Cape to Ahipara and waiting out the Weather!

Day 1

After a week of flu like symptoms we both weren't sure if we'd make our start. However we decided to head to Ahipara and wait it out there should we feel too rough. Saturday came and we decided we were both well enough but figured we'd take some easy days to ease our bodies into it. First stop will be Twilight beach.

First of all thanks to our parents for getting us up to Cape Reinga and secondly to Noeleen and Bob for hosting us in Ahipara. 

We set off at 8:45 and got down to Te Werahe beach 45 minutes later. 3 hours before high tide and just in time to scramble the rocks in between sets. At the end of Te Werahe beach we had to wade mid thigh deep through the stream and tide to get off the beach. We took our boots and socks off for this as it was the only wet crossing we were expecting and didn't see the point in walking with wet feet. Coming over Te Kohatu point we found there had been significant rainfall and the surface was mostly slippery clay where we assume there had been sand. 3 marker posts have been uprooted here but there are loads so you won't have any doubts.

By the time we got to Twilight beach we were feeling the strain, the tide was high and sand soft making it hard work. We found the camp at the southern end. It's pretty posh if you ask me, with a gazebo, toilets and a water tank. With camp set up we got stuck into a Thai yellow curry, cup of tea and retired for the evening. Hope tomorrow sees better mileage as we hope to make the bluff. 

Day 2

Neither of us slept well, waking every 20 mins to change position, rained most of the night and was raining when the alarm went off so sheltered for an hour before breakie, using the long drop and heading off. The trail over Scott's head down to 90 mile beach is well marked, fab views of manuka bushes in flower across the hillsides, then amazing views of 90 mile beach and the steps and boardwalk, looked like a giant Chinese garden.  The beach walk is tough mentally and physically, It was drizzling when we arrived and it got steadily harder becoming driving rain needing waterproofs. I was having the longest internal dialogue with a bus or car driver justifying catching a lift. Needless to say we only saw one bus and car in convoy when we were about 4km from Waikanae Stream, they didn't stop and we'd decided to camp there, plenty of good water and we are both suffering from pain in our traps (the bits that hold your neck on)! Not all that impressed right now with the Ospre packs. They put too much weight in your shoulders and the weight in the hips tends to pinch at the back. Hope this is just a teething issue.

On approach to Waikanae stream we were greeted by a wild white horse. It ran out of the dunes and on to the beach to check us out before disappearing back into the seclusion of the dunes.

Tomorrow to Hukatere Lodge where I hope they have room for us and yes if a car stops we are going to take it for a little way, after all this is supposed to be fun and I've never driven on the beach before!

It's a good job yoga happens off the mat as well as on it! We haven't practiced any asana on the trail yet, we have plans for yin practice tomorrow evening and primary series when we wake at the lodge.

Day 3

Another wet night and the tent partially collapsed as we could only anchor into sand but we managed to stay dry. We awoke before dawn to find we were under siege from Mosquitos and Sandflies and opted to stay in until the sun rose. Most those little bastards left but a few stayed to sample the fresh meat on offer.

Once packed we set off and had to bush bash through the scrub, sometimes on hands and knees to get back to the beach (some shortcut that was). Once on the beach, we set a good pace doing about 5 km/h but as the tide came in and walking on soft sand, slowed to about 3 km/h and with a fierce head wind and baking sun we felt the energy drain from us. Hoping for that lift to help us make 40 km for the day we were only met with opposing traffic until we had done nearly 30 km. Then a diesel fitter happened along and we got a ride the last 8 - 10 km. Saved as plan b was to wild camp again but that just meant catching up the day after.

Now comfortably nestled in at Utea Park, Hukatere. This place is a little gem and would recommend it to any TA hiker. They have very basic cabins and a central kitchen/bathroom facility all for koha (that's donation)

Sites today are a young seal sunbathing on the beach, a dead dolphin and a large seal washed up. Apparently if you see dolphins or whales washed up you should report it to DOC or some other body as they will come collect and test for cause of death.

Saw some folks stuck in a sand dune. By the look of the car it wasn't 4WD but they took it up anyway.

