If you’re visiting Tongariro National Park in New Zealand, you’re most likely wanting to take on the very popular day hike, the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. (Unless you’re like me, have no idea what the plan is, find out at 10 pm the night before that we need to book a shuttle, and that it would probably have been a good idea to pack real hiking shoes and not Nike Frees.)
This 11-mile, point-to-point hike takes you through a variety of terrain, elevation, and weather. I should have done more research before I showed up in New Zealand with neither hiking shoes nor a clue. Learn from my mistakes and read my tips for taking on this epic hike!
My top 5 tips for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing
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Book your shuttle in advance – we used Tongariro Crossing Shuttle
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Wear good hiking shoes, and bring extra socks
- Dress in layers
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Pack a lot of snacks to eat along the way
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Bring toilet paper and plastic bags for garbage
Tip #1: Book your shuttle in advance
We arrived in Turangi on a rainy, mid-spring evening in late October. Turangi is an interesting little town of about 3500 people. We were eating at Rust, a pretty decent place for dinner. It has a full bar and all kinds of burgers, including veggie burgers. We started talking about the next day’s plans. My friend had seen some pictures of crystal blue lakes against a volcanic backdrop, in Tongariro National Park. This was our main reason for putting it on the itinerary. What we didn’t know was that a fairly intense, day-long hike was required to see these lakes. We also didn’t realize that we needed to book some sort of transportation. The hike is a point-to-point, meaning it starts in one location and ends in another, about a 25-minute drive away from each other.
Luckily, we went online and found the Tongariro Crossing Shuttle website, and they still had space available on the 8 am one-way shuttle the following day, contingent on the weather. This travels from the Ketetahi to Mangatepopo carpark. A common thing to do is park in the Ketetahi carpark, take the shuttle to the Mangatepopo trailhead and start the hike there, and then finish back in Ketetahi, with your car waiting for you. You can also start in Ketetahi and hike through to Mangatepopo and shuttle back, for a more difficult route (it adds about 200m of elevation gain). Ketetahi is a 20-minute drive from Turangi.
We woke up to cloudy skies but no more rain. Yay! We drove over to the meeting point, parked in the Security Day Park and had to walk a few hundred meters to the corner of Otukou Road and Highway 46 to pick up the shuttle.
Tip #2: Wear good hiking shoes
There is a part close to the top where you have to cross what I imagine has to be some sort of alpine tundra. It’s a huge expanse of land, with zero trees, plants, or wildlife. Just rocks, snow, and snowmelt forming their own little rivers. There are markers indicating which way to go, but we were just trying to find the shortest path that allowed us to hop over these streams of water without getting our feet wet. We failed. Waterproof shoes, or at least some good hiking shoes with thick soles, would have been useful. Gloves would have been helpful as well, as not only were our feet wet, but our hands were frozen. The temperature dropped dramatically up here, it had to be only around 35-45°F (2-4°C).
Of course, it all depends on what time of year you go. If you’re going in fall (March-May), there’s less likely to be a ton of snowmelt (I would imagine, but what do I know). You may still encounter some snow though. However, walking on packed snow in Nike Frees is a lot easier than walking in a couple inches of freezing water.
Bring an extra pair of socks to change into if your feet do happen to get wet.
Tip #3: Dress in layers
Luckily, I had by chance packed some appropriate clothing. I wore a long sleeve Under Armour shirt, a lightweight Lululemon jacket, and a Uniqlo hooded light down jacket on top of that, which was perfect. It can be warm when you’re moving, but as soon as you stop you will definitely want to have some layers on! The temperature ranged from probably 55 degrees Fahrenheit (13°C) to close to freezing. I was in all three layers most of the time, especially at the top where the wind was so strong I almost lost my balance. I honestly wondered if my friends (some of whom are half my size) could possibly be blown off the mountain.
The wind was no joke. People would duck behind rocks to get refuge. It seemed to go on endlessly. We saw some people coming back the other way, which concerned us at first. Luckily, they were doing the reverse route. They warned us about the wind at the top, which thankfully, wasn’t much worse than what we were already experiencing. There is also a part where you have to grab onto cables to help you up as the terrain is really steep and slippery. Then you make it to the top and it’s a bit anti-climactic. We didn’t see a sign listing the elevation or the name of the summit or anything, just some directional signs. Then you start down a steep, sandy hill that you really need to dig your heels into (or just slide down on your butt), and then you finally get a glimpse of those blue lakes you came all the way here for.
Bonus tip: You can also rent clothes and shoes in the area. If I had known earlier, I would have arranged to rent shoes, gloves, and maybe longer pants.
Tip #4: Pack food
Definitely pack enough food to keep you going. This hike averages between 6-8 hours. Including breaks, we finished in 7 hours and 15 minutes. If I had known about the intensity of the hike before I’d gone to the grocery store, I would have bought more protein bars, cheese, and crackers (my favorite hiking snacks). I made do with one protein bar, an apple, a hard boiled egg, and granola instead. Of course, have a good breakfast in the morning before you start!
Once you make it to the last hut, the weather starts to be a lot warmer, and you thaw out a little bit. Then it’s just another 4 miles of a slow descent, during which you have ample time and energy to think about what you want to eat for dinner, so make sure you have some snacks to tide you over because you’ve got another good hour or so before you are done.
Tip #5: Bring toilet paper and plastic bags for garbage
There are a few toilets along the path, as well as at the start and end. The majority of the hike is exposed and there aren’t any trees to duck behind. Don’t count on the toilets having toilet paper, so bring your own.
Bring plastic bags for garbage as there are NO bins along the way. Take out what you take in!
All in all, it’s a gorgeous hike and an incredible experience. It was definitely the most extreme hike I’ve ever done. From a fitness perspective, it’s challenging but not the hardest hike I’ve ever done. From a comfort (and survival) perspective, you definitely want to be well prepared. The scenery is beyond worth it though!
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