Beginning The Te Araroa NOBO

The time seems to be just flying by! The last time I posted, I was getting ready to go to an Elton John concert in Auckland. I arrived to Auckland on Friday morning, and my ticket was for Friday night. All day Friday, the rain never ceased. My friend’s coworker, Ava, came to pick me up for the concert, and we drove to the arena in the pouring rain. We found a parking spot (here, it’s just called a park rather than a parking spot), we donned our rain ponchos, and we walked towards the stadium. My friend had scored us some free tickets, so we weren’t sure where we’d be sitting. It’s an open arena, so we were expecting to get poured on the whole concert. It ended up that our spots were in a covered section right next to a lounge where we could buy food and drinks. It was so nice!

Ava and I got to the stadium two hours early, which was a good decision since there were supposed to be an estimated 40,000 people in attendance. While we waited, Ava and I discussed all the language differences between New Zealand and American English. The one that stands out to me is that when a Kiwi says something like “sweet as” in a sentence like: “the concert was sweet as,” it means that the concert was really sweet.

As we sat in our covered spots, we watched the crowds pour in and take seats on the ground level, which was completely exposed to the rain. The stage was getting soaked, and many of the instruments were covered in tarp to protect them from the rain. The wind would bring in the rain in gusts, and we felt bad for the concert attenders who would were getting soaked. 15 minutes before the concert was scheduled to begin, a man came on the microphone and told us that due to the weather, the concert was canceled. There was a collective groan from the audience, and we all made our way to the exit. When I checked the news later, there was already an estimated 11,000 people at the concert when the decision to cancel was made.

The drive home was nothing short of terrifying. The road were flooding in areas. We passed a BMW that had driven in the flood and was stalled because of water getting in the electronics. A school bus passed us, and the water was up to the bottom of it. The sun was just starting to go down, and it was difficult to see.

We made it to Ava’s boyfriend’s house where we ate some dinner with his family. I had chicken katsu sushi, which was really delicious, but all I wanted was to sleep. Jet lag is exhausting, and at that point, I had been up for nearly 15 hours after flying 16 hours. I was finally able to go to sleep around 11pm. But, because of the time difference, I woke up at 2:30am wide awake. I was really looking forward to the day when my body would adjust to New Zealand’s time zone.

Fast-forward two days… The flight from Auckland to Invercargill was quick and easy! I was able to fly with my backpack as a carry on, while I checked my trekking poles, tent stakes, and sleeping pad. I had booked an airbnb for my first two nights in Invercargill, and my airbnb host picked me up from the airport. Once I dropped my bag off, I went into town to explore and do some shopping.

My first order of business was to obtain a fuel canister and a Swiss Army knife. I made my way to MacPac where I was able to purchase both! Along with MacPac, there’s a Kathmandu store here as well. MacPac was simply closer to my location, which is why I decided to go there. Once I dropped off my purchases, the next thing to check off my to-do list was grocery shopping. Grocery stores abound in Invercargill, but one called New World was closest. I took a leisurely stroll through Queens Park to get there. Queens Park is open to the public and free to all visitors. I explored an aviary and a winter garden before taking the road to the grocery store.

I ended up walking about 6 miles on the day before my hike officially started, but I’m feeling well-prepared for the days to come.

Since I’m hiking NOBO, my hike began in Bluff. My airbnb host drove me down to the starting point where I took a picture by the signpost, and then I was off. The first day of a 4-month hike. I was excited, nervous, and still a little jet-lagged, but I was off.

The first day started around the point and through jungle-like flora. It was beautiful. Right next to the crashing waves, and through tall grass. The path was dry and mostly clear of any rocks. I encountered my first spiky plant and made a mental note to avoid these plants in the future. The hike around the point ended with a herd of curious cattle as I crossed over the sty and onto the road. The remaining 16 miles were all road walking. There’s a path that is right next to the road for the first 5 miles or so of it, and then the path veers away from the road and is more protected from the traffic.

Road walking is the opposite of fun. I plugged in my AirPods and listened to music to help the miles go by faster. The path that I took was recently constructed, and it’s for walkers as well as bikers. I passed a handful of bikers. I also passed another hiker. We stopped and chatted for a bit, and I learned that today is his last day of hiking. Wow. I can’t believe how that must feel. We talked about the ups and downs of the trail for him, and he wished me luck as I started my hike. Other than that, I didn’t see others on the trail.

My first day was a total of 21.5 miles and took me roughly 8 and a half hours. I stopped at a grocery store on the way home and picked up some apple-blueberry juice to celebrate that day one was complete.

Once I got back to my airbnb and took off my shoes, I finally figured out why my feet had been hurting so much more than usual: heat rash. The sides of my feet are currently covered in red, swollen patches from a long day of hiking. It’s funny when you think about it: I just hiked in the second-closest place to Antarctica, and I got heat rash.

Onto Riverton and then Colac Bay in the next couple of days. That’ll be more road walking as well as beach walking. The journey continues…