Day 26 | Ramarama
8 November 2022 | 18°C | 26km
French toast, pancakes or eggs Benedict with avocado that’s the first difficult decision of the day at the local Denny’s. This place reminds me so much of the PCT. I finally opt for the French toast with whole wheat to make it look a little bit healthy. It’s 11 AM when we head out. I think the latest start so far but we already walked for 45mins from our airbnb. Fair enough. Not much to say about the walk itself as again through the Auckland suburbs with mostly walking on pavement and roads.
„Are you hiking the TA?“ two guys with small backpacks ask me some time later in the day. We chat a bit and it turns out they are slack packing from Drury back to Auckland. Once I get to Papakura, I head into the Countdown supermarket to get some resupply and my favorite yogurt. It is a big jar of 250 g but I finish it as my lunch easily. Unfortunately, it starts raining when I leave the supermarket. Luckily, the library is just across the street. It has some kind of a lounge and sofas where I have lunch and it doesn’t take long until I have devoured my yogurt and various kinds of food.
Once I leave Drury, one of the next towns, the rain picks up again, not much of an issue, but after roughly one and a half hours, it turns out that the road is blocked. Why was it not indicated on the map? I talk to the construction people who tell me that there is no way of passing by but they are very friendly and propose that they take me to the other end of the road. It is so cozy with the heating on in that car that I only realize how cold I am once I have to get out again.
The friendly driver offers to drive me all the way to Bombay, but I decline and head on. My legs are still fresh but by 6 PM I am totally soaked. Time to either pitch my tent or look for some accommodation. Just by checking the options online and standing below a tree for 10 minutes, I feel so cold that I decide to pitch my tent right here in order to get out of my wet rain gear. I am very close to the highway but I don’t really care at that point. I’m so happy to be dry and warm in my sleeping bag.
Day 27 | Hampton Downs
9 November 2022 | 22°C
Despite camping very close to the highway, I sleep very well with my earplugs. Just been awake once happily realizing that my phone is charging again. Water got into the connector during the rain and iPhone kept telling me all afternoon yesterday that charging is suspended until dried out again.
I have an early start today at 6:45 in order to get some miles in before the rain kicks in again. Once I get to Pokeno, the next little village, I walk through some residential area and a nice walkway along a little creek until I get to the café for breakfast. I enjoy a real good flat white together with a smashed apple danish danish I got from the supermarket yesterday. Yum! Once I start walking again, it’s only 10 AM. Still a full day ahead and already 8 km done. Love it!
I take a bad decision then though. I see a big detour of around 7 km on the map and wonder if there isn’t any shorter option. Quickly googling I find a pathway that is only 2 1/2 hours instead of 3 1/2. Sweet. After walking on a semi-busy road and a very quiet gravel road road for roughly 1 1/2 hours I see a sign “private property”. Still hoping that I will only walk through farmland I move on.
Backtracking does not seem to be an option now. After another half hour a house comes into sight and four angry dogs start barking at me. I don’t really wanna mess with them and finally decide to turn around. A few minutes later a lady on a small buggy comes driving along. I apologize for walking in their property. She’s very friendly and says that occasionally people on bikes or cars find this route on google. She offers me to take me back to the main road. I don’t dare asking if she could just drive me further along to the other side of her property.
Once back in the main road I hitch to back to Pokeno and from there to Mercer; something I should have done in the first place. The whole “experiment” cost 3 hrs. Oh well!
Happy though that it hasn’t rained I cruise along.
Rain kicks in around 3pm but legs feel strong and I continue walking until 6pm. The area close to the river is covered with wet grass … not a good campground. Looking out for some trees, I find a good campsite by a small forest up a hill a little bit off trail.
Learning of the day: Never trust people in cars when they tell you sth about distances (a police officer asking me where I would walk to today indicated that it was 10km to Rangiriri … it was 20km along the tail in the end .. not the first time this happened … )
Day 28 | Huntly
9 November 2022 | 22°C | 30km
Unspectacular day today: walking along the river in the morning and mostly on grassy stop banks in the afternoon. I am trying to entertain myself talking to cows and sheep. Also becoming an expert in “tackling” (rolling under) electric fences that separate the different paddocks the trail is crossing.
I get a bit angry at the “trail architects” when it come to walking around the Huntly golf course. Bushwhacking at its best that totally ruins my legs. Why not just take the road instead? At one point I decide to walk on the golf field itself and meet two friendly golfers who say it’s totally ok. I give them a golf ball I found in the high grass and head on.
Looks like a lot of rain and stormy winds tmrw so I decide to advance my zero day that I had initially planned once I get to Hamilton.
Days 29/30 | Te Aroha (off trail)
10 November 2022 | 21°C | 0KM
2 days that feel like a holiday from the „walking work life“: sleeping in, swimming in the pool, relaxing in the hot spa, watching television, cuddling the cat, hanging out in the garden.
Day 31 | Hamilton Central
13 November 2022 | 23°C | 40km
It is Slackpacking day today! (walking with a small day pack with snacks instead of my regular pack). Phil takes me to the bridge at Huntly where I left the trail two days ago. I just carry a small backpack with water, a few snacks and my rain jacket. The Hakarimata Walkway (or short “Haks”) reminds me a bit of the walk to the Dome Café, not as steep, long and muddy though.
Angus and Jens whom I haven’t seen since Auckland are literally sitting on the trail, having a break about 5 km in. We chat for some time, exchange the latest news and I continue walking with Jens who is one of the fastest hikers of our group. With my light pack and him with his normal pack I can kinda manage to keep up with his speed :)
Big get together and barbecue at Bruce’s and Zephs place in Hamilton in the evening. Niccceee!
Day 32 | Whatawhata
14 November 2022 | 24°C | 15km
Kinda hard to get going today after my rest days at Phil’s place. I take it easy though, have my morning coffee in the sun on the porch and finally catch up with my trail journal. Yeah! Not looking forward to carrying 4 days of food again after being “spoiled” with supermarkets in almost every city I passed through during the past week.
It is 3pm already when I start walking from the city center of Hamilton. Its pretty hot and I don’t expect an interesting walk to Whatawhata, my next stop in roughly 15km.
Halfway there Robin and 3 other young German guys catch up with me. Happy to have some distraction and Someone to talk to I follow them. They are pretty fast walkers but I manage to keep up with them and time is flying.
Once we get to the backyard of the pub in Whatawhata I see some familiar und also quite a few new faces. As the space for tents is mostly occupied already, I simply cowboy camp on the porch.
We are 15 hikers and as per the super friendly lady from the bar the biggest numbers of hikers so far this year.
Learning it the day: There are many other creative variations of mailboxes :)