Christie Wood's "Lord of the Rings" site

Gollum's Fishing Pool - the falls below

Mt. Ruapehu/Ohakune

This is what was immediately below the location filming Gollum trying to catch a fish in Ithilien.  Quite a fall, if Andy Serkis was not careful about things.  Mt. Ruapehu is in the background.

Mt. Ruapehu view (Emyn Muil)

Another view from the ski fields of Mt. Ruapehu in the North Island.  This is where they filmed the opening sequence of Sauron's orc army attacking the Last Alliance.  This is in the prologue of "The Fellowship of the Ring" where the Ring was cut from Sauron's hand.

Welcome to Hobbiton  (near Matamata)

This is a private sheep/cattle farm about 2 hours south of Auckland off of Highway One on (believe it or not) Buckland Road.  This is the only location where some vestiges of actual movie sets remain.

The Party Tree as seen from Bag End

The Bag End set remains, including the stone steps leading into the hole.  There are two small round windows on either side of the round door hole.  This set is further dug into the hillside than others, as they had to have room for cameras & lights for certain shots.  Can't beat the view of the Party tree, the Party field, and the Water of Hobbiton.  If you look carefully you can see people standing at the base of the Party Tree.  It's a real tree.  Massive tree.

Mt. Doom (Mt. Tahurangi)

This is an active volcano, expected to erupt again in the next two years or so.  The top of the volcano was digitally altered in the movie.  I took this photo from a road leading to the ski fields of Mt. Ruapehu.  There is a golf course slightly visible in the foreground of this photo before the alpine meadow and forest.  The New Zealand skies are really this clear and blue and sparkling.   This is on the North Island.

Steaming mud pools near Rotorua

Not actually used in the LOTRs films, but impressive anyway.  Bubbling mud pits photographed against a weak winter sun.

Emyn Muil (Mt. Ruapehu ski field)

This is where you see Frodo & Sam struggling along at the beginning of "The Two Towers."  It's on the ski slopes of Mt. Ruapehu in the North Island.  This is a lava flow field.  Very rocky & icy when we were there.

Gollum's Rock (Mt. Ruapehu)

Another section of the ski fields on Mt. Ruapehu.  Gollum climbs down this rock (head first) to attack Frodo & Sam in "The Two Towers."  It was so icy when we visited, only 4 intrepid travelers (3 middle-aged women & our bus driver) hiked to this site even though it was only a few meters from the trail.

Mists near Rotorua

Thermal mists spring up everywhere along the road to/from the town of Rotorua in the North Island.  Some thermal activity is on public lands accessible in parks; some is harnessed into energy uses for New Zealand; some is on private land.  All are beautiful.

City Park in Rotorua

The sunlight slanting through the misty trees and moss surrounding the thermal pools in Rotorua fascinated me.  This was shot at a city park in downtown Rotorua at one of the countless thermal pools.  This area is very active, with new pools forming all the time.  There were temporary fences placed around a couple of new steam vents which had simply opened up as new cracks in the manicured green lawn.   The Kiwis (as New Zealanders like to name themselves) have no at-fault litigation laws, so most dangerous activities and places are minimally restricted.  If you are stupid enough to hurt yourself by doing something dangerous, it's your fault.

Spider Web on Mt. Ruapehu/Ohakune                        

Taken along a pathway beside a rushing mountain river.  This site was used in the scene from "The Two Towers" where Gollum goes fishing while Sam and Frodo follow along in Ithilien.  These spider webs were everywhere, catching the water droplets and sparking in the greenery of the mountain forest.

Ski Lodge on Mt. Ruapehu

Used as staff conference center and film editing studio during the filming of "The Two Towers" and "Return of the King."  This is a ski resort on Mt. Ruapehu, which was used as part of the Emyn Muil scenes (Frodo & Sam are lost in the mountains) and the final climb up Mt. Doom.  It was also used to film the opening battle scenes in "The Fellowship of the Ring" between the Elves & Men of the Last Alliance (Gil-Galad, Isildur, Elrond and company) versus Sauron when Isildur cut the Ring from Sauron's hand.