Craters of the Moon

This field is largely an accident. When the Wairakei geothermal power station began drawing steam in the 1950s, the pressure and water table underground dropped, and the ground here responded by drying, heating and collapsing - new craters formed, hydrothermal eruptions blew out others, and the whole area became more active than it had been. So the landscape is essentially industrial in origin and around seventy years old. A boardwalk loop of about forty-five minutes runs through it past steaming vents, mud pools and craters, with a side climb to a lookout over the field toward Taupo and, on a clear day, the volcanoes. The vegetation is worth noticing: prostrate kanuka and heat-tolerant mosses grow right up to vents where the soil is too hot for anything else. The site is Crown land looked after by the Department of Conservation with help from a volunteer trust, and the entry fee goes back into the track.

History

In 1859 the Austrian geologist Ferdinand von Hochstetter reported a huge column of steam from the Karapiti Blowhole, visible from about 20 km away, and by the early 20th century it was a tourist attraction. The Wairakei Power Station, built about 2 km to the north in the 1950s, lowered the pressure underground; the heat output here rose from about 40 MW in 1950 to 420 MW in 1964, and hydrothermal eruptions formed the craters (Wikipedia, Craters of the Moon (geothermal site)).

What you'll find

• The collapse craters - formed after the power station dropped the water table.
• The steaming vents and mud - along the boardwalk loop.
• The lookout climb - over the field toward Taupo.
• The heat-tolerant plants - kanuka and moss growing to the vent edges.

When to go

Any season; a cold still morning gives the most steam and the best photographs. It is less crowded than the Rotorua parks.

Practical notes

Ticketed, though modestly. The loop has a steep section to the lookout. Stay on the boardwalk absolutely - the crust is thin and the ground beneath is scalding. The site smells strongly of sulphur.

Nearby

Aratiatia Rapids and Huka Falls are close; Taupo is ten minutes south.

Key facts