to show some of what we experienced here. Warning: this starts with a loud siren, which is intended to warn people to get out of the gorge before the water starts coming.
On our way to the next attraction, we passed this plant which produces electricity from geothermal energy.
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