Desert Road (136 km)
Waiouru to Turangi · one way, about 136 km back to the start
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Why this ride
136 km from Waiouru to Turangi, about 1 h 51 of riding. It goes by way of Rangipo Desert and Mount Ruapehu view. The highest point is about 1,150 m. A steady touring day rather than a sprint.
Roadbook
- Waiouru
start
Waiouru is a military town on the edge of a desert, which sounds like a joke but is simply geography. The settlement sits at about 800 metres on the central plateau of the North Island, in the rain shadow of the three great volcanoes, and the surrounding land of tussock, gravel and wind-bent scrub gets the name Rangipo Desert because of its dry, stony look. In truth it receives plenty of rain, but the soil drains instantly and little grows.
Around thirteen hundred people live here, many connected to the army base, and the National Army Museum, which tells the story of the New Zealand army from the colonial wars to modern peacekeeping, is the main attraction. It is a thoughtful and well-presented museum, with uniforms, vehicles and personal letters, and it is worth an hour if the weather is bad, which it often is. Waiouru is the highest settlement on the main highway, and snow and ice can close State Highway 1 for hours in winter.
The Desert Road, which runs north from here to Turangi, climbs to about 1,074 metres, the highest point on the New Zealand state highway network. It crosses a bleak and beautiful plain, with Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe and Tongariro filling the western horizon, and the long straights and sweeping rises suit a relaxed pace. Wind is the great enemy, since it can hit with surprising force, and snow, ice and fog are all possible in any month except mid-summer. Check the road report before setting out, because the road is closed several times each winter.
Beside the road, a memorial recalls the Tangiwai disaster of Christmas Eve 1953, when a lahar from Ruapehu's crater lake swept away a railway bridge just before the Auckland express arrived, killing 151 people. It is a sombre reminder that the mountains are alive, and Ruapehu erupted again in the mid-1990s.
Fuel is available in Waiouru, which is important because the next services are a long way along the road, and the cold can drain a tank quickly. Cafes and bakeries serve hot pies and strong coffee, a well-worn tradition among travellers heading through. Fill up, dress warmly and go.
Aim for a clear morning, when the volcanoes stand out, and the long road ahead feels like an invitation.
- Rangipo Desert
scenic
Rangipo is called a desert, and it is not one. It is a high volcanic plateau in the centre of the North Island, lying in the rain shadow of the volcanoes, so that it gets far less rain than the land around it, and its soils are poor, stony and fast-draining. The result is a bleak, wide landscape of tussock, red-brown scrub and black lava gravel, with the cone of Ruapehu rising to the west and the long ridge of Kaimanawa to the east. It is a place of long horizons and heavy skies, and the road across it, the Desert Road, is one of the best-known in New Zealand.
State Highway 1 climbs here to about 1,074 metres, the highest point on the national highway network, and it can be dramatic. In summer the road is dry and fast, with long, gentle bends and open views, and the wind can be fierce, especially from the west. In winter it is a different story. Snow, ice and sudden whiteouts close the road without much notice, and drivers sometimes spend hours waiting for it to reopen. Check the road status before you set out, carry warm clothing and chains if appropriate, and do not trust a clear morning in Taupo to predict what you will find on top.
Much of the land on the east side of the road is a military training area, used by the New Zealand Defence Force, and you will see signs warning of live firing and unexploded ordnance, and warning you to stay on the road. Do not stray into it. The tussock and scrub shelter a number of rare plants and insects, and the area is protected for its conservation value, in contrast to its bleak appearance. Native falcons hunt over the plain, and the sky at night is clear and full of stars.
Services are few. Waiouru, at the southern end, is a small town with about 1,300 people, an army museum and some fuel and food. Turangi, to the north, is a bit bigger and has more, and it is wise to fill up at one or the other before you start the crossing. There are a few lay-bys but no shops on the road itself. Long straight sections tempt drivers to speed, and the police are known to watch this stretch, so keep to the limits and enjoy the scenery.
- Mount Ruapehu view
scenic
Ruapehu is the highest mountain in the North Island, at 2,797 metres, and one of the most active volcanoes in New Zealand, and from the Desert Road it fills the western sky with a long white ridge and a dark, jagged crater rim. Its snow-covered flanks glow pink at dawn and dusk. It has three main peaks and a lake in its crater that is warm, acidic and, at times, very hot, and the volcano erupted violently in 1995 and 1996, throwing ash across the island. Alongside it, to the north, rise the more perfect cone of Ngāuruhoe, which stood in for Mount Doom in the Lord of the Rings films, and the broken top of Tongariro.
For Māori the mountains are sacred, ancestors and guardians of the land. A legend tells that they were once warriors in a great battle for the love of a mountain called Pihanga, and that Taranaki, the loser, fled west to the sea. The area is a dual World Heritage Site, listed for both its natural and its cultural values. Today the slopes hold two big ski areas, Whakapapa and Turoa, which fill with skiers from June until October.
The view from the road is best when the weather is clear, which it often is not. Cloud sits on the mountain for days at a time, and the peak reveals itself only in short glimpses. When it does, the sight is worth a pause at a lay-by. On the ride itself, the road is smooth and gently curved, with long views over the plateau. Wind from the west can be strong, and the temperature can drop fast. Take warm gear and be prepared for snow in any season but midsummer.
A sad place lies not far to the south-west: Tangiwai, where on Christmas Eve 1953 a lahar from the crater lake swept away a railway bridge just before a night express arrived, and 151 people died. A memorial stands beside the road and a visit is sobering. The nearest fuel is at Waiouru, to the south, and Turangi, to the north, both small towns with services, so check your tank before you set off. Take food and a hot drink, and linger if the clouds part, for the mountain does not always oblige.
- Turangi
finish
Turangi is a fishing town that was built almost overnight. In the 1960s, when the Tongariro Power Scheme needed workers to divert the rivers of the central plateau into hydroelectric stations, a new town was laid out beside the Tongariro River at the southern end of Lake Taupō. About three and a half thousand people live there now, and the place has settled into an easy life based on trout, tourism and the great volcanic national park behind it.
The trout come first. The Tongariro River is one of the most famous trout rivers in the world, with rainbow trout swimming up from the lake to spawn in winter, and fishermen stand shoulder to shoulder in the pools in waders, casting long lines. The town calls itself the trout fishing capital of the world, and the claim is only half a joke. Nearby, the Tokaanu thermal pools offer hot springs fed by volcanic heat, and the walk through the geothermal area has bubbling mud and steaming vents.
Turangi is also the base for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, a walk across a volcanic landscape of craters, coloured lakes and lava flows that is often called the best day walk in the country. The crossing is strenuous, and the weather on the volcanoes can turn deadly cold, so many people take shuttles from town before dawn. Ngauruhoe, the cone that stood in for Mount Doom in the films, rises beside it.
For riders, the town is the end of the Desert Road, with a long descent from the plateau to the lake. State Highway 1 continues along the western edge of the lake to Taupō, with bends and views of the water. Frost and fog can be present on winter mornings, and heavy traffic builds up on holiday weekends. The surface is good and the gradients gentle, and the lake is always on one side.
Fuel is easy here, with stations on the main road, and shops and cafes in the centre. The lakeside is a good place for a break, with picnic tables and a view of the mountains across the water.
Come in autumn if you can, when the light is clear, the crowds have gone and the trout run is beginning. The water in the lake is blue, and the volcanoes look close enough to touch.