second verse, same as the first

Tongariro National Park, Try No. 2.
We stayed in the same hostel Kirsten and I stopped at during our first week in New Zealand, when I went skiing here in the rain and zero visibility. After spending a few days then around these three mountains without ever seeing the peaks, we're back and hoping to actually see the sights while hiking around.
Of course, the day starts out with exactly the same weather, possibly even colder. The fog cover and misting rain means we can't see a single mountain, and we decided to concentrate on shorter hikes rather than one long one.
The longest walk of the day is a two-hour hike to a waterfall. As we start, the rain stops. The sun almost moves from hypothetical into reality, although the mountains remain in the mists of myth.
Layers are shed, and the falls are spotted. Five minutes later, the sun makes a sudden departure, making way for more rain, a sudden drop in temperature, then sleet. Little time to admire the falls, but not far down the path back the sun once again makes it's way out. By the time we reach the car, the bases of the mountains are visible, although I leave the park still without having seen the tops of all three.