What: 19km hike across Tongariro National Park
as we were aiming to get to the top of Mt Ngaruahoe by 11am - but if you were just doing the crossing, it would be well worth doing this at a leisurely pace.
one step back' pace. It does get easier.. soon the scree turns into larger rocks and you get a chance to do a bit of easy rock climbing..
rewarded with a steep descent down to the Emerald Lakes - the perfect lunch spot. After the Emerald Lakes the trek gets easier and primarily downhill, with awesome views all the way. By the end of the journey, there are guarantees of exhausted legs, camera choc with photos and great memories. Enjoy!
When: Summertime - before the snow sets in
Where: Central Plateau, North Island. The start and end of the hike is a 40min (ish) shuttle ride from National Park Village. The shuttle can be booked from the backpacking lodges in the village and is $30.
How...
Our trek across the volcanic playground began at the shuttle's drop off point - the Mangatepopo car park. After hiking along a very slight gradient, we passed the Soda Springs and ascended the Devil's Staircase. This part of the hike was rushed
as we were aiming to get to the top of Mt Ngaruahoe by 11am - but if you were just doing the crossing, it would be well worth doing this at a leisurely pace.
After climbing the Devil's staircase, we reached the turn-off for the Mt Ngaruahoe ascent. Don't be disheartened by the first third of this climb. The scree slope makes climbing challenging with a 'two steps forward,
one step back' pace. It does get easier.. soon the scree turns into larger rocks and you get a chance to do a bit of easy rock climbing..At last (1h 1/2 later) we reached the summit. We joined the other tourists for a bite to eat, photos, and a peer into the crater. We then walked around the crater rim, past steaming vents, before making the steep descent back to the crossing track. The scree slide down Mt Ngaruahoe is worth a trip in itself! Divide the time it took you to get up to the crater by five and that's how long it takes to get down. Running, jumping, sliding and 'arsing over' down the mountain, we got back to the crossing track just after midday. Now it was time to say goodbye to Mt Doom (yes, Mt Ngaruahoe is the star of the Lord of the Rings) and get reaquainted with the Tongariro Crossing.
After a little more of an ascent, the legs get a bit of a rest with a long stretch of flat before the climb up to the red crater. The climb is tough with dead legs from Mt Ngaruahoe but you
are
rewarded with a steep descent down to the Emerald Lakes - the perfect lunch spot. After the Emerald Lakes the trek gets easier and primarily downhill, with awesome views all the way. By the end of the journey, there are guarantees of exhausted legs, camera choc with photos and great memories. Enjoy!The Tongariro Crossing is approximately 4h from Auckland, 2.5h from Hamilton and 3.5h from Wellington.
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