Moans and groans are the pinching of my hip by my pack has bruised both sides but the traps are feeling a little better. Sherren's collar bones are bruised from hers. Feet are doing pretty good. No blisters yet and put that down to wearing gaiters. Most the leg muscles are aching but that goes with miles of soft sand. Sun burn kicked in a bit today. Even though it was cold and windy we got burnt and applied cream too late. Don't underestimate the sun here, even when cloudy you'll burn. We both copped it on the back of the knees. Ouch!

All in all feeling pretty good and hoping for an easier day tomorrow so we can fit some yoga in.

Day 4

Slept in till 7. 2 strong coffees for me and a tea for Sherren and we were straight into the yoga. Full primary less a few vinyasa. Felt pretty good considering. Bit of breakfast which I had to force down. Not had a very good appetite lately which make carrying all this food a bit laborious, then we were off again. Hitting the beach at low tide we were moving at about 6 km/h. Feeling the strain of yesterday's effort and the morning yoga we both hit the wall pretty quick, once again a strong wind in our faces, so strong there were a couple of people on a double buggy being pulled along the sand by kite. We were glad to reach the Top Ten Holiday park nice and early in the afternoon. 

We are the only ones on the lawn and after moving the tent thrice we have found a spot which is earthy enough for the tent pegs to hold and out of the wind.

Sherrens left knee is twinge-y today, quads and calfs are tight so must be pulling somewhere, one tiny blister otherwise fine and dandy.

Glens leg muscles are sore and the packs are still pulling on our shoulders.

Chatting with the lady in the office here she sees much worse than us, and much better too! Average is fine!

The beach was busier today, this end has a few vehicle access points so I guess it's easier to hop on and off, further north once your on it's at least an hour before you can get off, then the tide times become so much more important.  

Looking forward to seeing Bob and Noeleen tomorrow in Ahipara. 

Day 5

An early rise, straight on to the beach and with a not only surprisingly light wind but a tail wind too. We made it into Ahipara in a few hours. Chilling out now with dinner and a beer. Clothes washed and hanging out to dry, resupply package ready to fill the packs.

Sherren has a pain in her knee today and the weather is pretty grim with galeforce winds and torrential rain, so we'll wait it out here for an extra day and plan to head into Herekino Saturday morning (if the weather clears of course)

Tips for 90 mile!

Wear gaiters. They keep sand out your shoes and you're less likely to get blisters.

Mosquitos will bite you through your clothing. Wear rain shells around wild camps.

Filter/treat all stream water. Even after 3 days rain the water looked foamy, like it was contaminated with dairy farming effluent (very likely anywhere in NZ)

Sun block even if you think it's not needed. It's harsh even on cold day. Don't forget the back of your knees. This is the Southern Hemisphere, the sun will be on your back side (SOBO).

Bring 1 long right leg and 1 short left leg (SOBO) for the sloped beach walking.

At The Starting Line.

Our First Meal. 

Twilight Beach Campsite (*****)

Gear, Food, Preparations and We’re Ready to Stroll.

With 5 days till we head up north and 7 till we set off. Here’s our gear and food list with weights and sources along with a few more thoughts.

Gear

After reading just about every recommendation and review there is to read. We started our acquisition of gear prior to Christmas and purchased what we could fit into our suitcases in the UK, then dragged it across India, Thailand and Australia before landing in New Zealand. A laborious task it was but it saved us a load of money. Especially on the tent.

Then the 5 months we were in India, we continuously trawled the New Zealand internet retailers for discounted gear on our list, picking up packs and sleeping bags at half price. Then once in New Zealand went in to our chosen retailers with our lists and cheekily asked for discount, which we received fairly generously. So if you’re not time limited, compile your list, take your time and bulk buy items you need more than one of and you should get most your equipment for half what you’d expect to pay. For example: New Zealand is renowned for extremely overcharging on items like tents, boots, stoves, etc. So we purchased 3 pairs of boots at once in and got a big enough discount that the price was comparable to Europe or the US. And if your gear is not available in New Zealand, as is often the case. Then order it in from abroad. We pretty much received everything within a week from the UK and US and in some cases even got free delivery. Helps if you’ve got someone to receive all this stuff though. Thanks again Mum!

