Thursday 24 December 2015

Dec 15 Hamilton - Pirongia mt base

Took a rest day yesterday to catch up on the newly released blockbuster: James Bond Spectre. I also watched a hilarious Christmas comedy movie 'The Night Before'. It was quite different being in a 'big' city such as Hamilton. After finding out I had lost both my knives....I went to MacPac and bought a standard Swiss Army knife. 
Now again to clarify, I don't wantto road walk when I can easily avoid it by taking say a vehicle with four wheels, or a bus. There is a 15km walk to Whakawhaka which is pronounced fakafaka. When I bought a bus ticket I said Whakawhaka when I clearly knew it was wrong but I didn't want the teller to go "what'd you call me!!"  
While waiting for the bus I had made a bounce box with things that were in my bag that I didn't need. I lost about 5lbs, including camera (I've taken 3 photos), thermal bottoms an tops( cause it's summer), a t shirt, and some body and foot creams I don't really need now that my feet are say 'acclimatized' to walking 30km a day. Sent it for 6$ to Taumarunui. 
Took a normal city bus 12minutes to Whakawhaka, found the only shop there, bought a nice cream bar and was on my way to the base of Pirongia. 
10km in a high school van pulled beside us and offered a lift tithe base, but since cheating already today we denied. The road walk wasn't too bad, there was barely any traffic so progress was good. 
As the ominous mountain/volcano thing came nearer and nearer into view I kept wondering how bloody muddy this jungle is going to be. Every jungle has been just brutal, this one will be better tho because there is a 16person hut at the top. Either dinner or lunch will be dry..temporarily. 
At the end of the road there was a 2km walk to another campsite area at the very base of the mountain. Set up camp and had dinner on a bench! Heck yeah. 

Side note I have had feet problems and I was assuming it was sand under my shoe souls. Therefore I sliced at the base of the shoe soul and found about a 1/4 cup of sand per shoe. Now why in the hell would a shoe have an inner liner where the only way to get particulates out I it was to destroy the shoe??? Anyways, tomorrow I my feet will be ok




Dec 7 Manakau to Clevedon

Coromandel was nice, very secluded and had stunning views. But back to hiking now. It's a 25k to Clevedon. I got my stitches out today in Manakau medical clinic which was a nice relief. I thought my hand would have been healed more than what it was but it's still parted and not together. Whatever I'll jut have to take good care of it keeping it clean. I'm not using my right pole so the walkin feels different. Can't get into much of a rhythm walking like before. 
Walking to Clevedon was mostly road walking with a 5 km detour through a pine forest. It passed right before a quarry and went straight up. 
I stopped in Clevedon after making the decision I would much rather sleep in a motel then a tent. Tough choice. 
Tomorrow is the start of the Hunua Range. Weather looks perfect so it should be a good time. 



Dec 4 Takapuna - AUCKLAND

Overnight I had a thinking to take a few days off to rest the hand and also see the Coromandel Peninsula. Everyone I've met said that it is the place to see in the North Island. Richard wasn't ok with taking a few days off so he continued on, not even taking a rest day in Auckland..crazy. Almost everyone stops in Auckland for a night. 
I booked a ferry at 6pm which takes 2 hours to get to Coromandel Town. 
It was a 3 hour walk to Davenport which was actually quite a nice walk. It may have because it was the last road walk for a couple of days or it may have been the scenery, but today was nice. 

Anyways off to Coromandel town to do some day hikes? More hikes, yeah oh well why not! 



Dec 3 Orewa - Takapuna

I had to make a re route today to avoid the Okura estuary. If the tide was high and I had to raise my pack over my head to wade through I couldn't because my right hand was immobilized. Therefore I had a 25k plus road walk into Takapuna back to the trail. Road walking was terrible, but we made good time and got to the Takapuna holiday park by 4. Takapuna is a suburb of Auckland so there were shops and bars everywhere. It was the first real sense of being in a city since I started the trek. 
Had some overpriced fish an chips at a cafe just outside te holiday park then packed it in. Auckland tomorrow. With a stop in davenport to catch a ferry across the harbour. 

