We are in Auckland New Zealand, North island. Tomorrow we fly to the south of the South Island to begin a 2 month hike that we have been piecing together this winter. Hiking, or “tramping” as Kiwis call it, comes in a variety of forms. “The Great Walks” are the most famous, cultured, expensive form of trails. The track will be well manicured, no route finding needed with high end huts and services available to transport your packs if desired. Permits are mandatory and often have to be booked weeks in advance. They are beautiful, I understand.
The next level of trail often run in valleys parallel to the Great Walks and cover similar terrain. These are also beautiful but involve far less expense, no permits, navigation may be required at times, and huts will be of a lower category.
And then there are routes where you must pick your own path across the landscape.
We are using the one continuous footpath that runs the length of both the islands in NZ as our baseline. It is described variably as a fabulous trail and a route at times. The Te Aroroa or “TA” sees hundreds of thru hikers making their way on it every year. It is becoming more and more popular as folks from the northern hemisphere want to hike during their winters. Just like us!
We have 2 months to walk the South Island and have pieced together a continous quilt-like trail of sorts (over 1,000 kms). Taking in some Great Walks (Kepler, Abel Tasman, and Heaphy) plus several fabulous side trails (Greenstone/Caples, Rees/Dart and Cascade Saddle) and rejoining the TA between them as we move north is our plan. From others’ accounts there will be rain, mud, sandflies, river crossings, and getting lost to look forward to, but there will also be spectacular mountain scenery, glaciers and unimaginably blue lakes. We are ready !!
Zip and Jobie Go Hiking 