Craters of the Moon lies within the Taupo volcanic zone that extends from three active volcanoes, Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe, and Tongariro in the south to White Island in the Bay of Plenty in the east.

Its landscape can be traced back over 700 years.

Underground geothermal activity along the belt shows itself on the surface as fumaroles, geysers, mud pools and hot springs.

Most spectacular was the Karapiti Blowhole that attracted visitors for the past 200 years.  Its towering steam plume was so tall that Māori used it as a landmark when navigating their waka across Lake Taupo.  Other than the Blowhole itself, thermal activity near Karapiti was restricted to small areas of warm soils and mud pools.

As a result of the development of the Wairakei power station in the 1950’s the underground pressures declined, resulting in extensive changes to the geothermal springs and geyser activity. The power station started using underground resources that affected landscape and thermal activity at the Craters of the Moon site.

At Karapiti the existing steam-heated features rapidly increased in intensity and a number of new eruption craters and steaming fumaroles were formed. 

By 1965 the heat output from the Karapiti area had increased by almost ten times. From 1965-2002 there were more than 20 steam eruptions, occurring roughly every two years, creating the mysterious landscape that led to the name “Craters of the Moon”.

In 1987 the Karapiti Blowhole collapsed, and the most active steam vents migrated to the hillside nearby where they can be seen closeup from the viewing platform.

Computer models predict that with continuing operation of the Wairakei power station and reinjection of the cooled geothermal fluids, the thermal activity at Karapiti will gradually decline. 

However, measurement of the actual heat flow at Karapiti showed minimal change from 1980 until the most recent measurement in 2004.

Since 2002 there have been no more hydrothermal eruptions at Karapiti. However there remain large areas where temperatures reach boiling point only 20 cm below the surface with very active steam vents in the north and western parts of the site, and the possibility of further eruptions cannot be discounted.

Visitor access became possible in the 1980’s when the Department of Conservation built boardwalks and facilities to allow safe access to view the hot thermal features.

In 1991 a group of volunteers, organised by Jeremy Nash, began to watch over the site, originally operating out of a caravan and supported by donations.

This was so successful that the site evolved by adding an off-grid kiosk and souvenir shop with entry fees going towards maintenance of the walkways and facilities.

Today the site is managed by the Craters of the Moon Trust who operate under a permit from the landowners, Ngāti Tūwharetoa.

Entry to Craters of the Moon thermal walk is through the kiosk beside an extensive car park. Picnic tables and seats within the park have been installed for visitor use.  Visitors can browse the souvenir and gift shop, where light refreshments are available.