As I cautiously edged my way down the Dragon's Tail, the heat intensified, volcanic steam and poisonous gases escaping wherever they could from the surrounding rubble.  Reaching the valley floor, sunlight beat down mercilessly and not satisfied, it then bounced back up from the glaringly white sand.

Assuming it was compressed, I tugged harder on my hydration tube which remained stubbornly dry. Running out of water in the midst of a desert on a hot summer’s day was clearly not my intention but it was my reality.

Having just crested the Tongariro Alpine Crossing alongside the impressive Red Crater I gazed down the precipitous volcanic scree slope which sidled past the breathtaking Emerald Lakes. We’d planned to stop alongside the lakes and the only thing between me and my sandwich was this hair raising descent. 

I weighed up the options and was attracted most by the plan to skid down on my butt so that I’d not tumble head over heels off the narrow spur. At this height, this felt a very real possibility!