What Is It: When I first began to plan our trip to the North Island of New Zealand, I was intrigued by the pictures of the Tongariro National Park which include three volcanoes, ancient lava flows, and exotic landscapes. About 60,000 people visit this World Heritage Site each year. Then I read that the park contained New Zealand's most popular hike - the 20-kilometer Tongariro Alpine Crossing.

The hike starts in the Mangatepopo Valley of the National Park. It crosses the slopes of Mt. Ngauruhoe, which was used as Mt. Doom in the "Lord of the Rings" movies, and then passes by Mt. Tongariro, before finishing far below at Lake Rotorua. Along the way, you walk up to the top of the steep rim of the Red Crater, view ancient lava flows, and see several stunning emerald and blue lakes colored by volcanic minerals.  There was a minor eruption on the western slope of Mt. Tongariro in 2012 which closed a portion of the walk for several years. The mountain still vents gas and steam at that location, and you pass by a private hot spring on the descent as well. The downhill segment of the walk takes several hours to complete and is tougher on the legs than most people expect. You pass through several miles of woods, trails, and streams at the end of the walk and finally leave the rugged mountains behind.

Completing the entire crossing after 8 hours of hiking and contemplating the power of nature was a rewarding personal experience which left me with memories of a unique landscape that sometimes resembled the surface of a distant planet.

The Walk Experience:  Although I later found out that some guidebooks rate the hike as "difficult", I decided that I would train for the hike in the month prior to our trip. I showed my friends pictures of the mountains and proudly told them how I would "tame the volcanoes." How difficult could it be to turn my 5 to 8-mile walks around hilly Connecticut into a 13-mile hike? The morning of the hike was clear and mild. This was quite a relief because for the preceding week the always variable weather forecasts for the North Island were predicting cold rain for the Tongariro area. At 6:00 in the morning, the call came in from the guides saying that the rain was over and the mountains were safe. While the weather was generally good throughout the day except for some fog at the top of the crater, the walk turned out to be a lot more of a physical and psychological challenge than I had anticipated.

When to Go:  Even though New Zealand’s summer is between late November and early March, temperatures can still range from 40 to 70 degrees then. Some people hike the trail throughout the year, but it is not unusual to see people in flat shoes and shorts. Nevertheless, experienced hikers dress in layers, bring a practical lunch and plenty of water.   

Guide Services:  I do not think that I would have made it the entire way without the coaching, companionship, and encouragement of my guide from the Tongariro Guided Walks service. He was a local Maori whose tribal ancestors had given the land for the national park to the government in 1887.

Difficulty Level:   Moderate to Hard

How to Get Here: The Tongariro National Park is located near the center of the North Island about four hours’ drive on Route 1 from Wellington in the south and Routes 1 and 4 from Auckland in the north.  The closest airport is in Taupo about an hour from the Park which is served by Air New Zealand. Ironically, Taupo is located on the huge Lake Taupo which is a popular resort town and the water filled caldera of a huge volcano that erupted two thousand years with devastating consequences for the area and the world’s weather.