Back To The Tongariro National Park

IESE Team

So it's 2.30pm on a Friday afternoon and I'm sitting in my DEVORA research office in Auckland, typing away on the borehole project that I'm currently working on. There's only two people in my office, myself and my colleague, an American named Elaine.

Darren and Dan, two others at IESE (Institute of Earth Science and Engineering), where I am currently working, are on a field trip around New Zealand. It's called 'Frontiers Abroad' and consists of 25 or so American students, all interested in the Earth sciences - coming to NZ for 5 weeks and getting taught about the countries unique geology. They then complete one semester in a New Zealand universitiy as part of their degrees back home. They were currently on week 3 of their trip and were somewhere in the Tongariro National Park, which Elaine had been invited to join for a bit of fun over the weekend.

With a burst open of our office door, Leslie (another colleague) rushes in saying that we can join for the weekend if we want. Before I have time to answer I am being pushed out the door and told to run back and get all my stuff. After a hefty drive down south, myself, Elaine and Leslie arrive at the Tongariro National Park.

We stayed in a huge dorm-room apartment within the Whakapapa Village of the national park. Big enough to hold 25 American students and all the helpers. There were beds for us though. On the Saturday we treked the Tongariro Crossing. I had done the crossing before but only in the winter so I was pleased to be doing it again in the summer-time, simply because I was told it would look completely different. It did. The other great thing about doing the crossing this time around was Darren and Dan, who taught the geology and volcanics to all the students as we went round. The principles of volcanology that they were teaching, I already knew, but it was the specific's and history of the area that I was unfamiliar with compared with these guys who have spent most of their lives in NZ.

The crossing was equally as spectacular this time round and equally as challenging. Actually the walk isn't that difficult - it's just long. But the views are fantastic and the volcanoes are immense. In some respects for myself, it was better walking it in the summer. Tongariro in the winter is covered in snow, blanketing a lot of the geological features on display. Now, you could see clearly exposed lava fields and flows, the Emerald Lakes (a series of volcanic lakes, which actually appeared emerald in colour, rather than a carpet of white snow) and Mount Ngauruhoe, which now really did look just like Mount Doom from Lord of the Rings, mainly because it is!!!

We took the walk slowly, chatting to fellow IESE friends and the students. some views from up on the saddle between the two volcanoes (Ngauruhoe and Tongariro) were stunning and although we were sitting almost smack in the middle of the North Island of NZ, from here we could see coast to coast, especially to the West where you could make out the small outline of Mount Taranaki - one of New Zealand's largest volcanoes, situated on the South-Western shore. Because it was now summer, the bare, rubbly volcanic rocks were exposed, really turning the place into Mordor scenery. Thus, at every opportunity I would take Leslie's ring and make people take pictures of me pulling hobbit like poses, and by the end of the day, I felt like Frodo did after he'd just destroyed the ring.....shattered. Luckily I didn't have to trek across Middle Earth to get back to my bed......it was a 15 minute drive away.

On the second day, we headed out to Mount Ruapehu. Ruapehu sits just south of Mount Ngauruhoe and is the biggest volcano in the national park. However, because the Tongariro Crossing walk takes you so close to the other two volcanoes, Ruapehu is primariliy blocked from view. I had never really seen Ruapehu in full during my last trip here from Taupo, so it was a good opportunity to explore.

Actually the reason Dan and Darren had brought the students to Mount Ruapehu was because they provide a great example of lahar (volcanic mudflow) deposits. Such flows are very dangerous during or after a volcanic eruption and in the past have caused huge devestation on some of the world's volcanic slopes. Verne Manville, from GNS at Taupo is an expert on such flows, particularly at Ruapehu. He has studied this volcanic hazard here, for about 20 years. I actually knew Verne from my time working at the Taupo GNS office some months ago. He took us onto the 'round-the-mountain' track and then off onto the lahar flow paths that had torn their way down the slopes here on many occassions, but most recently in 2007.

We strayed mainly in areas which signs said not to stray and looked at deposits mainly consisting of huge boulders that were carried in the powerful mud-flows and which you wished you were never caught in. Verne was a library of knowledge on the subject as we spent most of the day on the volcanoes flank.

We later continued away from the mountain, down the Whangaehu River, to an area called Tangiwai, where in 1953, a lahar in full flow caused the Tangiwai railway bridge (which runs across the Whangaehu River) to collapse, just before the train crossed it and ultimately killing 151 people. Leslie, Elaine and myself then split from the group as they continued on and we drove to a small town, on the southern tip of the national park, called Onakune - for a look around. It's a small town, full of ski and snowboard gear hire shops. We stopped for a walk around and some lunch.

In the evening, pretty much everyone collapsed with a beer in their hand. Two days of solid walking can take it's toll. Elaine was staying on with the group for the next week, but Leslie and I had to get back to work. Early on Monday morning, my Canadian friend and I said our goodbyes to 25 American students, everyone at IESE who were staying on, and left. It was back into work for another week.........but still, 5 days away was another weekend and who knows what doors will burst open as another adventure unfolds!!!