Equipment has been somewhat refined since the start so here is a quick update on our equipment findings. Don’t worry I won’t get mega nerdy unless you ask. Waterproofing. The rain revealed many weaknesses and hard realities in the early days. The camping industry sells products that claim to be waterproof when in actual fact it is all anything but 'waterproof'! Rain jackets and trousers do not keep you dry, nor does a rain cover keep your bag dry. Such blatant lying is the cause of much frustration and the root of any anger from the Turner. In harsh wet conditions we now accept we will just get wet, our priority is to stay warm. I've thrown my rain trousers away and I find my rain jacket more effective as a warm wind breaker. If it rains the following day then we unfortunately put on our wet clothes and crack on. The only exceptions for the rule are bivy bags and cuben fibre (our tent material). In light of this we made adaptions in the bag to improve the water prevention. As well as our Exped dry bags we now use bivy bags (heavy duty plastic bags) as pack liners which actually stop any water. Likewise, our sleeping bags are kept in seamless heavy duty dry bags. On the rainy days we continue to get wet but we are now confident that the contents of our bags remain dry. Sleeping. Our sleeping arrangements have remained largely the same. The cuben fibre tents are proving to do the job, their only weaknesses are the attachments and the stitching. The central guy line has caused leaks on both tents but nothing some super glue can't fix. I have also snapped four tent pegs but thankfully Dad brought different MSR replacements out. Our sleeping bags are brilliant, as are our pillows. My sleeping pad is still going strong despite the same model letting Luke down in the second week. All in all, we sleep well and the weight of this department is as minimal as it gets without removing those items all together. Clothing. We both started off with far too much clothing which has been paired down more and more. Clothing is a surprising heavy element of your kit and have saved weight by going more minimalistic (or shall I say trashy?). I now have one set of walking clothes and one set of sleeping clothes with certain items such as my fleece being used for both purposes. I did have to buy a new walking t-shirt in Wellington because no wash would remove its stink; I cannot express how little class we currently have! I won’t bore you with every particular brand for every item but we can highly recommend any Icebreaker merino wool clothing; it smells far less, dry’s quickly and is comfy. Cooking. We have swapped our cooking method to gas rather than methylated sprits. We find gas more economical and easier and safer to cook with. Our particular primus stove is heavy in comparison to many we have seen and some walkers choose not to have one at all. However, we are happy to carry one in return for hot food and drink and are not willing to pay for a new one to save just a few grams. As an alternative we have culled our crockery. We now have one pot with a DIY tin foil lid. We have one bowl and the pan then doubles up as the other bowl. Electronics: My phone and the Go Pro are my only electronics. I charge these using a small battery pack and our super solar panels. GPS is done via my phone using an app called OSMand+ which is proving to be effective. The Go Pro is great but does like to turn itself on and drain the battery. Luke is a little heavier on the electronic front with his camera, phone, iPad and the same charger apparatus. Nevertheless, weight has been saved by finally giving up the speaker. Boots. We are now both on our second pair of boots which we hope will make it to the finish line. The picture below reveals the wear and tear of the first island. Other culled items: books, guide books, fuel bottles, Frisbee (not out of choice), coffee pot (silly to think that would last!), Hip flask, foam sitting matts, go pro accessories, day bag, water filter (we just use tablets when needed), bug spray, huge culling of the spares/repair kit.
On the whole saving weight has been mostly achieved by removing something altogether. Ultralight hikers often have similar items but choose to live with less; e.g. no stove, pillow or chair. I am currently comfortable ditching the shower gel and book but I’m not yet prepared to throw my pillow or sacrifice my hot meal; things are basic enough! To loosely conclude the research on equipment was definitely worth it and we haven’t needed too many major changes. The main difficultly has been waterproofing so we now live life from a dry bag.
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Our plan indicated we would be trekking somewhere up a mountain on Christmas day, so we decided to have an early Christmas feast 4(ish) days before. We had no qualms seeing as we never know the day or date anyway.
Up until now, we have not had an ounce of festive sprit as Christmas isn't the same in New Zealand and on trail. It’s hot and the sun is shining for a start and we are usually in a remote part of the trail with very little to remind us of Christmas at all. With this in mind we thought we would make a big effort to get into a festive mood. On fake Christmas eve we went and watched Star Wars which was immensely exciting. We went into dork mode and gabbled about the far far away galaxy all evening. Christmas day arrived and from the outset it revolved around food and games. The holiday park in Whanganui was the perfect location; it was equipped with numerous games and sporting equipment. Emma prepared a gorgeous breakfast with vegetable rostis, eggs and croissants. Luke and I opened a few presents from home. I was gifted my usual; Lego, whilst Luke then received a number of tacky Christmas gifts and games which amused us for some time. Following this we had a great game of cricket which sadly ended in a broken boat paddle (our bat). With cricket scuppered we headed inside for our Christmas feast. A mixture of English/Kiwi cuisine was prepared in a group effort and it achieved the over full Christmas feel. Once the food comas subsided we moved on to table tennis and foosball. Every game was of course fiercely competitive. The day ended with dessert (most of which went down my front) and Cluedo. By the end we were feeling positively festive and slightly tipsy. A great effort by our trail family. The Hobbit. Distance: 43km, 28km. Total: 1393km. Smell factor: 7/10.
