How to Top a Volcano!?

I did it! : )

I was able, thanks to the gloriously sunny day, to hike the Tongariro Crossing. The crossing is a supposedly 8 hour hike to the top of an active volcano (Mt. Tongariro)!

I got up at 5am, so I could catch the early express bus from Taupo to the Tongariro National Park. The bus was packed. (Apparently this is the #1 one-day hike in all of New Zealand, so I'd say it's slightly popular!). We all got off at the start of the track, Mangatepopo Hut. (Click here if you want to see a map of the hike.)

It's about a one hour walk along mossy fields and some rough outcroppings to get to the first land mark Soda Springs. The next leg from Soda Springs is the Devil's Staircase. This part was hard. Very steep, it lasted about an hour, and it was just one pile of rocks on top of another. One steep step up after another. (Hence, the staircase!)

By the time I got to the top of this section, I was roasting in my long-sleeved shirt, and I had made a friend. Crispin was traveling with a whole crew of his family, aunts, uncles, cousins, Mom & Dad, and was leading the pack. He moved a little like a billy goat jumping from one rock to the next, and I was determined to keep up with him, if only because he picked the best lines to walk up. When I arrived at the top, Crispin was there looking very refreshed. I drank a liter of water, as we chatted about where we were from, and what we were doing on the top of a volcano. Cris is a Kiwi, from the West Coast of the North Island, who is living and working as a carpenter in London, England. This was his first time on the Tongariro Crossing tramp, too.

The view was spectacular. The sky was blue, and all you could see was this towering volcano. Mt. Ngauruhoe, with lava lines scored into it's side. This is Mt. Doom, from Lord of the Rings, for those of you who may remember it. And it is massive. It looks as if it's just put together by loose rock and sand, piled to the sky. This volcano is still active, according to historical data, it erupts ever 25 years. The last time it erupted was in 1975, so it's about 6 years overdue.

At this junction in the hike, I had the option of hiking to the summit of Mt. Ngauruhoe. It's a very technical climb, more difficult that the Staircase I had just climbed, and it added about 2 hours to your hike.
Now, call me chicken, or call me lazy, but it had been drilled into my head that no one should start this climb after 9:45am. Otherwise, you risked missing your ride back to Taupo (and you'd have to call Search & Rescue to tell them not to go searching for you). Cris and I were way ahead of the rest of the hikers and it was already 9:45. I wasn't really interested in hiking this section on my own, so I decided to pass. He moved on, and I stopped to take many pictures.

The next leg was along the south crater... a lovely, gloriously flat section, that gave me plenty of chance to catch my breath. By the time I reached the end of the crater, the clouds rolled in and obscured most of my view of the valley. It was quite amazing at how fast the weather turned from scorching hot, to cool and misty.

The terrain is very moonscape like. All rock and sand. Hardly any vegetation (mostly on the lower sections), and black, clumpy lava rocks everywhere. There were also red lava rocks, and orangey-yellow ones. There was a strong sense of sulfur in the air which came from the many geothermal springs that were situated on the sides of the mountains.

I climbed another slight uphill section to the Red Crater. This crater was a gorgeous bright red, from which mineral I have no idea (maybe iron?). It took another hour to wind around to the summit of Mt. Tongariro. The view would have been breathtaking, but it was covered in fog/clouds. I met up with Cris again, had a quick bite to eat, and we got moving before the chills set in. Once I crossed over the top of the Mt. Tongariro, to the other side, the sky, once again, was clear, and I could see these gorgeous, emerald lakes. As I walked down to one of the lakes, I could see steam coming from the side of the rocks. I put my hands on the rocks, and could feel warmth. It was so fascinating to feel such heat radiating from inside the earth. Very cool!

We walked along the emerald lakes, which looked quite deep, and to a large outcropping of rocks. Cris wanted to wait for some of his family members, and I was happy to bask in the sunshine and have a water break. His cousin Louisa (Lou) arrived a few minutes later, and after a little bit of chocolate, we headed down the mountain. (Here's a tip for travelers, it's a good idea to carry chocolate with you. It makes it easier to make friends : )

The next leg was an easy maneuvering around rocks along a slight decline... it felt good after the earlier exertion. We arrived at the Ketetahi hut soon after, and stepped in to add our names to the visitor book, have a bathroom break, and relax for a few minutes. It was at this point that I dared to look at my clock... thinking that we were making good time, but that I'd be pretty much on target for my 3:30 bus.

It was 11:30 am. It had taken us only 4 hours to cover almost the whole walk!! We had motored! : ) Unfortunately, it meant that I *could* have hiked to the Ngauruhoe summit...but coulda, woulda, shoulda... it just means that I will have to go back and do it again.

We ate up our food and, with a much more leisurely pace, wound our way down the mountain. We passed by a huge hot spring, tested the warmth of the murky, blackish water. At this point, the vegetation got really interesting. From nothing but sand and rock, to more rock croppings and mossy vegetation, to low shrubs and bushes, and then, with about an hour to go, we hit the lush, thick forest. It was a gorgeous walk, wandering through the bush, listening to the birds, and feeling the cool, fresh air of the dense forest, feeling sheltered, after being battered by the wind on top of the mountain.

We arrived at the bottom at 1:30! I was very happy to have been able to experience this hike, and see the magnificence of New Zealand. I felt pretty sleepy and content.

It was also cool that the three of us were the first ones finished! ; )