Te Araroa: Northland
The folding of my tent poles is loud in the still quiet of the morning. The Paihia Top 10 holiday park isn’t exactly busy but all the guests have been […]
Te Araroa: The Northland Forests
I check in early to the Beachcomber Lodge, I get the same room as last time. I suspect I was probably the last person to stay there. I am the […]
Te Araroa: Ninety Mile Beach
I’m the first one through Queenstown Airport in the morning. Dawn hasn’t touched the sky. The long, logistic nightmare to the North finally begins. I’m briefly washed with a regret […]
New Zealand: Cascade Saddle
My return to Bluff from Oban is in complete contrast to my arrival. Cloudless blue sky rests above sparkling blue sea. The hills of Stewart Island, blue in the distant […]
New Zealand: The Northwest Circuit
The Bluff Lodge is located in the old post office. I enter in my oversized hat and mask like a New World outlaw about to rob the place. All I […]
Te Araroa: Bluff
The team finish in stages. Bryan and Luke walked to Bluff the day Jack and I arrived. I commit to a zero, preparing for what comes next. Jack goes alone. […]
Te Araroa: Southland
The rain falls all through the night. Not enough to give me a dry day. Not enough to convince me to wait. I’m almost late for the bus. The extra […]
Te Araroa: The Mavora Lakes
The Jucy Snooze is a weird place. The dorm rooms are advertised as pods. The bunks are enclosed behind a blind. It’s like being in my tent, only a little […]
Te Araroa: The Motatapu Range
Wanaka is alive before me. Paddle boarders and rowers already on the water. Dog walkers on the foreshore. Bryan already some half an hour down the trail. Jack and Quentin […]
Te Araroa: Breast Hill Track
The bucktooth summit of Aoraki rises beyond the lip of the Ben Ohau range. Lake Ohau shimmers sky blue. Whisps of cloud streak Hugh above. Luke’s enthusiasm for everything is […]
I Don't Have The Map 