Tongariro National Park

It was time to hike some volcanoes and make a few stops along the way. First stop : Huka Falls If you haven’t noticed yet – Terri likes waterfalls; big falls, little falls, no matter as long as they are not dry.

Huka falls is not dry with 200,000 liters a second going over the falls!
Huka Falls

Pushing towards Tangariro NP, Terri had spotted a commercial hot water pools spot, Wairakei Terraces & Thermal Pools. I was a little anxious as we had a ways to go but we had also been walking/hiking 8+ miles a a day and my body felt like it needed a good hot soak.

Ahhhhh! That’s the ticket!
Terri, enjoying the therapeutics of geothermal hot water
Each pool a little cooler that the one above it, all at least 98*F

Somehow, I stayed awake on the drive to Tongariro NP. Our spot for the next two nights was the only one in the park where we wanted to hike. It was in the “wopwops,” (middle of nowhere).

The view from our bed in the back of Britzy at our camp in Tongariro: nothing like going to sleep with the baa-ing of sheep in the background

Britzy at rest in the “wopwops”

Tongariro NP, home of 3 active volcanoes and many long hikes, alpine crossings, Nordic tracks and treks.

Yep: Snow

Our plan was to hike first to Taranaki Falls, (surprise?), then on to lower and upper Tama Lakes. Round trip: 12+ miles.

Taranaki Falls
To the summit! Well, a summit, you can’t see it in the picture because it’s behind that hill.
Terri needed to make a pit stop on the way. I’m surprised we even saw it with the camouflage. I wondered about the cabling too: vandal deference: unlikely. We found out later the need for cabling: wind!
The trail,was easy to follow on the lower sections, not so much at the top.
Rest stop
Lower Tama Lake
The view from the summit above Upper Tama Lake and the big volcano. The wind was so fierce, we hid behind a boulder and had lunch while calling Mom and the kids. All in, 31,251 steps, 2,300 foot elevation gain and 13.3 miles – thanks Apple watch (ugh).

Next stop: another falls……or another thermal hot spa!

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