Marching Through Mordor: Part 2 of 4

Day Two
After a long night we woke up promptly at 7:00am to get a go on and hit the trail at 8:15am. The second day would prove to be our longest, most intense, most breathtaking, and most memorable day of them all. This is where we began to venture into the realm of Mordor. This part of the tramp can actually be done as a day tramp and is extremely popular in New Zealand. While it’s estimated that only 7,000 do the 4-day Northern Circuit, about 25,000 do the Tongariro Crossing day tramp.
About an hour into the tramp which consisted of relatively easy walk through a valley with a giant ridge to my left and Mt. Ngauruhoe to my right I came upon something- the giant ridge right in front of me. Since I’m no dwarf from Middle Earth, the only choice I had was to go up. Even though there are steps to the top it was very steep and very long. The DOC recommends you be at a “medium physical fitness level”. Be sure to bring lots of water, we stopped at least twice on the way up. Just be sure to save some for later too, we were carrying about 6-7 liters and by the end of the day, drank every last drop.

Once we reached the top of this particular climb we were faced with a decision; continue on the main circuit, or take a 3 hour side trip up the active volcano, Mt. Ngauruhoe, also known as Mt. Doom. Without discouragement from the steep and difficult climb we completed about 2 minutes before hand, we began to prep for the ascent.

For any Lord of the Rings fans, this is side trip is a MUST DO. For any non-Lord of The Rings fan, this side trip is a MUST DO. With that being said, if you’re deathly afraid of heights, you might want to reconsider. Make sure you have good tramping boots and I recommend high socks. This was easily one of the craziest things I’ve done in New Zealand. Did I mention bring water?

We decided that to try and carry our giant packs up the volcano would be near impossible, so instead we jammed a smaller back pack full of peanut butter, jelly, pitas, granola bars, a few apples, and 3 liters of water. While this was pretty heavy in itself, it was better than our packs; we decided we’d trade off every 30 minutes or so. We left the rest of our gear a little in off of the trail head and made sure to grab our wallets and car keys, just in case.

Standing at the base of Mt. Doom we peered nearly straight up at the summit we saw a tiny string of white dots run down the side of the mountain getting larger the lower they were. Turns out those little specks were people. And we began- this was going to take awhile.
Climbing up a volcano is like being bullied and laughed at by mother earth; for every two steps you take forward, you slide one backward. There is no marked trail and the loose ash and rock make for a slippery climb. Eventually we made our way to a rock outcrop where the climbing got, if not easier at least more stable for some time. Every so often someone above would yell “Rock!” to signify a dislodged rock that was tumbling down the side at high speeds. It was important to watch out for these otherwise we could’ve ended up tumbling down the side right with it.
The views overlooking the park became more marvelous with altitude and I found myself constantly taking photos, only to remember the ones at the top would be the best. With the summit in seemingly near reach mother earth decides to tease us one last time with a loose red rock called “scoria”. I had to climb on all fours and move at the pace of a sloth too trudge through the loose scoria.

Two hours later I was 2200 meters above sea level with spectacular views reaching out across the park all the way to Lake Taupo. There was a certain unspoken camaraderie shared with the others who sat upon the top of the conquered Mt. Doom. Sauron had nothing on us.
After a quick lunch on top of the world we began our descent. Although equally terrifying as the ascent, going down ended up being much more fun. To get down you have to slide down the red scoria on your feet; this is easier said than done and takes a bit to get use to. Essentially we had to ski down a mountain, but instead of snow we had fist-sized rocks, and instead of skis we had just our boots. But once you get sliding is easier not to stop, just keep your feet moving as if you were walking or running down. And don’t forget to lean back a little- there were a few time where I almost sent myself head over heels when I hit a hidden boulder that wouldn’t move. It took me about 25 minutes to get to the bottom. For some it was shorter and other it was longer, it really depended on how crazy (or stupid) we wanted to be.

At the bottom we harnessed back up and continued on the Tongariro Crossing as normal. Following trail markers across a giant crater we once again came to a “wall” that need to be crossed. We climbed up. Up. And more up. Finally we made it to the top of the actual “crossing” with the “Emerald Lakes” hundreds of feet below. The descent to the lakes is steep and slippery, much like sliding down the volcano.

The Emerald Lakes (really more the size of small ponds) are craters filled with stagnant water in which the minerals from the nearby hot springs cause the water to glow a toxic turquoise. Be sure not to drink it, that is, unless you want to grow a third arm.

From the lakes we took the trail to the Ketetahi hut, about 45 minutes away. The Ketetahi hut may have been my favorite, sitting on the side of the mountain facing north, overlooking Lake Taupo. The beautiful weather provided yet another spectacular sunset full of pink and lavender with distant mountains encircled in the mist. Tired from a full day of tramping, it didn’t take long to zonk.