Crossing the Tongariro - Night 50

To release my inner Sherpa. At least that was the plan. I awoke at prior to 5am, unaided by the alarm Ken (a St. Louis native) had set in our room. Today, we trek the Tongariro Crossing and, if the weather cooperates, climb Mount Ngauruhoe, otherwise known as Mt. Doom from Lord of the Rings. The bus left exactly at 5:40 and after a few more pickups and a long drive along the lake we landed at the trailhead around 7:15. The weather was clear and cool, but a nasty lenticular cloud kept the summit of Ngauruhoe cloaked in mystery. The bus driver prophesized that the sun would burn the cloud off by 9 or so, giving us a chance at summiting the active volcano (the last eruption was in the 1970s, but at least once a year steam comes pouring out of the crater on top). In order to complete the summit and get back to the trail end in time for the

Mt. Ngauruhoe (Mt. Doom)

bus at 4:30 you must make very good time on the mountain. Accordingly, I charged ahead, climbing the Devil’s Staircase with reckless abandon. I reached the turnoff for the summit hike 45 minutes ahead of schedule, took a short water break and proceed upward. The cloud remained in place, hanging just above a small snowfield over 1/3 of the way up. My plan was to ascend to the snowfield with the hope the cloud would blow off in time to attempt the summit. Upon reaching the snowfield, through what was the nastiest hike I had ever done, the cloud

Ngauruhoe's Slope

hadn’t budged. The going so far had been atrocious, the black scree was very unstable and every two steps up was followed by slipping down a step or more. I took a small break at the snowfield and assessed the situation. Weather moving in from the west was beginning to cloud up and I didn’t want to attempt an unfamiliar mountain with limited visibility, not to mention the fact that I still had another 1,500 feet to ascend at a 45 degree pitch. I made the snap decision to turn around, knowing that I still had enough time to bag the much easier

Blue Lake

Tongariro Summit later in the hike. About a half an hour after returning the main track the cloud began the lift and the Ngauruhoe Summit briefly showed some of its face. I was kicking myself at my lack of resilience. Another half an hour later, my regrets where soon forgotten as more clouds moved in and the wind began to pick up. All things considered, my error on the side of caution likely proved fortuitous

Mt. Ngauruhoe

Back on the main track, I headed up the Red Crater

Tongariro Crater

rim. A high exposed saddle between the two mountain peaks, the wind here is amazing. It blew at a nearly constant 30 to 40 miles per hour. The scenery, however, was second to none. Beautiful shades of brown, black and gray, not to mention the clouds whipping by just hundreds of feet above your head. These same fierce winds fill the sails that are my sense of adventure. The scenery and the elements leave you with such an atavistic, feral feeling of being; one that city-dwellers and flatlanders alike can’t possible begin to understand, let alone appreciate. Life above the tree line, while harsh, is immensely alluring. So exposed and susceptible to snow pack and brutal weather is the saddle between Tongariro and Ngauruhoe that not even the black and grey lichens cling to the rocks here. It is, at least visibly, vacant of all life.

I quickly took the side track up to the Tongariro peak where I met Ken and Lars, two guys from the hostel. The hike to the Tongariro peak was a walk in the park and even allowed me some free boot-skiing on a remaining snowpack. Next up was the descent down the red crater into the valley of the emerald lakes. My two side trips had cost me my time advantage that I had so painfully snatched from the Devil’s Staircase. As a result I had to pass all the weak-legged non-hikers on the way down the loose scree. The emerald lakes at the bottom were just that, emerald.

The Emerald Lakes

A quick lunch and up the next rise to the Blue Lake, a massive tarn lake which held the deepest, clearest shade of blue imaginable. Crayola couldn’t possibly contrive a more perfect hue. After the Blue Lake, the hike begins its long descent down the northeast side of the mountain. An hour and a half of mindless switchbacks through subalpine terrain, eventually giving way (though rather suddenly) to another 90 minutes of switchbacks through a dreamy beech forest. So pristine and green, it seemed fitting for a Hobbit. I arrived at the trail end at 2:30, the bus wasn’t set to leave until 4:30. Quite advantageously, all members where accounted for by 3:30 and we departed, heading back to Taupo.

Steam Vents

After a quick shower, Ken and I hit the town in search of food and beer. We stopped at Mulligan’s for some fish and chips and a bit of local Kiwi brew. Lars and two German girls, Annette and Brigitte, joined us later in the evening. Home by ten, I was completely beat and sleep came on fast and hard.

What I Learned Today: Many foreigners (and young ones at that) seem much more aware of America’s coming economic and cultural difficulties than our own citizens. Perhaps it is the benefit of hindsight, allowing them to examine in detail the historic facts of their own country’s failed attempts at empire building and at holding onto dying cultural inertia. I’ve also confirmed my suspicion that there just aren’t many Americans abroad. None of the other travelers can recall meeting very many Americans in their travels. They were shocked to learn that only 25% of Americans had passports. One of the girls went on to suggest that perhaps that is why our foreign relations are often a disaster….hmmmm, what an interesting thought. True understanding, though it can be wrestled from the pages of a book or the scenes of a movie, it much more easily obtained on the ground and in person.

written by

exumenius on November 29, 2007 from Taupo, New Zealand

from the travel blog: Kiwis and Kangaroos

Send a Compliment

comment on this...