Volcano Love Triangle

Since we'd arrived on the North Island, we've been eyeballing one of it's most famous walks: the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. The nineteen kilometer walk starts just north of the ski village of Whakapapa, heads east to a saddle between Ngauruhoe (aka Orodruin aka Mount Doom) and Mount Tongariro, and then descends to the north towards Lake Rotoaira. Little did we know (because little homework do we ever do) that the Crossing had been closed since November 2012 following an eruption of Tongariro, which we learned is a volcano, which we learned is a mountain that breathes fire and closes trails. However, we learned all of this after we made our plans, and none of it mattered anyway.

In the weeks leading up to our trip, the weather rarely encouraged outdoor endeavors, so when we saw a few clear days on the horizon, we asked for the time off and started making plans. This is when we learned about the eruption, and then immediately learned that the day we had requested off to do the hike was going to be the official re-opening day of the trail! Huzzah! This meant that the trail was likely to be crowded (and it was), but we would be among the first allowed to complete the full crossing in 6 months.

On the morning of our hike, the air was cold and the sky was crystal clear. The locals told us it was one of the best days the park had seen in months. We were shuttled out to the trailhead early in the morning, just in time for a special reopening ceremony. The heads of the local Maori tribe came out to bless the mountains, and some Department of Conversation officials came out to be boring.

The mountains of Tongariro are tapu (sacred) to the Maori people, and during the ceremony, one of the tribal leaders tol us their legend of the mountains. Long ago, seven mountains surrounded the area south of Lake Taupo. All were powerful warrior mountains, except for the beautiful Pihanga. One day, Taranaki and Tongariro, two volcano warriors, engaged in an epic battle for the favor of Pihanga. Tongariro came out victorious, and Taranaki threw a tantrum as he retreated to the west coast, tearing up the North Island on his way, forming the gorges and canyons of the Whanganui River before he finally took a break on the west coast, where he sits all alone today, in Egmont National Park, likely plotting his revenge.

Taranaki, planning his payback, or "pullin' a Dantès" as the kids say these days.

After a great story like that, listening to the DOC talk about all the cool government stuff they were planning on rolling out over the next 150 years was pretty dry, but eventually, they sent us off. We held back for a few minutes to let the crowds disperse a little bit, and up we went!

We don't have loads to say about the hike itself. We enjoyed a beautiful day. The views were spectacular for most of the day, and after the first hour or so, the crowds had thinned enough that we didn't feel so much like we were on a cattle drive. Shortly after the saddle, which was nearly the highest and coldest part of the hike, some clouds finally started to move in, but not before we had plenty of opportunity to enjoy expansive views of the wide valleys on both sides of the mountains.

Not since the Fiordlands had we really had an opportunity to wander up into the mountains, so we thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to spend the day in one of the North Island's finest alpine environments. Next up, we'll tell you all about how we've familiarized ourselves with Rotorua and some of the great recreational opportunities in our backyard!