Mount Ruapehu
With its two companion volcanoes, the World Heritage area of Mount Ruapehu is the location for North Island's only premier ski fields - Whakapapa and Turoa. The massive peak provided some of the locations for Mt Doom in the 'Lord of the Rings' film trilogy.
Mount Ruapehu dominates the central North island landscape, rising high above the surrounding countryside to 2,797 metres. Its spectacular neighbours are Mount Ngauruhoe (active, like Ruapehu) and Mount Tongariro. The three volcanoes are a breathtaking sight, particularly in the winter months when they are snow-capped.
Skiing started at Whakapapa in 1913. By 1920 there was a new access road. Sir Edmund Hillary of Everest fame opened New Zealand’s first chairlift here in 1954, the year after his epic climb. Today Whakapapa (1360 acres) and Turoa (1236 acres) are the largest ski areas in the country. The volcanic terrain on the north-west flank of Ruapehu has created a mix of deep gullies (natural halfpipes for snowboarders) narrow chutes and wide-open flanks.
Whakapapa (the Wh is equivalent to an F according to Maori pronunciation, and needs to be said carefully in polite company!) is New Zealand’s largest and busiest ski area. It is also probably the most meteorologically challenging. Tongariro National Park on the north-western slopes of Ruapehu, attracts unpredictable weather. Ruapehu also erupts (has a “good cough”, as one wit put it) from time to time. Having done so to startling effect in 1995 and 1996, there was a fairly significant “event” in October 2006 and another in March 2007 when the crater lake wall ruptured causing a moderate “lahar” (mud slide). The volcano is meticulously monitored for eruptions and lahars.
Turoa is the lesser-known resort clinging to the “far side” (south- west flank) of the hulking Mount Ruapehu on the other side of the peak from its more famous neighbour. Yet Turoa has Australasia’s biggest vertical drop: 722 m (2,362ft). The layout and terrain seem very different from its sister resort, making it an attractive alternative, and well worth the effort of sampling both resorts. There is no easy way to get from one resort to the other in snow, so driving is the only easy way to visit both areas. The road from Ohakune to the resort is spectacular (but not difficult), lined with exotic semi-tropical vegetation. Mt Ruapehu lift passes can be used in both Whakapapa and Turoa. There is a bus service several times a day each way between the two.