Now looking at the gear list, I’ve thrown in quite a few luxury items like ‘the kitchen sink’. Ridicule me if you will but while doing our best to keep weight to a minimum, we’ve also tried to find gear that will add to comfort, convenience and save us time and money in the long run and reduce our dependence on the mods and cons you get in town (at over inflated prices). So ‘the kitchen sink’ will double as a wash basin and a laundry basin and while keeping the funk at bay we also hope we won’t have to put half our pension into the slot machines at the Laundromats along the way. And if any of these extras aren’t really up to the task then we’ll just lose them on the way.

One gear let down, which I consider to be fairly major happened just yesterday. After downloading the up to date maps, notes, kmz and gpx files from the Te Araroa website. I found the gpx file has not been updated yet. So proceeding to convert the kmz to gpx, I added it to Garmin Basemap and was attempting to load on to the Etrex 20. Now the device just wasn’t operating correctly so I installed the Garmin recommended software update and boom. 1 dead device. Basically, it won’t boot as the system software in missing, it won’t boot in mass storage mode despite Garmin ensuring it will and it won’t update via Garmin Web Updater, which Garmin say it will. Being the weekend, the support office is closed and after emailing precise details of the fault and requesting a software fix, I’m met with a message saying I should expect a response within 72 hours from opening time on Monday morning (and may actually have to send the device in). Which means Wednesday. Now considering we leave Friday morning, this is not what we need. So long story short. The Garmin has been abandoned in favour of the iPhone 5 with NZ Topo50 apps and an uploaded kml file to use in conjunction with the maps and notes. And as it stands, I will probably do my damnedest to avoid Garmin products from here on in. All in all, I spent about 6 hours of my Saturday attempting to fix this flaw and found thousands of similar incidents on the various forums on the net. Not really acceptable for a company of this magnitude.

Best buy was our ‘Black Diamond Trail’ poles at: $67NZ per pair (Retail $149)

Food

Being vegan will probably be the most difficult part of doing this trail. We’ve actually had trouble finding what we deem acceptable food in Countdown and New World in Tauranga. Seems New Zealand has an obsession with adding cows milk to anything they can. Including potato chips and dried coconut milk. So finding edibles in a small town 4 Square won’t be easy either.

I started off with an idea of using a pressure cooker on the trail as a means to quickly cook dried beans and pulses on the trail but quickly abandoned this idea as there isn’t a cooker on the market that is lightweight and suitable enough to carry. I just like the idea of thinking outside the box and instead of focusing on the nutritionally limited, bland and overpriced ready meals, shift the focus to light weight effective gear that can cook pretty much everything that is already available. I’m tempted to get a prototype made next time I’m in India, otherwise if there are any hiking and camping entrepreneurs out there, feel free to develop something. It will revolutionise trail cooking and nutrition.

So our solution is to send food parcels ahead to friends, family and hostels we intend on staying at with 10 days of rations and we’ll top up on what we can in between. Many of the items we have included have a cook time of 20 minutes so we will also be carrying extra fuel to allow for the extra cooking time.

The plan for nutrition is to carry 10 days worth of food at 3000kcal each per day and top that up to 4000kcal plus with pita, canned beans, canned pulses and coconut cream etc when we’re passing through town. And if push comes to shove we may have to load on the dirty carbs with chips and ketchup. Nearly 1500kcal will be coming from fruit and nuts that we’ll eat with 500kcal oats and coconut paste at breakfast and grazing through the day. And the dinner will be 1000kcal carb load of rice, pasta, lentil with sauce and dried vegetables etc.

Preparations

Body Weight - Since leaving Asia we’ve both gained some extra pounds in part to the colder climate, overeating and a few beers and wines too. Downside is the fitness suffers a little but the upside is we’re carrying a buffer we can afford to lose if we’re not getting enough calories. This has also increased our pack weights as we’re carrying up to 25% of our body weight. And if we do drop the pounds we’ll be fitter so it won’t matter so much.

Walks - We’ve been for a few walks but not a lot. Did a 16km trek at Karangahake and we’ve walked up and around Mauau at Mt Maunganui a couple of times. We feel pretty fit and don’t really suffer from stiffness due to the yoga we do. So figure we’ll pick up the extra fitness required for carrying our packs on the way.

