Feb 7, 2013 - Tongariro Crossing to Otaki

Today we are hiking the Tongariro Crossing, except we are not "crossing" which is a 1 way hike. We can't do the whole hike because the volcano erupted in November 2012, so we will hike half way, and then turn around & hike back to the beginning. We got up at 5 a.m., met our shuttle at 5:50 a.m., and got a ride to the beginning of the hike. We are above tree line here, but I'm not sure of the elevation, possibly about 4000'. We hike up the valley, and then really start climbing. There are many steps on the trail to avoid erosion. We pass...

Jan 15, 2013 - Tongariro National Park

We spent a couple of days doing chores in Taupo. We did laundry, grocery shopping, banking, and other shopping. I bought a new pair of hiking boots. I found out that the camper van needed an electrical inspection. It failed the inspection because it was lacking a ground wire from the transformer to the chassis and was not tripping the circuit breaker. It was just a wire that had to be attached to the body with a screw to ground everything. I got all that done and we went for a walk one afternoon along the lake. The weather for the past few...

Jan 14, 2013 - Taupo

Taupo should have been a stopping point for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing hike. The Tongariro Alpine Crossing in Tongariro National Park is is considered the most popular one-day hike (or tramp as it is called in NZ) in New Zealand. The crossing passes over the volcanic terrain of the multi-cratered active volcano Mt Tongariro, passing the eastern base of Mt Ngauruhoe which can optionally be climbed as a side trip. The track is only open part way, since an eruption in Nov 2012 covered some of it. However the conditions were so bad,i.e. ice...

Mar 28, 2011 - Its Doom I Tell You !

.. Mount Doom that is (or Ngauruhoe as they call it here in NZ). It is located in the Tongariro National Park and we set off in lovely weather to walk ‘ The Crossing’. This is a great walk ! and tough even if you don’t include the side trips to the tops of the volcanoes (and boy is Mt Doom steep !). One by one we ticked off the milestones: the Mangatepopo Hut, Soda Springs, South Crater, Red Crater – on and on went our intrepid duo until exhausted, we reluctantly had to turn back again (only to cross paths with youngsters setting off mid...

Dec 1, 2010 - Tongariro Alpine Crossing

After a few relaxed days in Taupo, it was an early start to jump back on the bus, with new driver 'Metro' and head off to one of the activities I've most been looking forward to - the Tongariro National Park walk - meant to be one of the best one day walks you can do in the whole of New Zealand. Not everyone decided to do it, either because too hungover or lazy, but there was no way I was missing out. We could only go for a guided walk but that meant we got to go a little off the beaten track, which translates as rather than stick to the...

Jul 15, 2010 - Blue Duck Lodge

We stopped at a hot water river and went for a swim, it was really nice in the water but the ground was frozen so when we got out and ran to the bus our feet were numb! Then we went onto a fram called Blue Duck Lodge. they took us out on buggys round the farm and we did a bit of kayaking, it was really good fun.

Apr 10, 2010 - Tongariro Alpine Crossing

Joining hundreds of other people, we did a one day hike through the very popular volcanic land of the Tongariro National Park, passing Mount Ngauruhoe, with spectacular views along the North Island. At one point of the walk, we could see smoke coming from the still active volcano!

Apr 7, 2010 - Tongariro Crossing - Sulphur and Volcanos

The Tongariro National Park in the centre of the North Island has DUAL world heritage status due to a) incredible volcanic landscape within the park including lots of active volcanos and (b) special meaning of the place for the Maori who happy for all us donated it to the People of New Zealand. The 'Tongariro Alpine Crossing' is reputedly the Best One Day Hike in All New Zealand. The tramp is also part of a longer Great Walk but you know me - one day walks suit me just fine. As I rest my weary muscles here, I am very happy to report it is...

Apr 1, 2010 - Ruapehu

Gisteren de Ruapehu beklommen. Dit is de hoogste van de 3 vulkanen in het Tongariro NP met zijn 2967m. Vanuit Iwikau Village, dit is het skidorp dat aan het einde van de Bruce Road ligt die in Whakapapa Village begint, met de zetellift tot 2020m hoogte gegaan en vandaar mijn weg naar boven uitgezocht want er is net als bij de Ngarahau geen uitgestippelde route. Via een minder stijle route tot aan de kraterrand gekomen van de hoofdkrater maar daarna nog een halve halve cirkel langsheen de kraterrand met nog heel wat op en af moeten doen om...

Mar 21, 2010 - Tongariro National Park

NOTE: Not too much time spent here so we’ve combined pictures and journal entry into one for both Mt. Egmont/Taranaki NP and Tongariro NP. The mountains were calling to us again, so we drove to Mt. Egmont/Taranaki National Park. Now called the Maori name of Taranaki but all the park signs were still in the old English name of Mt. Egmont NP. We stayed in a little town called Stratford which honored Shakespeare by naming all of its streets after his plays, as well as having the only glockenspiel in New Zealand in their town square. Four times...

Mar 6, 2010 - Tongariro National Park - Mar 5-6

March 5, 2010 Today was supposed to be a quieter day but it turned out a lot different. The plan was to drive from Rotorua to Taupo and onto Tongariro NP, stopping at a couple of places along the way. Our first stop was the grocery store. We seem to spend a lot of time here but not having a fridge and larder to store food, we need to buy stuff about every 2 or 3 days. This isn’t too bad as the supermarkets offer discount on petrol if you spend a certain amount so with the miles we’re doing we’re getting benefit from that, too. We got even...

Jan 12, 2010 - The Tongariro Crossing

Greetings from Turangi which is located just off the south side of Lake Taupo. Turangi is the home of New Zealand's trout fishing region but also a prime overnight location for people who plan to do the Tongariro Alpine Crossing which is described by the Lonely Planet as New Zealand's best one day walk and one of the best one day walk's in the world. The 19.4km route passes between Mt Tongariro (1967m) and Mt Ngauruhoe (2287m) two of NZ most active volcanoes, passing multiple springs, craters and sulphur pools. I arrived on Sunday with the...