Logistics can be a nightmare too, making decision-making challenging and forcing hikers to walk longer distances than they might like just to get to the next accommodation point. She was working for the New Zealand Manufacturers' Federation promoting buying New Zealand-made goods during the depression. The Te Araroa is a 3,000km trail stretching from Cape Reinga in the North of New Zealand to Bluff, in the very south, through beaches, volcanoes, forests, mountains and cities. As a backup I also carried a rather heavy Steripen. I also did a kayaking course to prepare myself for the kayaking sections that can be done. It passes through the spectacular Waitomo Caves. North Island maps - 77 pages, 431 MB, 300 DPI. Most people go with lightweight trail running shoes that dry quickly, based on the vast number of river crossings on the trail. Hike the best parts of the Te Araroa Trail on the North Island of New Zealand. Te Araroa Te Araroa is a town in the Gisborne Region of the North Island of New Zealand. Two weeks before I did this section, a German girl got lost in the forest and fell off a waterfall at 9pm and was forced to call for search and rescue. New Zealanders have coined the word tramping, which I like to define as extreme hiking. A through-hike of the Te Araroa trail will take four to six months depending on walking speed, distance covered each day (some walkers clock 50km days – on good tracks – once their trail legs kick in), whether you decide to hitchhike or miss sections, possible injuries and weather conditions. North Island Trail. You don’t … She also completed other long walks, spent time in Australia diving for coral, crocodile hunting and opal mining. Written by: McKenzie Barney. This is one of the other most talked about topics on the trail. Many people choose to only walk the South Island where the "proper" mountains are, but this is almost a disservice to the full trail and misses the numerous highlights of the North Island, including the town and country culture of New Zealand. The trail travels from Cape Reinga on the North Island to Bluff on the South Island, passing through 9 distinct regions on its way. In the end you will figure out what works for you but I recommend hardening your feet and breaking in your footwear before starting the walk. I met several ultra-lightweight walkers (mainly Americans), who had base weights of 6kg. The North Island route is just over 1600.0km long, and the South Island just under 1400.0km. Again, hitchhiking to and from Bluff is also possible. Reed, 1961) A.H. says in explanation of the journey "Yes, I knew I wanted to travel leisurely on foot through the whole length of our favoured land..."A.H. that's it - you had Te Araroa spirit! New Zealand’s Te Araroa Trail is the world’s newest long-distance thru-hike. But it was something of a baptism of fire to long distance walking. Detailed information. Logistics and planning each day's point A to point B walk can be challenging in places, particularly on the North Island. As it was, it would have been unwise to continue had my injury recovered because the seasons were already starting to change and I still had 1,000km left to walk. I met a lot of walkers who weren't carrying water treatment means to save weight and because they believed New Zealand river water was safe to drink. He'd already walked the 4,000 km Pacific Crest Trail along the Sierra Nevada Range in America. He has written an account of the journey. Food parcels can be arranged in advance. Of course, as one NOBO walker I met said, hard is relative – some people will find the trail and the terrain harder than others. It is situated 175 km north of Gisborne city, along State Highway 35 between Tokata and Awatere. She wrote a bestselling book, stood for parliament, designed and built houses and ran several businesses. We need to look at new ways to ensure we can keep providing our content and features whilst maintaining our key aim of allowing free access to everyone. And along the route, class after class of school-children were gathered for compulsory, but unforgettable, immersion in the eerie spell cast by this old, gaunt giant of early hiking. People clapped him through, brought him cups of tea, waved and tooted from cars, screeched to a halt by the entire busload. The Te Araroa Trail is different, and that unique character is part of its beauty and part of the challenge in walking it. I was clearly a slow walker and took a lot of rest days. Katrina Megget offers the lowdown on this classic Kiwi mega-tramp, and advice on gear and logistics. But I think that walking this trail, believe it or not, is a bit like baking a cake. This makes navigating interesting at times. Mine was a gloriously leisurely thru hike and below is my Te Araroa Trail itinerary. For my first attempt at the trail, I used the MSR Trailshot Micro water filter. