The first (and possibly only) more-than-1-night backpacking trip that Joana and I are planning on doing is the Tongariro Northern Circuit, one of New Zealand's Great Walks, and of course the location for Mordor and Mount Doom (Mount Ngauruhoe).

Our initial plan was to hike the ~27 miles / 45 km in 3 nights and four days, but the first day we were supposed to start it was forecasted to be absurdly rainy and windy, so we skipped it and started the next day.

The first day was beautiful: sunny and windy, and not 

what the rest of the trip ended up being like. Since we had booked campsites in advance, we needed to hike all the way to the second hut, Oturere Hut, which unfortunately was not just 13 miles in, but was 

all the elevation gain. Thus, we started early (but not before forgetting our lunch and having to go back to our campsite. 

The first part of the hike was relatively flat, going briefly through forest areas, but mostly through brush that you can see in the image above. Unfortunately, it was SUPER muddy which made it very sketchy: we had a couple falls in mud, and had to go very slowly as the trail had become a mini-canyon of mud in some places. 

After about two hours of hiking, we got to the first hut, Mangatepopo Hut, where we ate a premade lunch (wraps!) and then got back on the trail. At this point, the hike joins with the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, so the trail was in very good condition and we actually saw people on the hike.

Immediately we got to "Mordor". As we walked to the volcano, brushland quickly gave to volcanic rock and hardened lava, and the two volcanos loomed larger and larger above us. The very top of Mount Ngauruhoe (Mount Doom) was clouded as we walked up its shoulder, but we got glances now and then at its intimidating crater.

^ Due to the popularity of the one-day crossing, the trail was in fantastic shape and even had information panels along the way. Mount Ngauruhoe is shrouded in clouds. You can see the (somewhat) recent lava flows going down its sides.

^ lots of steep hiking and stairs going up the volcano.

Near the top, but not at THE top, we got to a flat spot high up between the two mountains - this is the South Crater , whose flat half mile was a great respite prior to the last push up the peak of the hike. You can see the path in the photo above, it goes up and to the left of that ridge.

We arrived at the peak around at around 1:30pm. It's not the peak of either of the volcanos, but instead the highest point of the ridge on the shoulder as you pass from one side to the next.

At the top you get a beautiful view of the Red Crater (below), and on the other side, the Emerald Lakes.

The way down was relatively easy, since the trail was a sand-like volcanic rubble that made it easy to walk down if you knew how to do it. However, there were "volcanic hazards" everywhere, specifically steam vents called fumaroles. Afterwards it was a few hours walk (which was tough - we were tired) to get to the next hut, Oturere Hut.

We arrived in Oturere hut about an hour before sunset, and had a quick heart attack thinking all the marked campsites where taken. But, after looking for a minute for another marker, we found one a bit higher up on the ridge, slightly exposed. (It turned out there were no such things as "marked campsites" and we royally messed up going up the ridge, as you'll see later...)

We set up our tent, made some dinner (New Zealand version of Mountain Meals, nothing special this time), and enjoyed the last minutes of sunset. We then went to sleep, hoping for a good night's rest.... 

We woke up at around 12:30 as the wind had grown so strong that our tent has started to buckle. This wasn't regular gusts of wind, it was 

it was non-stop, and it was strong - probably 40+mph, reaching even higher during its gusts. After half an hour, it had gotten worse, and our tent was reaching its breaking point. The poles had already shifted and warped, and it was completely bent over in half - the roof (which was supposed to be held up by poles), was bent inches above our faces when we laid down.

We sat up and put our backs to the tent hoping to help it, but it soon became evident this wasn't stopping. After chatting, I got out of the tent to see if it was possible to find more peace near the cabin, and noticed another tent had the same problem and were moving the tent into a more protected area, away from the ridge.

We chatted, and after some planning, ended up moving our entire campsite at 1am out of the wind tunnel and into a more protected area near the cabin. For obvious reasons, I don't have many photos of this, but I do have a video once I build out the ability to upload videos.

Although it seemed impossible, we were able to get maybe two hours of sleep during the night, even with the wind that was buffeting the tent even in the more protected area. We awoke to a cold morning, but enjoyed a warm coffee (thank you JetBoil) and breakfast protected from the wind in the hat's porch.  Those who had beds in the hut also had a rough night, multiple of them said they were terrified that the "roof of the hut would blow off" in the middle of the night. 

We initially thought of doing the last 14 miles in two days, as the third (and final hut) was only four miles in. However, the weather seemed decent enough that our idea to finish the hike in two days started growing. So, with some haste, we took off for the next hut and to make the final decision there.

by the way. We forgot to take photos of the inside, but it had tables, a fireplace, so many stoves with gas.... absolute paradise. We stopped there for lunch.

After recharging with Jake's Wraps at the hut, we made the decision to finish the hike that day and took off. The last 12 miles were long, but relatively flat compared to the first day and descent down the volcano we did earlier the day. We were treated to a rotating view of the Mt. Ngauruhoe. However, in the last two hours we were exposed in the shrub land and got absolutely wrecked by wind again. Luckily, being in lower elevation, it wasn't as strong as the night before, but the gusts were more than strong enough to mess with our balance. 

Won't lie though - it was not easy. The last hour we were tired, our feet hurt, the wind was burning our skin, it was getting colder, and we just wanted to finish. 

We were stoked to finish the hike, proud to have done it in two days, but we were the happiest that we were able to get a hotel room that night - we 

needed a hot shower, warm (real) food, and a comfortable bed to sleep and recover in.

Backpacking the Tongariro Northern Circuit (a.k.a: Mordor and Mount Doom)