Day 121 | Camp at km 1504

north_islandpart 4
Written By Tanja Bach

10 February 2023 | 21°C | 24km

At 7.45pm I reach a nice grassy clearing in the forest called Burttons Whare on the map. A perfect campsite!

I initially had planned to “do a big day” and get to Motorimu hut but that’s still 7km away with unknown (muddy?) terrain. And maybe today is my last chance to sleep in the bush at all on this trail?

Hiking today was again up and down some forest mostly without views so I talk to almost everybody I meet today to entertain myself and keep my good mood:

  • A young TA hiker who wants to do a 50km day today getting to Nichols hut 😱 in the midst of the Tararua range (stayed there two days ago). I just mention that “it gets very slow up there” and head on

  • Carol doing geocaching in the forest whose son is currently hiking the TA on the South Island. We chat for quite a while and as I move on she reminds me to always call my mum 😊

  • A couple with a little hunting dog on a weekend trip with their campervan. They invite me for a cup of tea and have a lot of questions around thru hiking and give me some fresh fruit before I move on.

  • Dermot, a southbounder whom I meet in Ian’s and Franks Hut. We explore different options on how I could best invest the time I have left.

Tanja Bach
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Day 120 | Matahika Outdoor Pursuit Center
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Day 122 | Palmerston North & cyclone Gabrielle