The Day I Dreaded- the latest in camp info

THE DAY I DREADED

BY JACK 19.3.12

I wake up at a ridiculously early time. I’m extremely tired- I went to sleep late last night! I pack my bag and hop onto the bus. There’s no delaying or making excuses now- the day is here. The day I dreaded.

The Tongariro National Park is a large area of land just south of Lake Taupo. It features quite a few mountains, including Ruapehu, Tongariro, Pihanga and Ngauruhoe. Tongariro is a 1967 metre tall mountain that is somewhat active, with craters erupting five or six times every thousand years.

Out of the bus and onwards through the Mangatepopo Valley. We walk for an hour then come to a stop at the bottom of the Devil’s Staircase. To the left is a tiny waterfall called Soda Springs. It smells kind of like soda!

Soda Springs is the first checkpoint in the 19.4 km long Tongariro Alpine Crossing. It gets its name from the carbon dioxide in the water, used to fizz soda. It, however, is undrinkable due to the large quantities of sulphate.

I feel like I’m going to die. I’m not very far up the mountain, and the huge Devil’s Staircase proves why. Can’t they have a ski lift? I suppose not.

The Devil’s Staircase is a huge staircase, so horrible it seems like the Devil made it, hence the name. It’s really manmade to allow you to climb the treacherous slope.

Finally, the top! Relief! There’s the second checkpoint, a hill leading to a large crater. Oh no! Mt Ngauruhoe comes into view, and it’s a brilliant red. Red Crater is to the left and a head is another large gravelly hill, leading to yet another large, you guessed it, red crater. Whoever created this part must have run out of ideas!

The huge crater is South Crater, which once erupted. Mt Ngauruhoe   is actually a 2287 metre tall vent of Tongariro. The red colour is formed by volcanic rock. It erupts once every 25 years and is overdue… uh oh! The gravelly stuff is called scree.

There we go; I climbed up a gravelly hill! Oh no, there’s another one, going down. I can see a huge crater and the beautiful but deadly Emerald Lakes. I slowly, carefully slide down the gravel. Don’t fall in the acid!

The Emerald Lakes are three pathetic-looking lakes that actually aren’t that pathetic. They get their green colour (one of them blue) from acid! You can put your finger in, but you can’t stay in for more than ten minutes! You can guess what would happen! Ouch…

It’s past lunch at the ‘Lakes and now it’s a downhill stretch. The terrain is changing from rock to tussock to forest. It’s been two hours since lunch. Are we there yet? Keitetahi Hut looms ahead- the first toilet in four hours! Sheesh! I can’t control my bladder that well!

Six hours down and two to go, Keitetahi Hut is the final checkpoint before Keitetahi Car Park and the end! Keitetahi Springs are a mineral induced selection of streams that cure rheumatic diseases. The walk used to wind through, but now the Maori have bought the land, so Keitetahi Hut has changed place. There’s a tally-counter tripwire hung in between two manmade rocks, and apparently 600 on good days get that far!

Some people are fit! One of the adults told their group to run to the bush line, and we’re there 3 hours later! How? The stream starts winding, my heart starts pounding, my blisters keep growing, and- the end! I’ll never complain about heavy packs or a 1 hour walk again!