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Tongariro Crossing – February 17, 2007

Tuesday, March 6th, 2007

Tongariro National Park is located in the center of the North Island. The region is filled with contrasting landscapes, from alpine mountain forests and streams to barren volcanoes, craters and emerald lakes. It is best known to outsiders as the backdrop for the hellish Mordor in the Lord of the Ring Movies. For its beauty and accessibility, it is also regarded as New Zealand’s finest one-day hike. We set up in nearby Turangi where we rented the necessary gear and arranged a drop off and pick up. Our hostel, Samuri, was a quiet and clean hostel with a very helpful owner who insisted on giving us all the tools we needed for our broken down car. The 7-8 hour, 17 km hike is one-way so we would have to leave our car behind, which we were happy to do given its recent starting problems.

Geared up with boots and rain gear, we made some PB&Js, ate breakfast and headed out to catch the bus to the hike’s entrance. The day began relaxed with a jolly, hippie Maori driver who dropped us off in the middle of nowhere at the start of a dirt path. [read on]