Monday 14 December 2015

Nov 25 Ngunguru - Tidesong B&B

I'm in a car looking at the road I would have been walking if I was a "purist", pfft suckers. We even passed a hiker, but the car was full we 3 of us already an packs. I had met a chap named mark from Austrailia who is walking from Bay of Islands to Auckland. Now he's not a thru hiking, he walks the same path but he never camps. His bag is at an enviable 8lbs which consists of shoes, water, and rain gear. He books all his stays before he sets out, mainly in B&Bs. That is fantastic, I wish I had an 8 lbs pack. He is retired now but he does 2 big hikes each year all over the world. 
Hilton dropped us all off and off he went. Put my tunes in, found some funky music and was on my way. There were two rivers we had to cross, sorry creeks. First one I just skipped across rocks, then second one I had to take off my shoes to get across. Then just roads after that, not much to say about road walking. There are turns and then just more turns. 

Nov 24 Whananaki - Ngunguru

I haven't touched this blog in a while so I don't really remember this day. Normally I can just look at my maps and I will remember everything. But sadly I lost that one map for this stage.
I remember from about noon onwards. The mornings are all quite boring anyways. Wake up pack up your things and mindlessly walk about in a forest, jungle or road.
Matapouri bush track was very nice and nearer the end of it, the trail passes by Tane Moana (big ass kauri tree). From what I've gathered is that it's the only one in the area. Also it is one of the biggest Kauri trees. DOC had to make a boardwalk around it because it was just so massive.
It was a nice walk down into Ngunguru. While waiting for Richard I sat on a grassy spot next to a roundabout and just chilled out. Once he was caught up we went to a restaurant/cafe and had a big meal of fish and chips. While eating there was a woman who mentioned she hiked the TA so we chatted. She mainly did the South Island parts so it made me very envious. The north island is just there...you have to do it to walk the Te Araroa. The South Island is the most stunning backpacking paradise in the world. Anyways. 
It was a 6 or so km road walk to the Riverbank Homestay. The lady running it let us sleep in the garage because the forecast suggested rain, which was nice. Although I've never slept in a garage. Writing this now I would have rather slept in my tent. But the added bonus was that in the morning her husband would drive us 13km down the crappy road walking part. It was an obvious decision. Now. There are these "purist" hikers, they think you have to walk the entire length of it to say you competed it. Nah. Just nah. Road walking is terrible, especially on a 100km stretch. A nice gravel road in the country or a secluded desolate road is all good. But when there is a probable chance of getting hit by a maniac behind the wheel is present, I will accept a hitch always. At the end I can say I did 95% of it in my head, then of course just round up to 100% when I tell others. 

We were invited for crumble after their dinner which was good and then off to bed. Tomorrow is the Mackerel forest track. 





Dec 2 Warkworth-Puhoi-Orewa

Having to go to the medical clinic in Warkworth I missed 1 day of hiking. The Dome cafe to puhoi was around 30km. Anyways, I bussed in the morning to Puhoi to rejoin the Te Araroa. Today will be a 8km kayak paddle down to Wenderholm Park on the outskirts of Auckland. 

Kayaking across te estuary was simple to set up and cost 50$. The day was calm when I first started out. When the estuary opened up there was going to be a crosswind going NE or SE. The owner told me to paddle to the calm side here there should be flat water. The fastest time was 1hr 10m to Wenderholm park. The first 40m was quite nice, water was flat and no wind. I stopped twice for some good photo ops. When I entered the wide bit the wind howled and there was no crossind, only headwind. There were baby rapids but water still got into the kayak. Not much, but enough to freak me out. I started paddling hard now as I knew where the end was. I made it to the beach in 1hr 15m which was enough time for me to be in the water. 

As I was exiting the kayak I slipped and landed on my hand. That was painful so I popped 2 ibuprofen and continued on. The Kayak was picked up by the owner and I was on my way. 

