Last week we were saying how enjoyable days off are. That’s not a particularly bold statement though is it? “days off are such fun” well yes obviously, thanks... but we all also know that some days off are better than others. Some days for example the weather is perfect, on some days things work out just the way you planned, and then there are the days when you wake up feeling extra productive and it’s really easy to find something to do and well, you know... just enjoy yourself.
Sadly not all days are like that though, and the plans you’ve made don’t quite happen, or maybe that day at the beach you’ve been waiting on for so long gets washed away with unexpected rain. Whatever the outcome, we can still always try to make the most out of it, and end up with another success story as opposed to another forgotten weekend spent watching Netflix and eating pizza (Even though everyone needs some of those too).
After working for a week at the Chateau we were given another two days off and so we started making plans for the upcoming free time, great plans, plans that didn’t involve eating pizza... much. One of these non-pizza-related plans we made was to do the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, which is one of the most famous walks in New Zealand. We were lucky enough to be located right next to the crossing, and thanks to the Chateau we would also get 50% off the shuttle bus to the starting point. Of course this being New Zealand (and being us) it was due to rain that day, a lot. As a result of this the shuttle bus was cancelled and just like rain, our plans went down the gutter.
Why didn’t we just drive there? The answer is because we are lazy. Just kidding, the parking at the crossing is limited to just four hours, and it’s an eight-hour hike so leaving our car there would inevitably incur a large fine. We didn’t fancy parting with our hard-earned money so we left it for another, hopefully sunnier day.
Mt Ngauruhoe was now off the agenda. To be honest, on a day where it’s going to rain heavily the last place you’d probably want to be is stuck up a mountain anyway. For that reason alone then, why we decided to climb another mountain instead is something that nobody will ever know. Mt Ruapehu was the closest of the Tongariro mountains to us and we were fortunate enough to have stunning views of it almost every day. It’s a very picturesque landmark, which in fact is an active volcano complete with ski fields that some say are pretty good.
Now, it’s recommended when climbing a mountain to have a plan to mind, as well as a map, a weather update and to also inform at least one other person of your intent to do so. After doing literally none of these things we made our way towards Ruapehu with the hilariously unrealistic expectation that everything would turn out just fine. This is us though, so do you really think that happened?
Thanks to the construction of the new gondola for the 2019 winter season the road to the hike-starting-point was closed off. We arrived to nothing more than a fence, disappointed and frustrated. From this point the view of the village below was still pretty good but for us, not good enough. We had driven for an entire five minutes to get to this point and weren’t ready to turn back in a hurry. We still had most of the day in front of us and although the clouds were thick and gloomy it still wasn’t raining yet.
We walked around for a few minutes and eventually spotted a sign for another ‘hike’. It had no further information on it and looked about as legitimate as an email from a Ugandan prince, but perhaps we were getting desperate for something to do? We must have figured we still had time to be irresponsible that day because sure enough, despite the obvious weather about to come our way we jumped at the chance to be led up a mountain by a sketchy looking piece of wood.
A few clouds later... after about an hour or so of trying to follow marker pegs that may or may not have been part of a hike, we were beginning to loose track of where we were. By that we mean we were completely lost, made worse by the fact that visibility was about 5-10 metres at best, and yet still Liam was adamant that we would reach the top so long as we basically ran in a generally upwards direction, absolutely disregardful of whether there was a cliff-face or sheer drop in front of us or not.
It’s decisions like this that make us wonder how Liam has made it this far in life without either falling off a cliff or being strangled by Sabina. Either way, we had gotten to the point where not only could we not see where we were going, but could also not see where we had been. Somehow though we eventually managed to get below the clouds again, but not before getting stuck multiple times at the edge of cliff-faces.
As you may have guessed by now, we didn’t make it to the summit but on the bright side, we also didn’t die. According to google maps, we made it about 3/4 of the way up, which isn’t bad considering we had no preparation and basically couldn’t see. From a conversation we had with some locals later on, we concluded we were probably heading to one of the inaccessible summits anyway.
Next time we’ll be sure to spend a little more time in preparation and who knows, with any luck maybe we’ll even make it to the beautiful crater lake at the top. It’d also probably be wise to wait until the weather is better before attempting this again but at least it was a lesson learnt.
The following day was even wetter, tropical-rainstorm wetter. It was Tuesday, and rather than do something indoors we thought we’d just embrace the weather for once. Finally our waterproof clothing would be put to a proper test. We started by walking up to the Whakapapa Visitors Centre, which was about 5 minutes round the corner from us, and mysteriously empty too. Guess everyone must have looked at the weather, seen it was raining again and chose to watch Netflix and eat pizza instead.
