OK, not
really Mt. Doom. Ngaurahoe is the mountain featured as Mt. Doom in Lord of the
Rings. We are heading off to hike its
next door neighbor, Mt. Tongariro. New Zealand takes its LOTR stories so seriously-
we think there should be a drinking game involving Jagermeister every time
someone says “hobbit.”
The
Tongariro Alpine Crossing is arguably one of the finest day hikes in the world.
We are using it as a dry run for our 4-day Milford Track hike at the end of our
trip. Due to high winds, blistering cold and volcanic ash, the trail has been
partially closed the last few days.
Luckily (or not so luckily) the trail is open for our day of
hiking.
We literally have on every item
of hiking gear and clothing we brought.
Loaner gloves allowed Jeff to leave his hand-socks at home. Wind gusts of 35mph cut through our clothes
but luckily the sun peered out to warm things up a bit. With the trail closing, we did an
out-and-back hike for 6+ hours instead of the full 8-9 hour adventure. The topography was striking. Much of it appeared like a rocky Mars- dotted
with small drought-tolerant succulents and rocky terrain. Later, streams and
lichen made for a more verdant landscape. One crater area was covered with rolling clouds at our feet as we walked
across the flatlands.
Probably one of the best views was actually from the huge
windows at the Schnapps Bar at the foot of the mountain. Well, at least it was
warmer! And they had
Jagermeister… just in case!
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