We paddled for two more fantastic days. However, it did get difficult nearer the coast! Distance = 39km. Total = 1322km. Smell Factor = 8/10
I woke to sunshine but it wasn't long before the clouds rolled over and we were bathed in gloriously gloomy grey. The rain started as we were loading the boats, and we could tell it was set in for the day. The strength changed throughout the day but it never stopped raining for a moment until the late afternoon. Through the day we took every opportunity to warm up with a hot drink and spend a bit of time under a shelter. It was Colin and I in the canoe today, only one slightly dodgy moment in a rapid which needed a bit of bailing afterwards. Around 4:30 we spotted what looked like it could be our spot for the night, a convent in a village called Jerusalem. Tom was sent to explore as the bank was exceptionally muddy so we didn't all want to unload everything until we were certain. Tom was gone for quite some time, whilst it grew colder and colder for us in the canoes. Eventually the Hobbit returned, gleefully informing us that the convent was awesome. We made a human chain so we could get the barrels out of the boats. It took quite a while to ferry all of our stuff up the hill but it was worth it and our legs needed to be reminded of what hills are having been sat down for a few days. The convent had 17 beds, a wood burner, kitchen, and showers, what more could you need after a long cold day in the pouring rain. Tom and Colin got the fire going and we set up drying racks and a washing line so we could dry as much gear as possible. After dinner Tom, Colin, and I played scrabble sat in front of the fire and eating snacks. I'm pleased to say I won scrabble, although it was a contentious victory as many are when there is no dictionary to hand. The beds were in a kind of old hospital ward, complete with curtains, which was a little creepy but we weren't complaining. Most of the beds also had a small picture of the lady who had set the convent up, adding further to the slightly creepy feel. However there were hot water bottles and we all happily took advantage off those. The Turner. Distance = 35km. Total = 1283km. Smell Factor = 4/10
I was woken suddenly this morning by Tom and Colin singing happy birthday, wearing Darth Vader masks and shoving Star Wars balloons into my tent. Nothing about today would be a normal way to celebrate reaching another birthday. I opened a few presents from mum and dad, which Colin had successfully delivered. Sat there in my tent, sheltering from the rain and feeling rather homesick I spent a few minutes reflecting and reminiscing about the various ways I had celebrated my previous birthdays. This didn't help with the homesickness but the many happy memories which came flooding back to me did give me a great appreciation for all I had to be thankful for. The rain was set in so we were all pretty damp by the time we even set off in the canoes. Tom and I were in the canoe today and Colin had a go in the kayak. The gorge was still stunningly beautiful and the rain, although annoying and quite cold, did add to the magical setting. The rain finally cleared after lunch and we were bathed in glorious sunshine. The river and scenery continued to blow our minds and with the glorious weather came quite a bit of inter-canoe splashing and sabotage. We even managed to get Tom to board Emma & Harry's canoe at one point with our expert skill and canoe handling, something we wish we had possessed on the first day. Emma and Harry surprised me with an extra large bottle of beer to have with my dinner, complete with a birthday candle stuck to the cap. I may not have been at home with my family but my trail family had made the passing of another year of life very enjoyable and memorable. The Turner. Distance = 32km. Total = 1213km. Smell Factor = 3/10.
We all tried our best to use the morning sunshine to dry off the rest of our gear. We were a little late getting going because of this but we made good progress because of a strong current and quite a few rapids, all successfully negotiated. We reached another campsite around lunchtime and to our surprise Emma & Harry were there. They too had suffered a calamitous start to their river trip, so much so they had lost their food barrel & Harry had hitched back to Taumaranui to buy more food, losing a day in the process. It was great to see them and they joined us in the afternoon. I was in the kayak again today and I was getting the hang of it, although it did still continuously want to spin me around. Everyone from the campsite last night were at tonight's site and we relaxed in the scorching afternoon sun. After dinner we all played cards, even learning some new rules, and the drinks began to flow. The cards and drink continued, the card blowing game followed. Tom, Emma, Harry, and I were the last ones standing (albeit a bit wobbly), it was a great laugh and we managed to drink most of our weeks worth of drink in one night. The Hobbit is a bad influence on me! The Turner. Distance: 22km. Total: 1181. Smell factor: 2/10.