I had a cold shower to wash all the sand off then had a forest/road walk to Waiwera? I think that's the name. I stopped for ice cream. 
My hand was in some serious pain so I found a bus to the Orewa holiday park. Got a cabin and cleaned out and redressed my hand. 
Richard came later in the day after hitching to Whangarei to get his bounce box. 

Takapuna Holiday park tomorrow



Dec 1 Omaha Forest- well, not Dome Cafe

As Ice Cube once said, "Today was a good day", it sure wasn't for me. Today was quite an eventful day. 
It all started out like any other day. Leaving Pakiri Holiday Park around 730am with a lofty goal of making it to the Dome Cafe by 5pm to eat a burger for dinner. 
The walk up to the start of the trail was steep, really steep. At the top we were passed by a couple from Germany I think. They were quick and hiking with no poles, which was the first time I've seen yet. At the top the trail entered into a nice track following a truly magnificent old forest. We kept hiking along the outside fence but never entered the forest. The track ten led steeply down a terrible muddy slippery section through gorse of course. Right near the bottom, the last 1% I slipped and fell on my ass, right onto gorse plants. Fantastic, great way to start the day. Getting up from my fall I had to push up on gorse that was now on the ground beneath me, thus causing many thorns to puncture my skin. Luckily being so close to the bottom I found a flat spot, put down the pack and got the clean wipes out. Cleaned the mud off and pulled about 30 thorns out of my arms, hands and legs. Instant itching occurred and drove me nuts. 
The rest of the track was quite uneventful, just forest and more bloody itchy forests. 
That was until a muddy cliff that dropped straight down. I threw my poles to the bottom and my initial idea was to Tarzan my way down using vines and or branches to a set of trees half way down. The branch snapped and I was flung down to the trees, I lost my balance and tried to grab onto the trees. Unluckily there was a TA sign with two nails sticking out of it. My right palm found one of the nails. So yeah, adrenaline kicked in, I ran back up found a flat spot,dropped my pack and got my med kit out while bleeding everywhere. There was a lot of blood, more than I thought there could ever be coming from a hand. My initial thought "IM GOING TO  DIE, in this stupid ass jungle all alone and in the mud". That's when a truly bizarre came to mind, you know in Ace Ventura When nature Calls? Probably not, but there's a scene here Jim Carrey gets speared by well, spears on each leg. And throws his two arms over his thigh and then th other...I did that, once, while blood flew onto my pack. I got a patch onto the cut and applied pressure to stop the bleeding. I then screamed because I knew the two Germans were behind me so they could help. I could get the tape right enough and then cut it by myself. 
Two minutes later they were there and I felt instantly better, " I'm not going to de alone"!! They helped wash it out and tape the gauze patch tightly around my had. I then used my scarf to tie it around my hand to try and keep my hand clean to stop infection infused mud. 

I knew I would need stitches, I took off the gauze at one point and the cut was pretty nasty. Really damn nasty. 
2km walk out of te forest, then 7km walk to Matakana where the Medical clinic was obviously closed...at 100!!! On a bus to Warkworth. 
Got it stitched and cleaned by 5pm. Fantastic. 
Puhoi paddle tomorrow? Sure why not, how bad could that go. It's only a hand. Still have my arms. 




Nov 26- Nov 30

I am now in Hamilton trying to catch up on the blog, but it's quite hard to remember everything that happened so long ago. I will therefore sum up everything that I did and where I walked. 
Tidesong BB to Whangarei Heads over Bream Head walk. Really steep and very hot and humid. Made it to the bottom and 5km later reached a spot to stop. Got a hitch into the nearest spot to eat. Slept in a DOC area 
Next morning we got a ride across to Marsden Point. Walked to Ruakaka for resupply. Beach walk to Waipu. State at the BBH backpackers where the owner wasn't there. Left the money in the mailbox. 
Waipu to Mangawhai Heads. Rest day. Was going to golf, but too tired. 
Mangawhai Heads to Pakiri holiday park