Day 160 Ohakune, Tongariro National Park, Taurangi

I was up bright and early to a very brisk but sunny day.  There weren’t any clouds so I walked downtown to see if I could get a shot of the mountain before the clouds covered it over. 

I couldn’t get as clear a shot as I wanted so when we were ready to leave Ohakune we drove up to the ski hill that was just outside of town.  On the way we were able to get a really good picture of Mount Ruapehu.

When we got to the top of the mountain the results of the numerous eruptions that have occurred could clearly be seen.   The history of the mountain is quite fascinating.

Ruapehu is an active stratovolcano and is one of the worlds most active.  It is the highest point in the north island and includes three major peaks: Tahurangi, Te Heuheu and Paretetaitonga.  There is a deep active crater between the peaks that fills with water between major eruptions. Raupehu is largely composed of andesite and began erupting at least 250,000 years ago.  In recorded history, major eruptions have been about 50 years apart, in 1895, 1945 and 1995/6.  Minor eruptions are frequent, with at least 60 since 1945.  Some of the minor eruptions in the 1970’2 generated small ash falls and lahars that damaged ski fields. 

I was here in February 1975 with a buddy ( Bruce Campbell) and we could see Ruapehu smoking in the distance as we travelled around the island.  It had a minor eruption later that year.

In addition to the ski hill we could see that the eruptions have left a very barren desolate hillside.

The view from the top of the hill was pretty spectacular and we could even see Mount Taranaki in the distance. 



Mount Taranaki



Town of Ohakune



We stayed on top of the mountain as long as we could but that the cold and the wind made it pretty uncomfortable.  So we scooted back down to Ohakune and headed north for a short while before turning east towards Whakapapa Village and Ski field.  On the way we were treated to different views of Ruapehu as well as a good but still distant look at Mount Ngauruhoe and Mount Tongariro.



Ruapehu



Ngauruhoe and Tongariro

















In the village there is an I Site that is run by the DOC that we wanted to visit.  It reportedly has a lot more info on the volcanic history of the area.  There were a couple of films and many displays that were very informative.  We enjoyed our time and actually learned a little bit.
 
There is a walk over the Tongariro that is considered the best one day hike in the country.  The view from the top is told to be unbelievable.  We were considering giving a try but decided against it.  The hike is 19 kilometers with a climb of around 1400 meters and was just a little bit out of our range.  Okay, maybe a lot out of our range. We start to run out of steam at around the 4 hour mark and are just about done at 5 hours.  The hike took anywhere from 6 – 9 hours depending on the individual.  We were told that a young Canadian lad ran it in 3.5 hours.
 
Upon leaving the I Site we made the drive to the ski field.  It was quite a climb and when we reached the top we could see that it gets much more use that the hill outside of Ohakune. It had a little village and numerous ski chalets. 

Again, we could see the barren and desolate terrain, a direct result of the many eruptions from the world’s most active volcano.        

  














We only stayed long enough to get a few pictures before heading down.  The return trip gave us an excellent view of the other two mountains.  The best we have seen to date.

In addition to the mountains there were some other interesting sites that were just begging to be photographed.

We left the park heading to Taurangi where we were treated to one last and probably our best look at both Mount Tongariro and Mount Ngauruhoe.

Mount Ngauruhoe is Mount Doom of Lords of the Rings fame.  The image was digitally altered but it is the basis for Mount Doom.


We were very close to Taurangi when we came to a look out that gave us quite a view of Lake Taupo and some of the surrounding area.  We stopped for a look and pictures before continuing into Taurangi, finding a campsite and calling it a night.  It was a very informative and enjoyable day.



Lake Taupo



Lake Taupo



Taurangi