Many tourists who are drawn to the Taupō and Ruapehu district are from Auckland, and I guess they are aware they also live on an active volcanic field, with the last eruption being about 600 years ago at Rangitoto.
Then, just as the Government gives a date for the reopening of the international borders, the Department of Conservation floats a plan to limit walkers on the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, a major tourist drawcard.
While the borders were closed a huge number of people wanted to go skiing and snowboarding on Mt Ruapehu as it was perceived as an outdoor activity with a low risk of getting Covid-19.
The pressure on Mt Ruapehu skifields was so high that a car parking system had to be introduced to limit the number of people per day. The end result was a novel experience of having the luxury of being on an uncrowded mountain, and perhaps this is what Ngāti Hikairo have in mind when they want to limit tourist numbers due to cultural reasons.
While snow lovers and the tourism industry are hoping for snow, a few weeks ago the National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) reported New Zealand was in for a rare triple-dip La Nina, and this means a warmer, wetter winter in the central North Island. This potentially means a slow start to the ski season, but last year the spring skiing was awesome on Mt Ruapehu and we had it to ourselves as the borders were closed.
I personally would like to enjoy spring skiing without the Aussies, but for the sake of our tourism industry, I hope someone tells them how amazing spring skiing is on Mt Ruapehu.