Tongariro Alpine Crossing

I am sun burned, I am wind burned, I am in pain, I am tired, my entire body is spent, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Except for the sunburn, that part sucks. Today, I completed the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. I thought it was just a long hike with some elevation, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I had no idea that today would turn out to be one of my greatest personal and physical accomplishments. I had no idea that this was a bucket list item for me until I stood in awe atop the summit of Mt Tongariro and stared eye-to-eye with Mt Ngauruhoe, both active volcanoes, with Tongariro erupting as recently as 2012 (twice that year). The elevation change of the crossing is approximately 3,900 ft. The crossing was one of the main features mentioned on the original road trip plan I used as my basic blueprint for this trip and intrigued me. I love to hike, how hard could it be?! I knew you had to be prepared for changes in weather (even in the summer you could experience all 4 seasons in one day doing the trek) and that it would take a while but I didn’t know much. I didn’t know that the trail map would have warning like “this section of track is steep and has a big drop on either side…when the winds are strong you may get pushed around… [may] even find you you need to be on your hands and knees.” I read none of this guide until AFTER the hike.

Oh – FYI for the Lord of the Rings Fans – Mt Ngauruhoe was featured as Mt Doom of Mordor.

Despite what little I actually knew of the trek (I had thought I was better informed and prepared than the actuality), I was already scared of it. When my alarm went off at 4:45am this morning I was disgruntled to realize that I would be doing what, at least I did know, would be the biggest hike of my life to date, on a mere 4 hours sleep. I quickly got myself together, packed up, threw all my stuff in the car, and was on the road by 5:30am. I had to get to the trek end to catch a 7am shuttle to the start, where I would be meeting Kyra. As I was staying in Turangi, about 20 minutes from the crossing, and Kyra remaining in Taupo tonight, she booked a round trip shuttle from Taupo and I drove to the end point with a shuttle to the start.

I got there at 6:30, heeding the warning to arrive early to find parking, and a sign indicated that the car park was already full, so I parked along the highway and took my time getting my shoes on and making sure my pack was assembled. This included realizing I had put my snazzy CSAC pull-over on inside out and rubbing away the deodorant so I could correct it.

My shoes were STILL damp from yesterday so the entire drive I had them on the floorboard of the passenger seat with the air on high right on them. They weren’t completely dry still when it was time to put them on but they were better.

After about ten minutes I started to make my way to the shuttle. What I didn’t realize, is that I had a solid mile trek from where I was parked to the top of the car park where the shuttle would actually pick up! I hauled ass and made it to the meeting point by 6:55am. It was cold enough out that I could see my breath but with a heavy pack on my back (the heaviest I have EVER carried) and scurrying up the inclined path I was already hot and sweating by the time I got there! After about a half hour shuttle ride I made it to the entrance. On the way there I could see the mighty Tongariro and Nguaurahoe starting to show themselves in the cloudy morning.

I found Kyra and at 8:03 we started our trek. She too reported only getting about 4 hours sleep. Awesome. Two chicks, both asthmatic, attempting the trek on a combined 8 hours of sleep. Anxious and excited we started straight away. The crossing is divided into 8 parts. The first part of the trek was billed as “easy” and we soaked up every moment. It was crowded. The entire day was crowded actually. Later we talked to some teachers who take students on an annual trek and they informed us it was way more crowded than usual. This is probably due to the crappy weather over the last week. Speaking of weather, today was perfection. Ideal conditions for the trek, I honestly do not think it could have been any more ideal. Not a cloud in the sky. Though billed as easy, it wasn’t all fun and games. There were still a few steep climbs. We actually thought we had already started the second, and one of the harder parts of the trek at one point. As we continued along this section we continued to be in awe of Mt. Nguaurahoe before us, off a ways in the distance.

