© Eusebius@Commons · CC BY 2.0 
Tongariro & Mangatepōpō
Mount Tongariro summit side trip
Expert 3.0 kmreturn +1.5–2 hr return from Red Crater ↑ 220 m
Lake · Tongariro & Mangatepōpō
Blue Lake
Te Wai-whakaata-o-te-Rangihīroa
1,725 m WaterVolcanicPanorama
A cold, deep-blue acidic lake filling an old vent, sacred to Ngāti Tūwharetoa.
Blue Lake fills a vent that last erupted thousands of years ago and is a mirror on calm days, reflecting Mount Tongariro’s summit ridge. It is tapu: do not swim in it, touch the water or eat on its shore. From its rim the track turns north and the view opens to Lake Rotoaira and Lake Taupō.
Blue Lake © Javier Sánchez Portero · CC BY-SA 3.0 
© ogwen · CC BY-SA 3.0 Tracks that reach Blue Lake
© Eusebius@Commons · CC BY 2.0 
© Geoff McKay · CC BY 2.0 
© Markrosenrosen · CC BY-SA 3.0 
Tongariro & Mangatepōpō
Tongariro Alpine Crossing
Advanced 19 kmone way 7–8 hr one way ↑ 1111 m
Also nearby
Mangatepōpō Valley © Geoff McKay · CC BY 2.0 
© Porcinno Rondus · CC BY 3.0 
© Michal Klajban · CC BY-SA 4.0 Lava landscape· 1,200 m · Tongariro & Mangatepōpō
Mangatepōpō Valley
A glacial valley floored with young lava flows beneath the cone of Ngāuruhoe.
Springs· 1,400 m · Tongariro & Mangatepōpō
Soda Springs
A cold spring seeping from the base of a lava flow, surrounded by alpine wildflowers in summer.
Crater· 1,660 m · Tongariro & Mangatepōpō
South Crater
A flat, silent moonscape between Ngāuruhoe and Tongariro.