One of the highlights of my New Zealand trip in March 2017 has got to be the Tongariro crossing hike, rated one of the best one-day hikes in the world. The scenery was breathtaking but my god it was the hardest hike I’ve ever done (not that I’ve done many)! It takes you across so many different types of terrain and views, so it never got boring, sometimes it felt like we were on another planet! The uphill climbs on volcanic rock and the downhill walk at the end through damp forest were a killer – my knees felt like they were going to give in!
We set off at 9:15am, it was a beautiful clear day – very lucky as the weather at that time of year can be unpredictable. It was almost too hot by the middle of the day, we were so sweaty and ended up having to carry all our jumpers and jackets. We came to the end at 4:45pm, completing the hike in 7 1/2 hours (including a short lunch break). I literally collapsed in a heap of aching muscles!