At the visitor centre we compared some of the hiking trails in the vicinity and after reading through several brochure’s, settled upon tackling a 1.25 hour track known as Silica Rapids. It’s a one-way trail, so a return will take 2.5 hours either via the same route back or by taking Bruce Road. What makes Bruce Road special is the fact that it’s mentioned many times in brochure’s despite being nothing more than a regular, tarmac road.
Soon after starting the Silica Rapids track the rain began to come down heavier. For Sabina this meant putting away her DSLR camera and for Liam, it meant he could be even more smug with his waterproof TG5 digital camera. As a backup Sabina resorted to using her phone to capture the scenery but a crack in the screen meant she soon had to put it away again as the rain was getting behind the glass. Unfortunate, but not as unfortunate as the fact that to ‘save it from further damage’ she put it in her pocket, which turned out later to be full of water...
We had other cameras with us however, the GoPro H7 for example is another fully waterproof camera that is actually a great piece of equipment to have in the rain. There were a lot of moments that having a small, light camera on a long selfie stick was great for getting close up shots of the rapids from unique angles. Also, not only did we not have to worry about it getting wet, but the high frame rate of the GoPro made it ideal for some great slo-mo footage.
The track starts just above the Whakapapa Holiday Park and for the first 15 or so minutes, there is the option of taking a detour to make the walk longer, as it shares it’s starting point with a couple of other tracks too. If you are feeling like stretching out your journey a little, taking the detour will end you up at Whakapapaiti Hut or alternatively, the other option is to sidetrack onto the Whakapapanui Walk, albeit this a different track entirely. We actually did the latter of the two during our stay at the Chateau but today we’ll just talk about the Silica Rapids.
The first part of the Silica Rapids walk will see you strolling through a native beech forest and crossing over some wooden bridges with a few good views. Then, after about a kilometre or so the footpath crosses the stream that flows next to the track. The view from this footbridge is great but we found it's generally better from up close - there are a few good spots along the way where you can get right by the water.
Leaving the Iron Rapids, the forest ends and once again you’ll be in the familiar alpine territory of wire bush, tangle fern and red tussock. There are a few points throughout the walk at which the forest will temporarily return, meaning that the environment is constantly changing. This versatility makes the track incredibly interesting in our opinion and what’s more, for the waterfall lovers (like us) there are loads of small waterfalls along the way too, especially on a rainy day.
The actual Silica Rapids themselves are a nice spot to stop and relax for a little while but in this instance, the walk itself is generally more interesting overall. That means that this walk is a bit on the flip side if you compare it to a typical walk in New Zealand, where usually the walk is just what you do leading up to the main attraction - it really coincides with the whole ‘journey, not the destination’ philosophy.
From the rapids, it’s time to either turn back and return along the same route, or continue in the direction of Bruce Road. If you carry on forward, you’ll see that the second half of the track is even more interesting than the first; not far after leaving the Silica Rapids you’ll get to a valley of lava - no, not the glowing red type (you’re about 15,000 years too late) but what is actually an ancient trench formed by the eruption of Mt Ruapehu.
You might want to take in the view before going down the stairs to the trench because the vantage point lets you see how the molten rock flows shaped the land many years ago. What you’ll be looking at is the bed of a river just before it tumbles over the edge of a cliff and becomes Punaruku Falls. This area is rich in red tussock, which is one of the first plants to grow in ash deposits left by the destruction.
We stayed here for some time, messing around with our cameras and admiring the scenery. This was the moment when Liam noticed his boots were filling up with water, not because they weren’t waterproof as we originally thought, but because the rain was running down his trousers and straight into his boots. Just something to keep in mind when selecting footwear - buy high ankle boots or at least wear gaitors if it’s raining heavily.
Also at this point in the track, the views of Ngauruhoe and Ruapehu are really good. Of course being mountains they’re very tall and usually easy to see from most places, but you’ll be a bit closer now and it’s another thing adding to the picture and making the whole experience better as a whole. This is when the weather changed again and although it wasn’t raining too heavily anymore, the air became thick with moisture. Visibility dropped to just a few metres and we could almost see the water in the air all around us.
After two hours of basically swimming through the misty rain we finished the walk and started descending back to the village. We were still almost completely dry (with the exception of Liam’s boots) as we were walking down Bruce Road, which is the only part of the track we didn’t enjoy. Perhaps on a sunny day it would be a nice easy end to the walk but in the cold rain, blown into our faces by the wind, we could think of nothing better than being back and having a nice hot shower.
Had we have been stubborn and walked to the start of the Alpine Crossing, we would have most certainly regretted it. These may have been quite possibly the wettest two days of our trip so far, but thanks to having a back-up plan for the rainy weather they actually turned out to be really good ones. We’re glad to say our motivation paid off and instead of just another day sat watching the rain, we managed to create more good memories, or as we like to call it.. another success story.
More Photos in our GALLERY