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. The North Island - The Te Araroa Cake I’m no baker and to be quite honest I wasn’t particularly well-versed in the ins and outs of long-distance hiking before I started the Te Araroa Trail. Buying a backcountry hut pass from the Department of Conservation will be needed. Te Araroa. The Te Araroa (Maori for “long pathway”) is the world’s newest long-distance hiking trail, from the northernmost tip of the North Island to the southern point of the South Island. By way of some post-Covid planning inspiration, local expert Nutan Shinde-Pawar introduces all the major mountain are... One of Europe's great long-distance routes, the Haute Route Pyrenees extends for some 800km from Atlantic to Mediterranean along the crest of the high Pyrenees. (Updated 25 September 2020) South Island maps - 68 pages, 413 MB, 300 DPI. You also need to know what survival equipment to carry and how to avoid getting hypothermia… A moderate level of fitness is all that is required to make a realistic attempt at a through-tramp.". It's the one word most commonly used in conversations. The Mangaokewa River path is barely a foot wide and in poor quality, traversing high above a river. It is an authentic account interpreted from the pages of his logbook, with foreword by Graeme Dingle MBE ONZM. It is a pathway stretching more than 3,000 kilometers (nearly 2,000 miles) from Cape Reigna at the top of the North Island to … The Te Araroa Trust does an amazing job of offering these on their site to be downloaded FOR FREE! We recommend checking this page regularly before and during your journey as route alterations may have arisen since planning your journey. Destination GuideNew Zealand's Great Walks
It’s a spiritual place, so very fitting for what lies ahead. Bad weather closed in, strong winds lifted him off his feet, but he made it out, crossed farmland to Ashhurst, road-walked to Shannon, then traversed the Tararuas, linked with the Rimutaka Incline trail , road-walked to Lake Ferry then round the coast to Cape Palliser. He found it "a slog really" with too few enjoyable moments. Hiking Trails. There are also sections that are more dangerous, like the lack of signage in the muddy Raetea Forest. /records/22777165. "Did I enjoy my walk?" All rights reserved. The best word to describe the trail is demanding. The written word follows this intrepid trek and relays the true characteristics of the journey – rough, raw, tenacious, and at times tedious. Their stories give us a powerful insight not just into Te Araroa but to New Zealand. Self-contained cottage ($150/double) or camping ($25/site). A girl I met tripped off the track and fell two metres. In Nov 2019, I started running the Te Araroa Trail, from Cape Reinga to Bluff. Running the length of New Zealand from end to end, the Te Araroa (TA) Trail officially opened in 2011 and has seen a steady increase in walker numbers over the years. he says. and it got right behind AH. Firstly, expect blisters – lots of them. The backcountry huts are old huts often set up for hunters or musterers decades ago. In the 1960s the nation enjoyed surfing a single emotion - the Beatles right? The Te Araroa Trust suggests 50-80 days per island. In the end I soaked my feet in Epsom salts for several days, popped my blisters with a sterilised needle, used an iodine solution and taped my feet. I started the trail on 14th October 2017 and finished on 02nd March 2018. That said, the walkers I met were all ordinary people. It’s a walking track about 3,000 km long from Bluff at the southern tip of the South Island to Cape Reinga at the top of the North Island that was officially opened in 2011. To get to and from Bluff at the southern terminus, a bus is required again between Bluff and the bigger city Invercargill, which has plane and bus links to other cities. Death from crossing rivers is one of the top contributors to deaths in the New Zealand backcountry. Te Araroa is NZ's walk of a lifetime. If you come from overseas you will notice New Zealanders tend to wear heavy boots, gaiters, shorts over longjohns, heavy Gore-tex rain gear and sturdy packs. Created with sketchtool. New Zealanders have coined the word tramping, which I like to define as extreme hiking – the Te Araroa Trail gives the hiker a proper taste of what this means. The octogenarian did the North Island half in 86 days. A good walk! Meanwhile, a donation to the TA Trust of NZ$250 per Island walked is recommended to ensure maintenance and management of the trail. At an average of 25 kms a day, the trail takes 120 days to walk – four months. Te Araroa means “The Long Path” and so it is. The free demo covers a 60-kilometre portion of the Te Araroa in the Auckland area on the North Island of New Zealand. Trail karma will come back to kick you in the ass if you don’t. Along its meandering route, the TA crosses through native bush forests, rural farmland, stunning alpine vistas, and even Auckland’s city center. Geoff Chapple's Churchill Fellowship report, The last New Zealand long walker we know of is George Spearing. So far, all we’ve asked is that you visit and interact with the site, but we are now in uncertain times. But, in his book From North Cape to Bluff (A.H.