Day 24, March 30, 2016: To the Ngauruhoe slopes
I awoke at the lahar mounds to see Ngauruhoe silhouetted by some sunrise cirrus.
I didn’t have an exact plan for the day but to begin with I urgently needed supplies so I left the lahar mounds and trundled back the 12 km to National Park.
I decided to check out a signposted mountain bike track that ended up being longer than expected, it was nice, but without any standout highlights. As I finished this loop off I made the decision to head to the Tongariro Alpine Crossing and try and climb the volcano Ngauruhoe. As a detour off the popular Crossing I did not expect the summit climb to be technical and I figured I could find some place in the bushes to leave my bike. Getting to the beginning of the hike required back-tracking along the same road for say 15 km. From the road out from National Park you could actually see Mt Taranaki rising in the distance.
After a while a turn right to take an ascending dramatic unpaved road in open moorland to the trailhead.
At the trailhead I had to reshuffle all my stuff to get my valuables (including laptop) and camping stuff all into the backpack. I then had to hide the bike which I did by putting it down a drainage path just out of view of the trail. I thought it far more risky to leave it in the designated bike place which was too visible and there would be no security at night.
I got walking by mid-afternoon, ascended up the flanks of Tongoriro.
I met a couple who had climbed Nguaruhoe and they made it sound pretty challenging, 3 hours up from the junction and with potential for losing the route on the descent (as they had done) and ending on an unstable rock slope. I was considering camping on the summit but as I started climbing the slopes it became clear that it was not going to happen. I was carrying too much, the route was tiring scree, and the light was now fading. I turned around and found a small outcrop to set up camp.
The evening entertainment came from a stunning sunset over the deep valleys to the west and from a couple descending the slopes as it got dark. I was a bit concerned about them but they made it down OK.
A night time-lapse from here features in the video below:
Day 25, March 31: Ngauruhoe ascent
I woke up to a glimmer of dawn light on the fly sheet but peaking out the door revealed that the camp was in cloud. To be honest this was a bit of a relief, I was tired and any excuse not to climb Ngauruhoe was kind of welcome. However after a further snooze, perhaps an hour later, another peak revealed brief breaks in the clouds. There was no excuse anymore so I packed a few essentials and left the tent and some other gear. I heard rock fall high above on the slopes. The track was steep scree and it became very tiring and slow progress. Some early birds were already descending and they suggested taking the rocks on the left. They had dislodged the rocks that I had heard falling earlier. I stupidly ignored them until about 2/3 up the scree and making very slow progress. Another girl was ascending the rocks much faster so I was then convinced that was the correct way, so if you do this ascent please make sure you leave the scree and head up the rocks on the left after the first one or two scree zig zags.
The rocks were easier and I made it to the summit crater rim in passing cloud with a German girl for company. We took pictures of one another with each others cameras so unfortunately I do not have a picture of her, just of me acting like an idiot.
I descended quickly, worried that some park ranger would find my tent and give me some grief, dismantled the tent and headed back down to the carpark. Now there was a mass of people ascending the lower slopes to complete the Crossing. Back at the carpark were three guys dressed as Lord of the Rings characters (Ngurauhoe is Mount Doom in the movies). My bike was fine and after knocking up a coffee I raced down the unpaved road with a sense of mission accomplished. It is very satisfying to know that you can still hike and climb mountains while bike touring providing you are sensible with where you leave your bike and gear. Back on the main road found a small stream with a great rock pool to wash off a bit.
Then it was back to National Park and opted to camp at a spot on the bike trail from the day before. It was a nice place in a conifer plantation. The pine trees callous destruction of the understory allows for ample open camping space.
The route for these two days is here:
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/1167954172
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