Now it was time to head back home. With Rotorua behind us, we veered off to drive through Tongariro National Park, the oldest National Park in New Zealand. It is home to three volcanoes Tongariro, Ngauruhoe (pronounced Nah-ru-ho-ā) and Ruapehu (Roo-a-pay-hoo). Ruapehu is an active volcano, last erupting in 2012. It is also the location of a popular ski resort.
On the way to Rotorua, we passed on the southeast side. On the way home we decided to do a circumnavigation and see them from all sides. What a joy! I could take pictures of volcanoes all day. At this time of the year, they have the bright white snow-cap that sets off the always amazing New Zealand blue sky. For me, they are the supermodels of landscape photography because they are not just mountains. They are stories of the earth’s formation and the underlying forces that made them. I yelled Stop! every two minutes to get yet another shot until we finally had them out of our view.
Ngauruhoe with forming lenticular cloud. You can see why these may be mistaken for UFOs
A Yank Among the Kiwis 