Mount Doom and the Tama Lakes Tramp

January 29, 2014

It is known locally as Mount Ngauruhoe, but was made famous in The Lord of The Rings movies posing as Mount Doom.  It was chosen because of its bare volcanic sides and symmetrical cone.  It is 2,291 Meters and is snow covered in the winter.  Ngauruhoe and its close neighbor Tongariro are popular ski resorts in the winter and just as popular in the summer for tramping.

 

Mount Ngauruhoe - also known as Mount Doom

Our tramp today took us to the alpine lakes Upper Tama and Lower Tama.  The trip was 17 kilometers return and took us 5½ hours.  We started in Whakapapa, parked Lucky at the trail head, packed a lunch and off we went.   The track starts with a slowly winding path through what they call tussock country and alpine herb fields.  

Mount Tongariro in the background.  

We had a beautiful sunny day so slowly the sweaters came off as we walked up and down over the hills.   By the time we reached the Lower Tama Lake the wind had come up and we started putting clothes back on. 

 

Lower Lake Tama

Upper Lake Tama

Lower Tama Lake, sitting at 1240 meters is startlingly beautiful with bright turquoise water.  These lakes were created when a fiery volcanic explosion took place blowing a hole in the rock.  The craters have since filled with water and the color is created by the minerals that have washed into it.  To see the Upper Tama Lake you have to climb to the viewpoint at 1440 meters.  It was quite a windy day with gusts up to 50 km per hour.  As we walked along the ridge, you felt like you could be blown away.   

We did the return trip via the loop to see the Taranaki waterfalls.  I think this is the fourth or fifth waterfall viewing we have done so far on this trip.  They are all pretty much the same, but all very different. 

Taranaki Falls

Then it was back to Lucky and off to a campsite for dinner and another cozy evening.  In the morning we started planning the days’ adventures.  We plan to take the ferry to the South Island on February 4^th so we still have some days to meander our way down to Wellington.

Guidebooks and maps to plan the day!