Days 59 to 62: Mountain tour in Tongariro National Park

Greetings from Whakapapa Village after finishing the Round the Mountain circuit.

On Tuesday morning I woke up around 4:45am and quickly packed my belongings while having breakfast in my tent. At 5:30am, I was on the road, walking 7km to the northern end of the Tongariro junction.

By 7am, I was ascending through forests and climbing towards the volcanic hills. Finally, I reached the clouds; The trail mysteriously disappeared into the cold fog.

The fog was so dense that I barely noticed the Blue Lake to the left of the trail.

Following the Te Araroa trail, we travel through the junction counterclockwise; going against the main flow of traffic. I didn’t start seeing anyone else until I reached the top, then crowds of tourists kept arriving.

The morning passed and the lighting continued to change as the rapidly moving clouds gave a glimpse of the sun. I spent about two hours playing tourist at Emerald Lakes and Red Crater. From every angle, the scenery was stunning and I couldn’t help but take a photo from each vantage point.

From there, I took a long walk to Waihohonu Campground for the night. As I left the main trail junction, Mount Ngauruhoe was in sight. It’s a little difficult to walk on rocks, but it’s cool to see the volcanic rocks and real volcanoes looming nearby.

Waihohonu camp was quiet; resting next to a small river. I washed up a bit and let my sore ankle soak before heading to the nearby cabin to make dinner and visit with others.

The next day was probably the most exhausting. On the way to the Mangaehuehu shelter, I made some detours; visiting Ohinepango Springs and the historic Waihohonu cabin. I also had to run back to camp thinking I had accidentally left something behind (it turned out I hadn’t).

It was a long day of hiking through desert landscapes, passing through lahar-scarred valleys, crossing narrow swing bridges, and up and down deep, scree-filled gorges. Most of the day I felt like I was leading the rain army into battle. Every time I reached the blue sky, so did the wind and rain. Finally, in the afternoon the sky cleared for the rest of the hike.

Like the day before, the kilometers went on and on. It was a huge relief to finally get to camp and not have to pitch my tent for the night.

New Zealand has a large network of cabins. On this particular night, we had nine hikers staying in bunk beds in a two-bedroom cabin. That night the stars were incredible and the views of Mount Ruapehu also greeted us.

On Thursday morning I set out on another long walk to Whakapapaiti Hut. The trail started off easy, through fields and woods to Waitonga Falls. Then along the Ohakune Mountain Road to Mangawhero Falls.

Further along the road, strong winds melted into fog. From there, the trail went off the road and over steeper rocky hills. My trekking poles did wonders in preventing me from spraining my ankle while walking down the valley.

On the way to Mangaturuturu hut, I came across two waterfalls on a steep cliff. Despite the trail markers, I was a little unsure where to cross the water, as there were some rocks very close to the top of the waterfall. Just as I pulled out my map to check the exact location, my trekking pole fell down the opposite slope. By some miracle, the pole missed a waterfall by two feet and stopped on the hillside.

After descending to retrieve my stick, I crossed a waterfall at its base, then climbed back up the opposite hill to cross another before my steep descent.

After a short walk and an even shorter rest at the Mangaturuturu hut, I crossed the first river of the day. This also marked the beginning of more difficult terrain. Many stream crossings, slippery muddy paths and rocky hills from wind and rain eventually led to Whakapapaiti Hut.

After nine hours, I made it through the rain and into a warm cabin for the night. I enjoyed not sleeping in my tent on this humid night.

The next morning we took our time getting up and setting off knowing we had a shorter day to Whakapapa Village. The trail wasn’t too bad, but at the beginning we encountered a major river crossing. Since it had been raining, the water was flowing fast. Our little tram ended up doing a group crossing, which was nice. It’s definitely safer and much easier together.

After the crossing, the sky opened and the rain began to fall abundantly. My shorts were already wet from the river crossing, so I decided to continue wearing them instead of my rain pants.

Afraid of being cold, I quickened my pace. Finally, the forest offered some protection from the rain, and as the morning progressed, the drops faded.

On the way to Whakapapa, I had a quick video call with my mom for Thanksgiving. My tram and I then enjoyed a small snack before checking into our accommodation for the night.

If it hadn’t been for a recent fire in Tongariro National Park that closed part of the TA trail, we wouldn’t have done the Round the Mountain trail. It was an absolutely stunning detour passing so many waterfalls and beautiful landscapes. Nga mihi.

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