Tongariro National Park was a quick and fun stop on our way south. It was all about exploring the volcanic landscape on the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. We first did some smaller hikes near Whakapapa on the day we arrived in the park.
Hikes near Whakapapa
The national park is in the Taupo Volcanic Zone and there are warning signs about what to do if there is a volcanic eruption while hiking. It was raining on and off the first day were there, but we still had fun on some shorter hikes to Tawhai and Taranaki Falls.
Tongariro Alpine Crossing
The Tongariro Alpine Crossing is billed as one of the best day hikes on the planet. It is very different than any hike we have been on in New Zealand (or elsewhere) passing through high alpine desert terrain and interesting volcanic features. It is a challenging hike due to elevation gain, length, and terrain. The previous 3 days of hikes on the crossing had been cancelled due to rain and wind, but we got lucky with great weather. As a result it was very busy, but once everyone got started they spread out.
The hike has several steep sections to get to the top.
Diane at the top of the second climb with Mount Tongariro in the background
At the Top
After several steep climbs we finally made it to the top!
At the top is an unbelievable view of the red crater. For scale, you can just barely see a person standing on the rim at the far right.
After hiking down some scree we had lunch at the Emerald Pools
Looking back as we left the top, it was an amazing landscape we traversed. In the picture below you can see the top of the Tongariro Crossing on the right and the trail down the ridge past the red crater through steam vents to the valley below.
The Hike Down
On the hike down we learned there have been small eruptions as recent as 10 years ago. One from this area destroyed a hut, luckily no one was inside.
The NZ Department of Conservation has placed camouflage port-a-loos (bring your own TP) every few kilometers due to the popularity of this hike. They are strapped down due to the typical high winds, but there wasn’t any wind the day we went.
It was a long hike down to the end of the trail, but we really enjoyed the adventure. It took us a total of 8.5 hours as we took our time hiking 14 miles with an impressive 2,884 feet of elevation gain. We made it to the shuttle bus back to our hotel with 15 minutes to spare!
Next we head to the south end of the North Island.
Reading of your adventures inspires curiosity for the places you go. Thanks for letting us tag along.