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The Tongariro Crossing The Tongariro Crossing is supposed to be one of the best day walks in the country, perhaps the world so we were pretty excited about doing it and just a little nervous. We’d been preparing for a while, building up our stamina, climbing muscles and our collection of Kathmandu clothing. We woke early on Easter Saturday and waited outside the motel as the dawn broke on a gloriously clear day. Our bus arrived on time and the National park and surroundings were unearthly and beautiful in the rising sunlight. Mist hung over Lake Taupo and mingled with the thermal steam at Tokaanu where we were staying. Shortly before we turned off onto the approach to the walking track we passed through a dense fog but this was the last cloud we would see that day. We set off walking up the Mangatepopo track shortly after 8.00 and accompanied by hundreds of others who had the same idea. It’s hard to really get the sense of wilderness when there are so many others around but it has to be accepted I guess. Everyone else had just as much right to be there as us. After an hour’s walking the infamous devil’s staircase loomed in front of us, with a long line of people zigzagging their way up. It was slow going climbing up to the south crater, not because it was particularly hard, but because with so many on the track, when one person stopped for a breather, we all did. Arriving on south crater was amazing though and the crowds began to thin out as some people stopped for a rest while others took on a scary looking detour to climb Ngauruhoe. We walked across the crater and began the last steep ascent of the day. This was a tough one but it brought us to the side track leading to the Tongariro summit. Being quite early in the day, and still feeling relatively fresh we decided to take this detour. It had the added bonus of taking us away from the crowds for an hour and a bit. Plus, the views from the summit were superb. Back on the main track we slip slid our way down a scree slope to the Emerald Lakes, a series of small explosion craters filled with eerie green water. Despite the sulphurous smell, it was a good place to stop for egg sandwiches. It was pretty much all downhill from there, across another flat crater, skirting the blue lake and then the long trudge back down the other side of the mountain, passing hot springs half way down. The last hour seemed to take forever as our legs and feet began to complain but we made it to the bus stop in good time and gratefully climbed aboard. Back at the motel, we were able to enjoy a soak in a thermal bath, followed by a day of doing very little. We’ll be back up that way sometime soon. There are plenty more tracks to explore and for all our travelling, Tongariro National Park is still one of my favourite places anywhere.  |
