Day 3: Mangamuka to Kerikeri

Start: Mangamuka (154km)

Finish: Kerikeri (219km)

Distance for the day: (65km)

Cumulative distance: (221km)

Cumulative moving time: 32hrs 05mins

I’m quickly learning that Te Araora has plenty of surprises in store. You can’t take anything for granted; a seemingly innocuous section of trail read from the map can easily turn into a 5km/hr slog. My final section today was a classic example. The low level pasture and newly formed link tracks leading into my final destination of Kerikeri were well rutted and baked hard; not the best for sore, wet, feet! A tough end to the day….

Heading off into the forest once again

Still fresh - must have been early in the day

Anyway, it was another great day on the trail. I enjoyed the first 20km of road and forestry tracks with Mark alongside on the bike – great for morale. The middle 20km was back into the thick jungle-like forests, and an incredible 7km wade through the beds of the Mangapukahukahu Stream and Waipapa River – not something I’ve ever experienced. The valleys were steeply sided, so the only option was regularly criss-crossing the river to make use of the boulder banks alternating each side. The temptation to take a dip was great, but again I was on a tight schedule so I remained focused on the job in hand. The only downside was running with wet feet across the subsequent 10km Pukatea Ridge Track section, although it was a lovely trail and nicely graded.

Nice place for a lunch stop :o)

Thereafter it was 25km on low level forest tracks and pastures to the east coast town of Kerikeri. My first glimpse of the Pacific Ocean on the run on the descent into Kerikeri gave me a great lift; I now have a long, mostly coastal, section back down to Auckland. We’ll see what that has in store!

Now fed and watered by my awesome crew, it’s time to crash and get some well earned Zzzzz’s and get ready to go again tomorrow.

Day 2: Ahipara to Mangamuka

Start: Ahipara (101km)

Finish: Mangamuka (154km)

Distance for the day: (53km)

Cumulative distance: (154km)

Today was always going to be tough; the start of the back-to-back/ running when tired routine which is going to challenge me more than anything else over the course of the expedition. In reality it’s going to be a couple of weeks before my body get used to what I’m asking it to do, so I’m aware there is plenty of fighting through to be done to start with.

Entering the forest for the first time

I split the day into two halves; each involving a long stint in the jungle-like forests that cover vast swathes of this part of New Zealand (Northland). It’s a sub-tropical climate up here and although it’s probably not technically jungle, it certainly feels like it. The undergrowth was unbelievably dense, and despite having a path cut through and excellent waymarking, the tree roots, overhanging undergrowth and ridiculous amounts of mud made for extremely slow going. Imagine a 15km high level ridge walk in the Lake District clad in dense forest as described above, and that’s about how it was like this afternoon. This afternoon’s section followed a ridge and linked all the summits, so there were steep ascents and descents to contend with all the way and zero traction due to the mud. My carbon trekking poles were an absolute saviour, but how they survived the abuse I gave them I’m not sure.

Heading back into the high country forests after lunch

My estimated timings were way out due to the slow going, but they are long challenging sections, so it was nice to get them out the way in a single day. I came down off the ridge after dark at 9pm tonight after a 7.30am start this morning. Despite it being such a long day I only covered 53kms, possibly my slowest ever average pace for a run! Physically I felt fine, but in reality I was on terrain that for the most part, simply wasn’t runnable.

My support guys were brilliant, and remained calm despite my slow progress and late arrivals at planned rendez-vous points.

The view from our overnight stop - not that I've seen it yet...

Tomorrow I continue my journey across to the east coast, hopefully getting close to Kerikeri for an overnight stop. There is another long forest section, but the elevation looks more sensible so hopefully it will be faster going. I’m not holding my breath….

Day 1: Cape Reigna to Ahipara (Ninety Mile Beach)

Start: Cape Reigna (0km)

Finish: Ahipara (101km)

Distance for the day: (101km)

Cumulative distance: (101km)

Today was the start of the expedition and my first steps on the Te Aroara trail. The starting point is Cape Reigna lighthouse on the northern tip of New Zealand, a building which guards the dangerous peninsula and the swirling waters where the Tasman and Pacific Oceans meet below. It’s an iconic landmark, and particularly special this morning with clear blue skies and a real tropical feel.

Heading out to the start point at Cape Reigna lighthouse

The classic finger post at the start. 1,452km to Bluff (as the crow flies, not via Te Araroa!)

I set off a few minutes after 7am. The first drama of the expedition – there will be many more – came when all three of our alarm clocks failed to go off resulting in a slightly delayed start to the run! I had hoped to get going half an hour earlier but given there was no harm done, we all found it very amusing. The first 20kms varied between volcanic rock, grassy tracks and short beach sections. It was very enjoyable, and I was like a lion out the cage - so eager to be starting my journey on the trail.