The second part of the trek is the second hardest part, billed as the Devil’s Staircase, these exceptionally steep set of stairs takes you to South Crater. Thankfully Kyra and I both held the same pace. The section is so steep we would do about 10-12 stairs and then stop to catch our breath. It took us about an hour to complete this section, the recommended time. As we climbed the Devil’s Staircase we were graced with sweeping views of the valley from whence we started and views of Mt. Nguaurahoe getting slightly closer. We were also in awe of the steady and constant stream of people on the trail. Apologies to my father and Syrian family for the analogy, but at some point in the hike the analogy came to mind that it reminded me of scenes from the pilgrimage to Mecca. Loyal faithfuls, committing their time, energy, and bodies, all coming together for one purpose. At the top of Devil’s Staircase we perched on a rock and ate a meal of tuna and crackers. It wasn’t until after we had finished eating that I turned around to take in the view and was shocked to see that Mt. Nguaurahoe was looming even closer! I was in love with this mighty volcano.

We snapped some pictures and then continued on, entering the third part of the trek, descending into and trekking across South Crater. This was the easiest part of the trek with a relatively flat comfortable track and a beautiful lake. At the end of this section we started to ascend again. Taking us to the base of the hardest part.

The fourth section was the trek to Red Crater Ridge. This is the most challenging part of the trek, remember those warnings I mentioned? I had heard from people who had done the crossing before that the Devil’s Staircase was the hardest. So I was not at all mentally prepared for what was to come. The wind whipped us as we traversed a STEEP rocky terrain and at times struggled to find our footing. There were no stairs on this one, though at one particularly narrow ledge with a deep drop, there was a cable. For a split second I started to wonder if I could do this. I didn’t know if I could. This thought QUICKLY passed as I realized it’s not like i had a choice. We were almost four hours into the hike and I was committed like the pig. But the struggle was real. And worth it.

We came to the top of Red Crater, the summit, and to our right, there it was the giant red crater. We were actually standing on the lip of the crater. And I’m not going to lie, the giant fold in the crater kind of looked like lady parts. You know you see it too. We were in awe of this reward. And then we turned around and behind us, there she was, Mt. Nguaurahoe, staring back at us, her Crater smiling down upon us as if it reward us for our efforts. I was in absolute awe. She was stunning. And also inspired the idea for my next tattoo… Kyra was starting to worry about time as the last bus left at 4ish and she was scared to miss it. I wasn’t going to hurry, for one, I physically couldn’t, this hike was draining. And I wanted to soak in every second of it. I told her that she could go on without me and also reminded her that I had a car and promised her that if we were late I would drive her the hour back to Taupo. At some point I actually formulated a plan that we should just count on that and then we could soak in a hot spring at Taupo that evening before I headed back to Turangi. In any case, I didn’t want that moment atop that summit to end. At that point we had ascended over 2500′ feet in elevation. I was on top of the world. And loving every minute of it.

Red Crater is an active volcanic vent; there were warnings along the track of how to recognize volcanic activity and how to react. And the ground provided hot spots as a relief from the bitter wind. From the lip of Red Crater, opposite Mt. Nguaurahoe, the Emerald Lakes and Blue Lake also came into view. As well as an old lava flow.

From Red Crater, the rest of the trek was actually billed as easy. Liars. The descent from Red Crater to the rocks didn’t leave us breathless but was the biggest challenge in balance, footing, and core strength I’ve done. Thank god we each had a trekking pole! The descent is VERY steep and along loose volcanic rock. It was a bitch. People were slipping and sliding all over the place. I took it slow and to my extreme pleasure and surprise, not once did I fall! I should also note that at this point I was extremely pleasantly surprised that I wasn’t experiencing much pain. I had been really worried about my knee giving out on this trek. I started to give credit to the healing properties of the mud bath from a couple days ago. We had made it down into the Central Crater.

At the Emerald lakes we stopped for a snack and I emptied all the damn volcanic gravel from my shoes and socks. The lakes are a gorgeous green color with some babbling brooks leading into them and random geothermal steam vents sending up slow fluffy clouds of steam around them. Magical.

We trekked along the Central Crater and up a little descent to reach Blue Lake. Both the Emerald Lakes and Blue Lake are considered Tapu (sacred) and it is highly disrespectful to touch, enter, eat or drink around their shores. We were very saddened to see people picnicking along the shore line and even taking a dip in the water.