I was keen to make Dads first trail day comfortable and not too gruelling; ease him in to the realities of trail life. The day started well with Luke utilising the leftovers with Lasagne sandwiches for breakfast. The weather was good and the sun periodically showed its face. The Kayak hire company arrived and were taken to the jetty with our two-man canoe and one-man kayak. It’s from there things got a bit grittier. It began to pelt down with rain as we were given our safety brief. We were all sodden before we even made it on the water. Once we got going the weather settled a little as we tried to get to grips with our new vessels. Dad and I were on the canoe, Luke on the kayak. We didn’t have much time to adjust as we approached the first of many swift rapids. We found there is a degree of luck and skill involved to successfully paddle through rapids. At the beginning we clearly didn’t possess any luck or skill. Before long Dad and I beached the boat on a protruding rock and then followed that mishap with a large water intake from the next rapid. Good start. We pulled over to bail water. Dad attempted to pull the boat on shore and comically fell on his arse as he revealed the rope wasn’t actually attached. His nice new white shorts were now soiled. We were all in hysterics. As the day wore on we were all getting used to the boats but the comedy did not end there. Luke was some way in front and out of sight as Dad and I entered a danger rapid. We both controlled the boat with expert handling to no avail; water had ploughed in over the bowel, and me. We made it through the worst and I looked back at Dad; the boat was completely full and the back of the boat was barely above water. Inevitably, the first major Eddie took hold of our now lumbered canoe, span us and tipped us out. The next thing Luke saw was my Dad floating round the corner shortly followed by myself and the upturned boat. He laughed uncontrollably; little did he know that he would shortly follow. The river power was very surprising and frankly a little eye opening. We had no luck getting the boat stopped. Luke rowed close by and grabbed a tree branch attempting some sort of rescue manoeuvre. Next thing we know is Luke also in the water with his upturned kayak. There we all are, bobbing above the surface, legs in the air as we uncontrollably bumped down river over various rapids. We must have looked like a right bunch of goons. Eventually, the river widened for a time and I managed to catch our boat. I clambered on the top and somehow heaved it over. I sat in the middle of the boat and guided it to the bank. Luke managed the same thing with his kayak. We bailed for a half hour before finally continuing on to the camp as normal. Luckily the sun emerged and we managed to partially dry our damp kit. It was not the comfortable first trail day for Dad like I intended. The Hobbit. Guest Appearance: Father Hobbit (Grandad) Father of Tom (Hobbit) Similar makeup to the Hobbit. Even shorter. Needs tea and coffee in the morning. Snores loudly. Equally competitive and childish as all of us. Beard progress will be updated. My first posting as Father Hobbit (Tom's Dad)
So pleased to be invited along for the ride. I arrived in Auckland early Friday following a good flight and not feeling too jet lagged I caught the bus to Auckland city centre. I quickly booked in to my hotel, showered and headed out to see the sights that Auckland bay could offer. I found a coffee shop and relaxed for a hour or so watching the busy harbour. There was plenty to see with the numerous ferries crossing the harbour. A large cruiser had also docked that night off loaded 3,500 passengers. I continued round the harbour and saw some very classy expensive yachts; Auckland clearly is where the money is. Finally after a day of people watching I was caught out with sun burn.. So I headed back to my hotel just as the Christmas parties where hitting town. It was really surreal to see Father Christmas and hear Christmas carols on a hot sunny day. I caught the bus early next day Saturday morning to meet the boys at Taumarinui. On the ride I was joined by Jane; a Scottish lady who moved here over forty years ago so we chatted all things New Zealand and home for the next few hours. Finally, I stepped of the bus and was greeted with hugs from the lads (As promised gave Luke a bear hug from his mum). I can report the boys look well both with beards, Tom has a little way to go to catch Luke with his full beard. However, they did have an appearance of wild tramps. Odour smell I can report was low. We headed for a bar at beer O clock as it is known in our house. Beer o'clock means you are aloud a beer as long as it has gone 12, it was 2 in afternoon so a beer was deserved after my travels. I delivered the Christmas presents and new supplies safe and sound. I can also report Luke's card from his mum works as it caused some amusement at Auckland Airport wishing every body a happy Christmas. My endeavours to find the singing card and shut the thing up failed. We headed for my first night under canvas the lads I think where reasonable impressed with my kit and quickly brought me up to speed on how to pitch a tent and pack my bag My first meal was a cheese burger on the camp BBQ Prepared by Luke cooked by Tom. If this was what they dish up on the trek then everything in the world would be okay. Unfortunately, at this stage I need to inform you of my first moan. Breakfast is frankly awful. Unfortunately, it is bland and frankly boring. Not very nice. How they just eat bran and oats every day for Breakfast I do not know. Hopefully my moans will be rewarded later in the trek. The cheeseburger was finished with a game of cards and a little alcohol. The card game is Luke's brain child called shithead it also involves meeting a number of fellow walkers; Danger Dan (Canadian), Clare from Australia, Tom from Netherlands, Paul from Iceland (Jesus) and other people I cannot remember. Clearly they all have in the TA in common. So that concludes my first day, I bid you good night. I look forward to what lies ahead. Hopefully a better Breakfast. After eight days it is still currently still boring oats and Bran. Father Hobbit (Gran Dad) My Dad has joined us on the trail for three weeks. He arrived in the country on day 71. As such, on day 68, we found ourselves slightly ahead of schedule having finished the Tongario section. We hitched back to Taumarinui where we would begin the Whanganui River journey and meet Dad (hitching north felt very very wrong). The numerous days off were perfect. We managed not only to achieve trail chores but also do normal human things like watch TV and read. It also was a great opportunity to properly rest our bones and cook some nutrious food as I eagerly awaited my Fathers arrival.
The Hobbit. |
Blog updated until Day 93.
Last update Day 71. Archives |