Gear trials and tests – We’ve had a run through of unpacking, erecting, taking down and repacking the tent. Tested the sleeping mats and bags. We got 650 fill sleeping bags which are pretty light and small. They zip together so on colder nights we won’t go cold. Packed and unpacked the backpack and have a pretty good idea regarding position of the load. Cooked dinner with our cooker. And am pretty happy with the repeated pack, unpack, assemble, disassemble process for everything.

Trail notes – Sherren has been going through the trail notes and adding supplementary information from previous hikers trail notes that may be useful and we’ve been marking points on the map when we need to send a food parcel. We’ve also noted where we will need to resupply. Accommodation we’ll plan 1 to 2 days in advance as we’re travelling except when we plan to pick up a food parcel which we’ll try and give a weeks notice if possible to secure a booking.

And with all that. We’re ready to stroll!

The outlook for the weather doesn’t look good for Sunday but we’re going to have to get used to walking in the rain at some point and with high tide set for midday, at least the sand at the top of the beach will be a little firmer.

Green – What we got and packed

Grey – What we decided to leave out

Blue – What we’re still waiting on

You’ll see my pack will be a fairly constant weight and Sherren will be carrying the bulk of the food cutting down to a very light pack by day 5 after resupply.

Te Araroa Trail – The Long Pathway

For those of you who don’t know. Well here’s what Wikipedia says!

Te Araroa (The Long Pathway) is New Zealand’s newest long distance tramping route, from Cape Reinga to Bluff. The 3000 km route officially opened on December 3, 2011 after 10 years of work by hundreds of volunteers. Construction coordinated by the Te Araroa Trust is ongoing.

The trail has approximately 300 sections ranging from walks of 1–2 hours through to a 9-day route in the South Island where full equipment must be carried. Te Araroa joins a mixture of existing tracks and walkways, new tracks and link sections alongside roads. 40% of the trail crosses conservation land and the Government allocated $NZ3.8 million for development of new sections of the trail on conservation land in 2007.

For more information, visit: www.teararoa.org.nz

The straight line distance from Cape Reinga to Bluff is 1475 km, but the Te Araroa Trail covers a longer nominal distance of 3000 km and has since been adjusted with upgraded sections. Tramping the full length of the trail takes three to six months. The fastest effort was by British ultramarathon runner Jezz Bragg, who managed 53 days during the 2012-13 season, although he contracted giardia and was lucky to survive being swept away by a river in the Richmond Ranges.

Some bloggers report around 100 days, but many take their time to enjoy the whole season and spend around 150 days.

Route Subject to Change!

For more information visit:

www.teararoa.org.nz

https://www.facebook.com/groups/26638669574/

http://teararoatrail.freeforums.org/index.php

http://tawiki.org/wiki/Main_Page

Between these four sites, you’ll find all the information you’ll need to plan your trip. All these resources are compiled by the Te Araroa Trust, past, present and future hikers. A big thanks to all.

Who are we?

Glen – A Kiwi (Living in UK the last 15 years), former electrician and building services engineer and now a budding yoga teacher. I have historical experience with the New Zealand wilderness however after 20 years of being a ‘city slicker’, I harbour no illusion that this will be an easy feat.

Sherren – A British Police Officer, budding yoga teacher and adventurer.

Why are we walking it?

When we decided to come to Aotearoa, we agreed to buy a car and travel the length of the country to see as much as we could. After about a week Sherren said “can you cycle it?”

Well of course you can, so we started researching this option and happened across the Te Araroa and were sold. After all, why not walk?

After all this is about our experience in the now and not being one of those old farts sitting around saying “I wish I’d done that when I was younger!”

When are we walking it?

We are planning to set off from Cape Rienga on the 28^th September. This route is referred to as SOBO (south bound). Hoping to have completed the north island by Christmas when we will take a break to catch up with family and complete a 3 week yoga workshop before setting off from Picton on the 17^th/18^th January also SOBO

What challenges we expect?

1)We both have vegan diets, which is difficult at the best of times when undertaking a hike of this magnitude and New Zealand doesn’t make this any easier (for obvious agrarian economic reasons).

Therefore a lot of time and effort has gone into researching what we can eat and re-supply with along the way. Which will mean we will be sending more food parcels ahead and carrying more food than most folks when these parcels arrive. I don’t think we’ll be facing starvation at any point however we’d like to enjoy what we’re eating along the way as much as possible.

