New Zealand's Best One Day WalkAlternative Title: This railroad apartment was the perfect place
[Note on Title #1: I have not yet decided whether or not the Tongariro Crossing is indeed the best one day walk; one thing for sure, I have not felt more crowded since leaving the US. It was more like a
trail run than other walks I have done in NZ...someone is always trying to pass you (or, unless you're Nico, you're always trying to pass someone).]
A 7:30 AM start (on the last day of daylight saving time) gets you on the
Tongariro Alpine Crossing before the sun rises. A little while later:
![](https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_37QHKFKvQBg/TZe-Ya0PtcI/AAAAAAAAB-c/sVJL3sLgdiA/s720/IMGP4136.JPG)
Mt Ngauruhoe was hidden in a cloud when we walked by, so we skipped the extra three or four hundred metres of climbing.
![](https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_37QHKFKvQBg/TZe_AbFX2oI/AAAAAAAAB_8/cJ447wg3D-k/s512/IMGP4159.JPG)
Mt Tongariro was also bathed in cloud, but as this was only a(n additional) one hour commitment, Nico and I split up, and I ran to the top. The fog drifted in and out; here are a few other people who made the climb.
![](https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_37QHKFKvQBg/TZe_7CzZXaI/AAAAAAAACCI/4IQztPZpPqQ/s720/IMGP4192.JPG)
Here are some rocks:
![](https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_37QHKFKvQBg/TZfAjiw40fI/AAAAAAAACDk/4QX1_dkFN8w/s720/IMGP4214.JPG)
Did I mention there were a lot of people? Coming down Mt Tongariro (where there were only a few other crazy people who thought that a 19.4 km walk was not long enough), the main route looked like some sort of refugee march.
![](https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_37QHKFKvQBg/TZfA8fxzHZI/AAAAAAAACXA/cYaHNChCIDY/s800/IMGP4229.JPG)
Interestingly, one can shoot this photo with:
![](https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_37QHKFKvQBg/TZfBFFlI4YI/AAAAAAAACE8/fu9ka5yzCqI/s720/IMGP4234.JPG)
Or without people:
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_37QHKFKvQBg/TZfBKlihmvI/AAAAAAAACFI/IZ6JF885bgE/s720/IMGP4237.JPG)
I believe this is Lake Te Wai-whakaata-o-te-Rangihiroa (with Lake Taupo right behind it).
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_37QHKFKvQBg/TZfCawNYFmI/AAAAAAAACII/rA8CTdyeW_M/s720/IMGP4282.JPG)
We opted for a bus ride from the finish...I guess there are people who walk back to the start. [My totals on the day: 19.4 km + 3 km for the Tongariro Summit=22.4 km...in only 7.5 hours.]
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_37QHKFKvQBg/TZfCgrDpyGI/AAAAAAAACIU/-nAOYMb-BYo/s720/IMGP4285.JPG)
On the way home, we stopped in
Ohakune. If we skied, I would totally buy an Ohakune
yurt.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_37QHKFKvQBg/TZfZa-KkooI/AAAAAAAACXE/8-ixkMbCSoo/totems.jpg)
Instead, we stayed in the best hotel room ever.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_37QHKFKvQBg/TZfCwXwOmeI/AAAAAAAACJA/YyDJP-AVQV8/s720/IMGP4295.JPG)
![](https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_37QHKFKvQBg/TZfCoBFdYJI/AAAAAAAACIs/IgGO4cGEMe4/s512/IMGP4290.JPG)