Tongariro Northern Circuit

As our final training for Nepal, a couple of weekends ago Raewyn and I tackled the Tongariro Northern Circuit. Originally we had planned on doing the Southern Crossing a couple of times to test out our gear in the cold. We locked in a weekend before I went to Europe, but hadn't realised the Otaki Gorge Road was closed for a couple of months due to a slip, so we did the Holdsworth-Jumbo loop instead. Trouble was, there was hardly any snow, and what there was made Raewyn very nervous that she was going to slip and slide down the mountain. So we decided to make our next (and final) trip somewhere in snow.

I've done the Tongariro Crossing once before, in summer, and the Northern Circuit, also in summer. But winter is a different thing altogether.

We also opted to do the walk anticlockwise (last time I did it clockwise). This was for a couple of reasons.
Firstly, the hut at Ketetahi, which I stayed at last time, was destroyed by the eruptions in late 2012. So day 1 - the only real 'snow' day - would have been really long (from Mangatepopo to Oturere) and we wouldn't get to summit Tongariro if we wanted to. Also, getting to Mangatepopo was somewhat problematic - either 3 hours walk from Whakapapa Village, where we were staying, or getting a shuttle, which we didn't have time to arrange.
Secondly, we weren't sure how much snow was really up there. The avalanche advisory was saying 'moderate risk'. So I figured it was probably better to approach from the Oturere side, because it would be easier to turn around and go back if we had to. Basically, if we could get to Oturere on day 1, it gave us options for day 2: summit Tongariro and return to Oturere or Waihohonu, then out the next day; or continue on and stay at Mangatepopo hut, then out to Whakapapa. We ended up doing the latter.

(Once again, click on any image for a larger version)



Day 1
Whakapapa Village - Oturere hut, via Waihohonu hut for lunch
23.7 km, 1016 m climb, 799 m descent, moving time 6:04, total time 8:33

The track from Whakapapa to Waihohonu goes over the Tama Saddle. It was pretty cold when we started off, and couldn't see much because of the cloud.

But around 10:00 or so the cloud burnt off and we had great views of Ruapehu...

... and Ngauruhoe.

The terrain is reasonably open, so there's little protection from the sun, but it's reasonably easy going.

After lunch we had a couple of big gullies to cross - 150m up, down, up again.

View of Mt Ruapehu from one of the 'ups'.

Another messy gully to get across, just before the hut. I don't remember this from last time... but that's not to say it wasn't there.



Day 2
Oturere hut - Mangatepopo hut (including Mt Tongariro summit)
17.3 km, 950 m climb, 1110 m descent, moving time 5:53, total time 9:26

Dawn came with not a cloud in the sky, only some in the valley below us.

Mt Ruapehu just before sunrise.

On the track towards Emerald Lakes. 'Welcome to Mars, where the local time is 9:30 am. The weather forecast today is fine, with a brisk westerly.'

I suggested Raewyn have some snow training on the way up to try and overcome some of her fear of slipping over. She did really well (and the tobogganing was very, very fun!)

Made it to the (partly frozen) Emerald Lakes. Still have to climb up the right hand side of Red Crater (high point on the left of the picture).

One of the Emerald Lakes with Red Crater behind. Check out the depth of the snow!

Taking a breather on the way up to Red Crater.

Our view of Mt Taranaki/Egmont, over 120 km away - the clearest I've ever seen it from here.

A snow-filled South Crater and Mt Ngauruhoe behind. A perfect backdrop for lunch (which was 2-minute noodles made with melted snow).

View of Ngauruhoe and Ruapheu from the summit of Tongariro. I've only been here once before, also in winter - Outdoor Pursuits Course with air cadets in 1996. The weather that day was completely clagged in, and we caught a glimpse of the two mountains in a break in the clouds. This was so, so much better.

Crossing South Crater is much easier in summer, when you don't have to wonder if you're going to sink to mid-calf or not with every step. The poles marking the track (which are about 1.8 m tall) were about waist-height, so I reckon the snow was about a metre deep here.

Down the aptly named Devil's Staircase towards Mangatepopo hut. One benefit of doing the track in reverse is that you don't have to walk up these steps... over 300 in total.



Day 3
Mangatepopo hut - Whakapapa village
9.1 km, 285 m climb, 343 m descent, moving time 2:27, total time 3:07

No pictures from this day. The weather was a bit claggy and the track was horrible - badly eroded, lots of gullies to cross. I can see why most people skip this section of the circuit. Enough said.