2)We both have a daily Ashtanga Yoga practice. For us it is not an option to put this on hold. Therefore we will be up before dawn each day to complete our practice before setting off. The practice is 90 minutes and usually consumes about 600kcals. Therefore we expect to walk less than the average walker each day and will plan on taking extra rest days to prevent exhaustion. The Ultimate challenge here will be finding groundspace flat and stable enough to practice on. It could end up getting a little mucky.

One product we did manage to find is http://www.yogapaws.com and here’s what they say.

“You can take YogaPaws Anywhere, meaning you can Do Yoga ANYWHERE!  Mountain Top, bike trail, airport, rest area, back porch, Water Fall, Central Park, in the Rain, in the Ocean.  No Matter how crazy or slippery from sweat or sea water, YogaPaws will keep you solid in each pose. The world is your studio with YogaPaws.

So wherever life takes you, take your practice with you!”

So we’ve decided to give them the Te Araroa Test and see how they hold up. And if you see us along the way don’t be shy, Join in. Your ceased joints and stiff muscles will thank you for it.

Why are we not walking to raise funds for a charity?

Two vegan yogi’s walking the length of New Zealand and not doing it for charity. Hard to believe isn’t it?

But with most western government regulation dictating that only a meagre 5% actually has to go to any given cause, I have a hard time watching the other 95% fill the coffers of these so called do gooders. If you feel charitable please donate your time and efforts to helping your preferred cause.

However if you are walking for charity and that’s something you believe in, don’t let us deter you.

Will it look good on your CV?

If you’re a graduate who speaks 4 languages, are on the equestrian, chess or fencing team, plays cello in quartet, with a keen interest in conquering any challenge that lay ahead and you’re walking for charity, etc. And you’re aiming for an internship with a multinational powerhouse, then probably. Otherwise it will look better than any other unexplained 6 month absence from education or work (I.e. Prison)

Equipment research and acquisition.

We decided to walk the trail about a year ago and began loosely researching and planning at the same time. Some of the best research you can find will be from previous and current walkers via the Te Araroa Facebook , Wiki, and forum pages. Once you get an idea for something you want or like, just hit the internet for reviews and comparisons (I.e. Outdoor Gear Lab is a fantastic site). It’s time consuming but it’s all part of the fun.

One difficulty we’ve had with the purchasing of our desired equipment is that we left the UK 7 months prior to our planned set off date, visiting India, Thailand and Australia on the way with a total of 8 flights prior to landing in New Zealand. Ideally, I wanted to purchase all our equipment in one go and ship it in but it was just too much to lug around for so long. If you are travelling from Europe or the Americas, I would recommend bringing everything you need including batteries as New Zealand can be notoriously expensive and under stocked. Therefore, we purchased and carried what we could and then shopped around once we got here.

However given the lack of stock in the country we have been completing our purchases online and have ordered in from the UK and USA. Delivery is actually extremely quick and we’ve not yet had to wait longer than a week.

That said, we have managed to get some good deals here too. It’s just been a matter of checking for online sales regularly or just asking for discount in store (which has proven effective on all occasions) and having somewhere to send the gear or knowing someone local who can pick it up is a huge help (thanks Mum). Of course this method also requires time.

Stores and online retailers we’ve used for gear and food are:

Trail Designs - USA

Yoga Paws - USA

Amazon - UK

Springfield - Camping UK

Chain Reaction - UK

Simply Cycle - UK

Banana Fingers - UK

Ellis Bingham - UK

Bivouac - Tauranga

Kathmandu - Tauranga

R&R Sport - Hamilton

Blademaster - Auckland

Hunting and Fishing - Tauranga

Kmart - Mount Maunganui

The Warehouse - Tauranga

Payless Plastics - Tauranga

The 123 Mart ($2 Shop) - Mount Maunganui

Rebel Sport - Tauranga

Countdown

New World

The Asian Supermarket - Tauranga

Bin Inn - Tauranga

Wild Earth Organics - Tauranga

Merchant Gourmet - Tauranga

I have this romantic notion, that if you’re from the USA you can just walk into REI and purchase every thing you need in one go, get a huge discount and walk out – Job done. However I stand to be corrected and as frustrating as it has been locating gear at a fair price, it has been fun searching.

We’ve just about completed our gear and food list and will publish along with weights when the last few items arrive.