Day 45 - follow your streams

National Park —-> Mantepopo hut

Minus 7km + 6km hitch + 23km

I was up early this morning, creeping around trying not to wake any of the other dorm peeps. I was out the door at 7.45am and immediately stopped to put my jacket on, it was very chilly, by far the coldest morning I’d had on trail so far.

I walked through National Park and crossed over the railway lines at the edge of town. The trail followed a country road up until it reached a gate for a state forest. I was confused… I was supposed to be heading into Tongariro but this sign was about a totally different DOC land. It was then I realised I’d been following the map as if I was still heading south… but I was actually meant to be heading north for this section. I’d walked over 3km in the wrong direction and I was fuming with myself! I turned around and started walking back the way I’d come. By the time I’d walked back to the exact point I’d left from this morning it was 9.30am. I had a 29km day over what I knew wasn’t going to be easy terrain and I’d effectively walked 0km.

The way I was supposed to be going was first 6km down the state highway. I reasoned with myself that if I’d already walked 7km, so I could hitch this 6km which was sure to be incredibly tedious and then my morning wouldn’t have been a total waste. I got a ride pretty easily from a lovely American couple who were heading into the park, they’d been hoping to walk the crossing but the forecasts were just too bad for them to consider it. That didn’t fill me with confidence for my own attempt tomorrow. They dropped me at the entrance to the Mangahuia track (defiantly where I was supposed to go) and I set off with the most perfect view of Ruapehu.

Now feeling incredibly chuffed with myself that I was back on track, on time, I followed the track firstly through the low forest and then out through the tussock into open country.

With the the weather closing in, the views of the mountains disappeared into the clouds creating a quite eery feeling that there was no one else for miles. I don’t think I passed another hiker on this track at all in either direction. And I say track, but it was pretty much a stream for the entire morning.

I had to cross a number of streams and didn’t even bother to rock hop, I waded through, my feet already soaked from the track.

I stopped for lunch by the side of the river, aside from Pironga this was the most “wild” I’d felt. It was stunningly beautiful.

I continued on, climbing steadily for the next couple of hours following the stream/path until I reached the village of Whakapaka - I’d been here a few years before with my pals Amy, El and Blamy and we’d had a drink at the Chateau so it felt quite surreal to now be outside with my backpack.

After a Fanta stop, I headed out along the Mangatepopo track towards the hut I’d be staying in tonight. Snaking through the tussock, over the occasional boardwalk and through the streams, Mt Tongariro edged closer, getting bigger and more imposing with every km.

Every now and then the track would just disappear entirely, and I’d have to climb down, shimmy through and clamber out the other side of a giant hole.

Just before 5pm, a small grey speck came into view over the grass - the hut! I was more or less the last person to show up, nearly all other walkers having started from the Tongariro car park 4km away, I was the only TA-walker. I found a spare bunk and then snagged a spot in the sunshine to gobble up some snacks and marvel at my surroundings.

I peered out the window from the comfort of my bunk, the temperature now down to single figures outside. I watched the sun disappear behind the clouds, very grateful I wasn’t camping tonight and snuggled down into my sleeping bag for a very restless night thanks to a couple of late arrivals and one very loud snorer…