Refuelling on Ninety Mile Beach

But then it was straight into Ninety Mile Beach; a mind boggling continuous stretch of wild beach with noisy crashing waves which goes on for at least 50, but thankfully not 90 miles (not too sure where the name came from?). It’s another incredible piece of geography, but after the first few kilometres, not massively enjoyable. In fact, it’s got a reputation for sending through hikers (Te Aroara full trail hikers) a little bit mad, and if I had to spend 5 days walking it like most do, I think I would too. So I had a sneaky aim to get it out the way in one day, which I did manage in the end, but it was a long 13 hour day to achieve that goal. 100 kilometres in the first day is a little bit aggressive I’m happy to admit, but they are easy miles and the temptation to secure them quickly was too great, and I know for instance the next few days will be a lot slower so the distances will probably average out. Make hay whilst the sun shines as they say. I didn’t see many people on the beach unfortunately, so the only real entertainment came from dodging cars, tourist coaches and trucks which are all allowed to drive on the beach as a public highway. Surely unique? 

The loneliness of the long distance runner - particularly on Ninety Mile Beach

For Mark, James and I the first few days are really going to be all about building a manageable and sustainable routine which we will follow for the whole expedition. We have already learnt a lot from today, like how much better the coca cola would taste if it was cold; cold bag required for the crew then :o) Tomorrow I head east towards the west coast, crossing some impressible looking terrain all clad in dense forests. Far more stimulating I hope….

-1 day: Heading North

We’ve made the journey north from Auckland in a couple of legs; firstly an overnight in Ruakaka staying at a beautiful location next to the river estuary looking out over Bream Bay, and now up to Houhora Heads, roughly a third of the way up the narrow ninety mile beach peninsular on the east coast.

The Ruakaka estuary was almost heavenly with amazing wildlife, soft white sand and clear waters. Mark and I couldn’t resist the temptation to try out the kayaks we have with us for the North Island estuary crossings, so we had a little trip out to sea via the Ruakaka River, and tried a few eskimo rolls and practised handling skills in the new boats. They’re different in style to the kayaks we’re used to in the UK, but we soon got the hand of them.

Heading out for a test paddle on the Ruakaka River

The scenery on the drive up here was plainly spectacular. Nothing seems quite real in New Zealand; almost cartoony – every hill, field or forest so perfectly formed – or like from a scene of Jurassic Park. But the variety is incredible too; some landscapes you could feel like you’re the UK with rows of deciduous trees marking the field boundaries and herds of cattle grazing, then suddenly you come across the densest of tropical forests, with parrots for company. It’s a pretty mouth watering prospect for the run.

Today is final prep day before the big start tomorrow. Ninety Mile Beach is going to be a dramatic start with the Te Araroa trail running it’s full length but thankfully, contrary to it’s name, it’s less than 60. Even so, that much sand, the relentless sound of the waves and the never ending horizon will be a unique experience to start with. I suspect these sort of experiences will then follow daily. Exciting stuff.

Van time :o)

- 5 days: Arriving in Auckland

So here the adventure begins. I’m on the final leg of a long journey from the south coast of England to Auckland, via Dubai, along with my two support guys, Mark and James. It’s almost feels quite surreal for the Te Araroa expedition to now be underway; it’s been a full year in the planning and, as you can imagine with a challenge of this scale and nature, it’s occupied a significant proportion of my thoughts during that time.

We decided to get the journey out the way in one hit, rather than dragging it out with a stopover somewhere. But we now have 3 days in Auckland to rest up, get over the jet lag, stock up on supplies for the expedition and collect the motorhome support vehicle before heading north on Sunday. There is quite a bit of kit to round up such as a mountain bike for the support crew, kayaks for the several estuary crossings which will come in the first 10 days and then obviously quite a bit of food. Once we’re away from Auckland we’ll have further time to get properly rested up before making a start from Cape Reigna on Wednesday (12/12/12).

Sunset at Takapuna Beach - right next to our hang out for the next few days.

I’m being supported by two brilliant guys; Dr Mark Taylor, my newly acquired father-in-law :o)  , and a very old school friend, James Ashwell. They have already been amazing in helping with the preparations, to the extent we’re feeling pretty well organised and in good shape for the challenge that lies ahead. They will play such an important part in the overall success of the expedition; acting as a lifeline in many different ways, but essentially providing all the support I need at every given opportunity. That may be a resupply at a road crossing point, preparing the kayaks for an estuary crossing or riding/ walking in to a rendezvous point for an overnight camp. I will try to get them to do some writing as we go along, so hopefully you can get to know them a bit, and to give a slightly different perspective on things!

My primary aim is to keep the mileage clock moving on as quickly as possible (obvious), but that will typically mean using a fast-pack setup for overnights on the trail to allow the daily distance targets to be completed, and thereby allowing me the flexibility to crash wherever I want, whenever I want, rather than being constrained by road crossing points. I will also make use of the great network of huts available in NZ, and obviously the motorhome as well whenever my planned finish point is accessible.

Given this is the first of the expedition blogs which I hope to release daily, as far as possible, I thought a quick overview of the expedition would be in order:

Objective:   Fastest time attempt on the Te Araroa trail in New Zealand - a new trail which opened in December 2011 running the full length of both islands – from the top of the north island to the bottom of the south island.

Distance:     3,054 kilometres

Start:          12^th December 2012, Cape Reigna, top of the North Island

Finish:         Bluff, bottom of the South Island

We will publish regular blog posts here along with a link to the live tracking page so you can see in real time how the run is progressing. I also hope to be on Twitter quite a bit with snippets and images from the trail (see Twitter feed side bar if you have a Twitter phobia ->).

We hope you enjoy following the journey.