Days 39 and 40 (891 – 948 kms)
Leaving Te Kūiti on the main road, there is a sign stating that it is 55 kms to Pureora and the Timber Trail. The same destination along the official trail is 57 kms. Unfortunately part of the official trail is temporarily closed for lambing, and the detour i took was 67 kms. The first day being 29 kms a day the second day being 38 kms. The detour followed a busy state highway with no good camping spots. The plan for shorter days is not really working out at all.
To make matters slightly worse, the location of the only known camp was not completely clear from the trail notes. A local truck driver was able to tell me where the camp was, would be easy to find if the official trail was not closed. Regardless, we found the midway camp and all was good. Based on the condition of the camp and the visitor log, looks like we were the first to visit the camp this walking season.
From Te Kūiti to the Timber Trail it is all road, and busy road. For this reason, many/most Te Aroroa walkers choose to skip over this section. The ones that don’t skip any section are referred to as “purists”. Purists will walk Ever Fucking Inch of the trail, or EFI. I definitively lean towards being an EFI. More on this in the next blog entry.
The first day I walked by myself, which is my preference. You get into a certain rhythm when walking alone. While the second day I was joined by another walked, at least for most of the day. I find everyone has a natural walking pace and need for rest breaks, and they are often different from person to person. Along road I tend to like to walk for 10 kms or 2 hours between breaks. For a long day I will leave early and without taking breakfast, at the 10 km point I will take breakfast, at the 20 km point I will take second breakfast and at the 30 km point I will take lunch. At each point I will take off my boots and air dry my feet. This routine has helped my avoid getting blisters. This approach of course only works on roads. On the second day and after 38 kms I pulled into the campsite. I was greeted by another walker that had hitched along the road and had arrived 5 hours earlier. Each to their own.
The two days was pleasant enough, apart from the cars whizzing by. This is nice farmland and the farmers seem to be doing very well. I do enjoy the green rolling countryside.
