Only in New Zealand

We went to the visitors centre at Lake Taupo to determine whether it was possible to do the Tongariro crossing - a trek across steep volacnic terrain which takes all day but the organizers meet you at the end and bring you back to the start by van. We had been told that it was closed in Winter. Not true - but it is different from summer. First it is wiser to go with a guide as there is snow and ice and secondly the guides do not go every day. They wait for the weather reports which come in at 1.45 pm and based on that the guides make the call as to whether they will trek the following day. One girl waited 5 days!!!.
They were not climbing the day we were there and although they would have provided us with all our winter outer gear and boots and crampons we did not have our own thermal underwear etc which was a requirement being high and cold. We considered waiting and purchasing the clothing but in the end decided it was too uncertain so we headed for Mt. Ruapehu instead to watch the skiing and then to trek on one of the many trails in the mountains.
Not sure if you can see from this picture but from the parking lot the chair lifts go DOWN into a bowl of snow and it is there that you find the bunny slopes and the lessons and beginners. It felt strange to watch people going on a 'chair down' to ski. Also for me it was the first time I had seen skiers entering a chair lift without their skis on. The attendant put then into a quiver like contraption on the side of the chair for the skier. Seemed pretty dangerous to me and you had to be quick to get it all safely stowed as the lift went round and down.
However it was good to see all the children learning to ski and then to go climbing because by this time the sun was brilliant and we 'tramped' as they say in NZ in T shirts and admired the magnificent views from this range of mountains which includes Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe and Tongariro.