From Blue lake we started the last two parts of the trek, a very LONG (like three hours worth of long) descent to the end. This is where the pain started. Apparently my knees and feet were cool with moving uphill and doing a slip and slide down a steephill, but a downhill grade on a slightly askew trail with a few steps thrown in was brutal. From the side of the trail being slanted, way too much weight was going on my big toes and my feet were starting to hurt. And then the knees went. Breath was not an issue but instead sheer pain on this final and LONG part of the trek. My knee started to buckle at one point and I knew I couldn’t afford a fall so instead we took it slow and steady with frequent breaks.

As we started to get towards the bottom, it was approaching 4pm. The last possible shuttle Kyra could take was 4:30pm and she was getting worried. I reminded her I would drive her but I think she felt like she was putting me out and didn’t accept that I really didn’t mind. We had just shared an INCREDIBLE journey of a lifetime together. About 4:15pm we were close, really close, and people started literally running by us on the trail yelling apologies for flying by but they needed to catch the shuttle. There are very very very few signs along the trial indicating distance so it was impossible to know how much longer was really before us. Kyra finally asked if I was really going to head to Taupo. I told her that if she missed her shuttle absolutely. Again, I don’t think she realized the sincerity in my offer and said that she would try to run ahead to catch the shuttle. I told her to go for it then. And just like that, she was off, with barely a goodbye, after 8 hours completing this journey together. As soon as she took off, I was sad, sad to not get to reflect on our journey together upon completion or really say goodbye, and really sad over the pictures. We alternated taking pictures throughout the day with a plan to airdrop them to each other. And sad that we woudn’t get a completion picture together.

At one point on this final leg there was a sign I did not understand, “700m HIGHER RISK LAHAR HAZARD ZONE. Move quickly through. No stopping.” I was still walking along and chatting with some teachers we had met on the descent who were escorting a class on their outdoor education program, which included the crossing. They explained to me that a new part of the volcano had recently become active, was apt to erupt at any time, and when it did this area was the lava/mud path. As they put it, so at least you’ll know what killed you. Nice.

At 4:32pm I rounded a corner and that was it. I was done. I was in the parking lot where I caught my shuttle that morning. And so were a lot of other people. And a lot of shuttles! I looked around to see if Kyra was still there when I saw her flailing her arms and calling my name. I swear it felt like something out of a movie. I told her how glad I was to see her, that I was sad when she took off since we wouldn’t get our ending photo together, and what about the pictures?!

She told me that she had the same thoughts and actually slowed down a bit at the very end. I insisted on driving her back so we could do this proper. We snapped our “we fucking did it” picture at the end and trekked the last mile to my car. From that point we detoured through Turangi so I could check into my AirBnB and drop my stuff. We also killed a dark chocolate bar as a reward to ourselves. This is another fantastic AirBnB, it’s a shame I’ll get to spend so little time here.

Upon our arrival back in Taupo, 45 minutes from my AirBnB, we headed to a day-use hot springs facility to soak our aching bodies in warm thermal mineral water. They had these bubble massaging lounger thingies in the pool and it felt amazing. We swapped all of our pictures – between the two of us we had taken about 500! Thank you AirDrop! – and then grabbed some thai food for dinner. I dropped off my new found friend and made it back to my place about 11pm. On 4 hours sleep, I had done an 18 hour day, including trekking across the motherfucking Tongariro Alpine Crossing.

I honestly had not expected this trek to be as it was. I greatly underestimated the hike itself and had never carried a pack that heavy before (think 7 bottles of water, 3 layers of clothing, and enough food to feed a small army). And my hiking backpack really dug into my shoulders yesterday so today I wore a regular pack, no chest or waist support. I will never make that mistake again. Anyways, I felt like this trek was taking me on a journey within myself. I don’t know what that means yet but I’m on the right track to figuring it out. I wish I could write more about today’s journey but my eyes are closing and I need to get some rest. Maybe later I will expand with another post.

Tomorrow morning I pack up and head off to Waitomo, where just tonight I booked my accommodations, on a farm. I better get to hug a cow. I still need to figure out my plans for tomorrow but they will probably involve a glow warm cave. And a massage and mud spa or wrap if I can find one. Of course I would love to find some Waitomo hikes but not sure yet how my body will feel in the morning. I have 2 1/2 days left here. I feel like I’ve been here a month. It’s been an amazing trip but I miss my fur babies.