New Zealand- Tongariro

the Tongariro Crossing is a famous 17-20km hike (depends on the site) through volcanic craters, mountains and active volcanoes. some of the ascents are challenging and steep, with loose rock (scree) filling up your shoes. we couldn't wait to try it!

we arrived in Whakapapa on the 22nd. the village is small at best. it consists of 2 hotels and a holiday park, a DOC  centre (department of conservation) and a cafe at the base of one of the hotels. this all seems surprising, given that Whakapapa is the closest access point for the Tongariro Crossing and for winter 

skiing on Mt. Ruapehu. we were staying in the holiday park, in a quaint little chalet with too many beds and no toilet. when we arrived, we went straight to the DOC for the weather report and we were informed that "tomorrow is the day" for the hike. rain was predicted to come in the afternoon, so we opted for the earliest bus departure: 6am. urgh.

john and i geared ourselves up, knowing that conditions can change quite quickly in mountains. it was bloody cold that morning, but we managed well with our gear. thankfully the macphees lent us tuques and mittens. there were only 5 other people on out 6am bus, so we were pretty excited about having the mountains to ourselves for a little while as the next bus wasn't due until 7. we arrived at the mangatepopo hut, the start of the track, at approx 6:15 am. the breeze was chilly and the sun wasn't over the mountains yet. we were on our way! 

the first part of the track takes you through a valley of old volcanic lava flows. the rocks are black as can be, but surprisingly porous. the youngest, very black lava flows from Mt Ngauruhoe date to 1949 and 1954. at the end of the valley, we arrived at Soda Springs, the last hut with a toilet for a good 4 hours. fyi- it's challenging to "use nature's toilet" whilst wearing running tights and many layers.

from there, we began the first ascent: the Devil's staircase, a rather steep and challenging climb. prior to the climb, we ran into an ex-ranger who suggested we try the side hike up Mt Ngauruhoe. she figured we'd have plenty of time. upon arrival at the top of the staircase, we couldn't decide. not knowing how much longer or how intense the hike would be, we were torn. it was a spectacular day and the volcano did look appealing. so we went for it. sort of. 

the trail up Ngauruhoe is marked for about 400m and then you're on your own. it's full of scree (loose rock and dirt) which is essentially how you have to climb. approx 1/3 of the way up, you can find an old lava flow to clamber on. but soon after we reached it, we decided it wasn't worth it. so we headed back down to the south crater and continued along the crossing. interesting fact: Mt Nauruhoe was used as Mt Doom in LOTR (or Mt Ruapehu. all books say different things).

at the end of the south crater, we had our next major ascent along the Red Crater, so called because of the red dirt. the view from the top is stunning. in one direction you have the Emerald lakes, in another, Mt Tongariro and in the other Mt Ngauruhoe. we noticed some steam coming off the ground at this point. john checked and sure enough, just below the surface, the ground was so hot you couldn't really touch it.  

from there we descended to the Emerald lakes and had lunch. seemed like a good idea, but alas, the lakes are extremely sulphuric, and so the smell was less then desirable. the view was great though, so we toughed it out. these lakes, as we discovered, were incredibly cold. we left there and crossed the Central Crater on our way to Blue Lake before heading up to the Ketetahi Hut, the first "toilet" on the route. we realized at this point that we were significantly ahead of schedule. as such, we chilled out at the hut, lazed in the sun and had some more food. all in all, i think we hung out for an hour in the hopes that we wouldn't have to wait too long at the end.

after the hut, it's almost entirely a descent. and even though i know full well that the descent is actually harder, it seems i forget until i start doing it. it was warm enough by then that we'd shed many layers and were actually enjoying some sun. the descent had some fantastic views of lake taupo and the green, green valley. the last 45-1 hour of the hike was under cover in a forrest, which made me think of a tropical rain forrest. 

and then we were done! we still managed to arrive significantly ahead of the "suggested schedule" and had to wait for our bus for about 1.5 hours. thankfully we were willing to stretch, eat and just relax a bit. we couldn't have asked for a better day. the clear sky provided us with views that many people don't get. it was crisp enough to not get hot, but sunny enough not to freeze. and the rain didn't come in until the evening.

i've provided the link for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. the name recently changed to Alpine Crossing to remind people that this is a serious hike and that you need to be well prepared. apparently people were showing up in jeans, cotton t-shirts and tevas, thinking it was a walk in the park. it was a walk in the park, but only because we were prepared!

xo