The Tongariro Crossing

The Tongariro Crossing is thought to be the best one-day hike in all of New Zealand. So, of course we had to do it! On a clear day, one can see all three peaks in Tongariro National Park along the way, plus magnificent views of the surrounding valleys; of course, there are no guarantees. Our hike started at the tail end of a rainstorm, so really, we were lucky to get to do the hike at all — winds on the peak can be ferocious in bad weather.

The hike started out gently enough, and we found ourselves surrounded by low alpine plants and a gloomy sky that hid the peaks from us. Then, there is a series of steep climbs to reach the top of the Red Crater.


Luckily, once we reached the summit of Red Crater, which is the highest point on the crossing, the clouds cleared and we had some views. The track descends quite steeply down the backside. Notice how small people look on its’ slope!


The view from the top was quite incredible. Below us to the right were the Emerald Lakes, and in the distance across the Central Crater was Blue Lake. The track, visible in the picture, would take us down across this crater and up along side Blue Lake.


From Blue Lake, it was a four hour descent down the far side of Mount Tongariro through Alpine grasses, finally ending in a contrast of lush green forest.