& A.W. Te Araroa (The Long Pathway) is New Zealand's long distance tramping route, stretching circa 3,000 kilometres (1,900 mi) along the length of the country's two main islands from Cape Reinga to Bluff.It is made up of a mixture of older tracks and walkways, new tracks, and link sections alongside roads. Created with sketchtool. The Far North is a remote region with long, lonely stretches of sand, forests of dense bush, steep hills and fast-rising rivers. For example, you should only camp at the designated campsites on Ninety Mile Beach, the very first section of the trail SOBO, which means on day two of the walk you have to cover 28km and on day three, 30km – making it a rude introduction to the trail. Here is a fast-paced video showcasing the Te Araroa and all its variety: Te Araroa Video Overview The trail conservancy hopes to reduce this amount in future years. As a general rule, around 80% of the North Island is camping (or tenting as Kiwi's call it) at designated campsites or holiday parks, while about 80% of the South Island is in backcountry huts. Walking on sand, which gets into your shoes, with wet feet, because you can't escape the tide, is a recipe for blisters. If you were to walk all of it, it would take five months! Some had walked other long distance trails, but for others, the TA was their first. Anyone can do this if you're prepared and have the right mental attitude. How it compares to other long-distance walking trails. A through-hike of the Te Araroa trail will take four to six months depending on walking speed, distance covered each day (some walkers clock 50km days – on good tracks – once their trail legs kick in), whether you decide to hitchhike or miss sections, possible injuries and weather conditions. Increasingly, however, as the trail has become more popular, more trail angels have popped up to help with logistics and provide accommodation. Not much river access. Being the first person to walk the length of New Zealand was just one of James’ adventures. Details about where to post to are in the trail notes but these need to be posted ahead of starting the South Island section. In the North Island, food and resupply isn't a big problem because of the towns regularly walked through. Located 7 km north of Atene, 2 km south of Koroniti and 43 north of Whanganui. In the end, over the two seasons I walked the trail, I used four pairs of shoes. But there are increasing numbers of walkers choosing to walk northbound mainly because they will likely encounter fewer walkers and get stuck in fewer walker bubbles. The TA Trust, which manages the trail, recommends that walkers consider a backcountry/bushcraft survival course, especially a river crossing course. While there is no permit or fee needed to walk the trail, a permit is required to walk the Queen Charlotte Track at the top of the South Island. Reed Publishing - walked on-road the whole way. What is the Te Araroa Trail? The 85-year-old's journey entered New Zealand's heart. What followed was an 18 year labour of love to turn Te Araroa into reality, picking up many willing contributors along the way. One of the particular advantages of this trail is that New Zealand has no bears, mountain lions, snakes, poisonous insects or insect-borne diseases, meaning there is one less thing to worry about. Some will work, some not. Several sections of the route intentionally require kayaking and canoeing as well as the aforementioned ferry. I did a river crossing course in the Lake District before I left for New Zealand. On our South Island journey, this famous trail brings us from the coastal forests of Queen Charlotte Sound to Fiordland National Park, where the Te Araroa meets the Southern Ocean. Obviously, fitness training, namely hillwalking with a heavy pack, should be considered. Start out with too much – my pack weighed 17kg but I met one girl fell. Mainly off-road, started at the northern end of the trails, but for others, the last Zealand! Extreme hiking heard was that 30 % of walkers drop out after first! Point, Surville cliffs, and dislodged the lucky horseshoe details about to! 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