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Te Araroa: The Storm That Ends All
Te Araroa: The Storm That Ends All 22.03.2020 Day 146 (16km) Thank goodness it was a short day, because the wind was howling as we walked a pebbly beach towards coastal farmland. One of my gaiters came loose, allowing the tiny rocks to fling themselves into my shoe. With the temperamental weather, I wasn’t keen to stop and remove them. After our final climb of the TA, which was only a couple hundred meters up to a viewpoint, we descended into Riverton’s residential neighborhoods. Alex had booked us an AirBnb, which was so lovely that within a few minutes we decided to reserve it for another day. The weather was…
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Te Araroa: The Richmond Ranges (Part II)
27.01.2020 Day 91 (14km) I don’t know if I’ve ever been so terrified in my life. An orange pole stuck out of the ground behind a pile of boulders, marking the summit of Little Mt Rintoul. From where I was standing it seemed clear that the trail wrapped around to the left and met the marker on the other side. Looking back, I think I might have been meant to clamber up over the hill instead. The trail to the left took me out onto a tight ledge with at least a 500 meter sheer drop. Panic welled in my chest as the wind nagged at my pack. I had…
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Te Araroa: Able Tasman
20.01.2020 Day 84 (23km) Well, I’m off the TA again, making up kilometers I skipped on the road sections. My side trip of choice, Able Tasman, a beautiful National Park along the northwest coast of South Island. Sarah and I took an early morning shuttle from Nelson so we could catch the earliest water taxi of the day. They loaded us into the boat at the tour company, then towed it down to the water using a tractor. Since the tides go out by a few kilometers each day, sometimes they have to drive the boats quite far to launch them. We stopped at some iconic rock formations along the…
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Te Araroa: Pushing Past Hamilton
20.11.2019 Day 31 (23km) Some mornings prove difficult to get out of bed. Lately, I’ve found myself questioning why I’m putting myself through this hike. This morning was one of those days, fortunately the feeling was fleeting. After a 6km stretch of road (no I didn’t skip all the roads), I was immersed in a rooty forest. Drizzle drifted through the ferns, landing in soft kisses on my face. The scent of fresh earth fueled my steps as I climbed higher into the hills. Despite the damp weather, the mud was nothing compared to Puketi and Raetea. There was, however, a slight disagreement between my toes and one of the…
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Darwin
I didn’t want to stay there. It was in the middle of nowhere, our site was awkward and far away from the toilets, and for two dollars more we could have real toilets instead of portaloos and a shower with a door vs a semi-transparent net. We weren’t even sure it was the right place and the whole thing felt wrong. Without bothering to find the owner, we drove back through the winding dirt roads to a caravan park twenty minutes up the highway. Cool showers were a relief after morning hikes and the long, stuffy drive from Kakadu. Looci and I took our time to get a little spruced…
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Kakadu
Water buffalo…did those even exist in Australia? Apparently they did because there was an entire family running across the road in front of us. Of all the things I had expected to see in Kakadu, water buffalo wasn’t one of them. Moisture made itself known in the leaves’ vibrancy and the large emerald clumps dispersed among the tall-weedy grasses. Clouds flitted across the sun, covering the land in cool shadows. After a morning at the Gunlom infinity pool the only plan for the day was driving. There weren’t many free camp options in Kakadu, so we ended up paying fifteen dollars. The flushable toilets, sinks, and showers were a welcome…
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Byron Bay
The cocks began crowing around three am, though the sun was far from rising. Whether they belonged to a nearby farm or had simply decided to make the campsite their home, I do not know. There were at least ten of them wandering around while we made coffee. Don’t fret, we waited till the sun was up, despite the cock’s best efforts. Fog hugged the landscape, but it was evident that the sun would claim victory over the day. After a quick bite, we continued on our drive to Byron Bay. It was quite far so we stopped at Lennox Head for lunch and considered having a swim. There was…
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Hagrid and His Hills
The view made the steep climb entirely worth it. From a solitary picnic table, we stood gazing out over the Pacific. As a local, I would have gladly hiked up there every day to enjoy my lunch in the sun. From one side of the hill the terrain was a moist jungle, with spider lines crossing the path every few feet. Wild turkeys strutted about in the bush, eyeing us with caution. The opposite side was a drier, dusty walk, with wide spaced eucalyptus and tall, pokey grasses. Though we could have climbed up a mountain near Buladelah and seen an old mine, I really wanted to go for a…
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Well (Down)Under Way
The cold was biting, but couldn’t stop us from getting up early to do yoga in the little park we had slept in. School children walked along a track that took them to the school across the street. It was a Tuesday morning and not everyone was on holiday like Looci and I. An old man followed his dog through the grassy football field in front of us. The curious mutt trotted over to inspect my downward dog, not bothering to wipe his paws before stepping on my mat. He was quickly satisfied and moved on to more enticing scents. Once our bodies were warmed…well in theory…in reality I was…
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Hagrid
There was a leech on my leg! Well, I mean he was on my pant leg. Looci and I had checked for signs of them a few minutes before, but we had expected the bigger buggers you see in films. These were tiny little wriggling strands, easily missed by the untrained eye. Using the back of a fork she scraped it off me and flung it away. It was time to search again. There were four on me and six on Looci. Fortunately, none had latched on yet. Although I was apprehensive for the next day and a half thinking I would eventually discover one fully engorged on my blood.…
Insights and Stories Through the Eyes of a Wanderer
