The 6am shuttle bus to Mangatepopo, the start of the legendary Tongariro Alpine Crossing, felt a little like a DofE bus full of school kids. Stupid shoes, no rain jackets, blue jeans, shorts - fortunately these shockingly ill-equipped trampers were in the motherly care of Shirley and her helpers... All for the right price, of course ;-)
After the mandatory safety briefing, I left the kids on the bus to figure out which shoe went on which foot and how to fit crampons. I bounced along the boardwalks towards the Soda Springs with stunning views of Mt. Ngauruhoe (more commonly known as Mt. Doom from that small NZ movie). Along the way, I teamed up with a newlywed Dutch couple and, together, we tackled the steep Devils Staircase. This popped us onto the ice-covered and cloud-filled South Crater, the size of which gave us an inkling of the size of the volcano beneath our feet.
On the far side of the South Crater, we reached the point of no return - the base of Red Crater Ridge. This steep alpine ridge was fairly exposed and offered views into the volcanic abyss of Red Crater. The summit of the ridge was also the high point of the trek. The clouds occasionally parted to reveal vast views in almost every direction. With fierce winds shoving us ever closer to the edge of the crater, we decided to descend towards the Emerald Lake.
From here the track was mainly downhill as we passed steaming vents and springs, crazy rock formations and peculiar snow-filled moonscape basins.
The long trudge past the Blue Lake and Ketetahi Shelter to the Ketetahi Carpark was an uninspired ending to the hike that is often lauded as NZs finest one-day walk. It is no wonder though. There cannot be many day hikes that offer such thrilling scenery and a challenging, yet manageable, adventure.
Distance: 20.4 km
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