The Tongariro Crossing: 3 days tramping

Thousands of people tramp in the park every year, especially on the ‘Great Northern Circuit’ over Tongariro. This is a DOC Great Walk and you have to book a place in the huts if you want to use them. It definitely helps to be very fit for this one.

This is now more commonly done as a daywalk, but the route and timing described here gives more time on and around the mountain. Starting at Whakapapa and leaving our car in the Skotel carpark, we tramped for about 4 hours across broad plains of tussock and through steep, eroded gullies to Mangatepopo Hut (24 beds). The track was badly eroded in places, which made it a longer trip than the distance on the map would indicate. The winds funnel between Tongariro and Ruapehu, so the tussock grass is always rippling – one of my favourite sights.

From the Mangatepopo Hut there are magnificent views up the valley to Tongariro and Ngauruhoe and the nearby lava cliffs of Pukekaikiore. Staying at Mangatepopo often gets you an early wake up call, as climbers heading for the summit of Ngauruhoe leave extremely early. The track goes up the valley, beside bare lava flows from the 1950s eruption, climbs steeply to the saddle and crosses the flats of South Crater. Then there’s a climb over the ridge next to the spectacular cleft of Red Crater and down to the Emerald Lakes which get their colour from minerals washed out of Red Crater.

From there the track skirts the expanses of Central Crater, passes Blue Lake (another large old crater, now filled with cold water), and reaches the northern side of the mountain with rippling golden tussock and expansive views across Lake Rotoaira and the surrounding countryside to Lake Taupo. Then an easy and short descent leads to Ketetahi Hut (24 beds), perched above a steep valley and near hot springs of the same name. The Ketetahi hot springs were highly valued by the Maori for their healing properties and were not included in the original gift that formed the basis of the park. When we did the crossing in May of 1991, we dropped our packs at the hut, walked the 20 minutes to the springs, dug shallow pools and soaked away the aches of the day. It was very difficult to rouse ourselves out and stagger back to the hut for dinner and bed. Now, however, with the thousands of people doing the crossing, the springs have suffered considerable erosion and some disrespect, and have been placed off-limits by their Maori owners, so a hot soak on the side of the mountain is no longer possible.

Our last day was an easy descent from Ketetahi Hut across tussock-clad slopes to a sudden drop into forest and the carpark off National Park Rangipo Road, where our pickup was waiting to shuttle us back to Whakapapa.

The mountains have a grandeur and strength of presence that words can’t express – you have to go there to feel it.