WAYPOINTSWAYPOINTS
THECRUMBLING MONUMEN
A HIKETO TeHeuheupromisesan exhilarating
ridgelinetraverseandstunningvistas.
At2732mabovesealevel,thisremnantofan an-
cientcraterrimisthethirdhighestnamedpeak of
MtRuapehu.Itisarguablythebestvantagepoint
ofTongariroNationalPark,aparticularlygood spot
foradmiringtheneighbouringMtTongariroand Mt
Ngauruhoe.Glaciationandweatheringhavesculpted
thepeakintoacuriously-shapedcrumblinggeologi-
calmonumentwitharathergentlenorthernslope
leadingtoa dome-shapedsummitthatabruptlytran-
sitionsintoa sheerdropofover100m.Inwinter, im-
pressivecornicesformalongtheridgeline.
Duringthewarmermonths,thePinnacleRidge of-
fersthemostdirectbutsomewhatchallengingrouteto the summit. From the Knoll Ridge Café, follow the
marker poles of the Skyline Route up the Te Heuheu
Valley and onto Pinnacle Ridge. Continue beyond
the marked route along the ridgeline to the top. This
route is treacherous in icy conditions.
A safer, all-season route starts from the top of
Knoll Ridge T-bar. From the T-bar, start the climb by
heading south to get above a bluff, then turn left into
an east-southeast direction while steadily gaining el-
evation towards the top of the ridge. In summer, the
ascent passes over an energy-sapping scree slope
which, conveniently, provides for a quick descent. In
winter, the crampon-crunch snow makes the ascent
a bit more bearable.- Zhi Yuen Yap
Te Heuheu, Tongariro National Park
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