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View north from the Bruce road towards
Ngaruhoe and Tongariro. The first (or last) stage of the Tongariro
Northern Circuit joins Whakapapa Village to the Mangatepopo Valley
across these vast expanses of tussockland. Photo NC.
| Route |
Time |
Quick description |
| Tongariro
Crossing |
1 day |
In a single day, you
capture the spirit of Tongariro, and enjoy some of its most
spectacular scenery |
| Tongariro
Northern Circuit |
2-4 days |
On this route you take the time
to become acquainted with the full variety of Tongariro's
natural environment. You discover the spectacular volcanic
features, the surrounding landscapes, the glacial valleys,
the various ecological areas. |
| Round
the Mountain Track |
3-6 days |
This sizeable tramping
route offers a great variety of landscapes and environments:
forests, alpine herbfields, bogs, and the vast desolate expanses
of the Rangipo Desert. There are superb views over both Ruapehu
and the surrounding lowlands. Wilderness seekers will particularly
enjoy it. |
| Related information:
the
huts and campsites of Tongariro National Park |
Thanks to its spectacular volcanic background,
to a diversity of landscapes and ecological units, to good tracks
and an excellent network of huts, the park offers superb yet relatively
easy tramping. The Tongariro Northern Circuit is one of New Zealand's
Great Walks. A shorter version of it, the Tongariro Crossing,
has been described as 'New Zealand's finest day walk'. When done
in clear weather both offer the most rewarding and spectacular
views of the volcanic landscape traversed, as well as of the surrounding
country, plateau, ranges, and lakes.
A somewhat longer walk of up to 6 days, the 'Round the Mountain'
circuit leads the tramper through the diversity of landscapes
that stretch down the sides of Ruapehu: from wet rainforest and
extensive bogs dominated by lofty lava cliffs and waterfalls in
the south-western quarter, through the desolate fields of volcanic
ashes and scoria of the Rangipo Desert in the east, and into shrublands
and tussocklands further north.
Among the most significant one day tramps are the walks to the
summits of the three large volcanoes.
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