Tag: nature

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The Scottish National Trail (part 1): the Lowlands

I hiked the length of Scotland last Autumn. These Scotland blog posts are dedicated to Old Alan, a Scottish family friend who died after my trip.

“I’m going to hike all of Scotland!” I say suddenly to Chris. “Do you want to come?”

“No…I’ve got lots of work to do…”

“Me too! But I’m going to do it anyway!”

Once I decide to do a hike, there’s no talking me out of it. Chris decides that he will join me “when it gets more exciting in the Highlands”. Continue reading “The Scottish National Trail (part 1): the Lowlands”

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Hiking the Cape to Cape Trail, Australia

The Cape to Cape is a week-long 135km hike on the south-west coast of Australia.

The trail is really stunning. We hike over cliff tops (take sun cream!) with spectacular views of the turquoise sea. We walk through native forest, up and down sand dunes and along beaches. We pass stunning rock formations and hop over terrifying blowholes. We walk past a memorial for dead surfers, and then watch surfers tackling massive waves.

The Cape to Cape is an exhausting slog. Although not a technically difficult trail in any way, every step is through sand. Even when you’re not walking on the beach, you’re walking on sand. A week of hiking on this terrain is difficult! I think, “this is more exhausting than the Larapinta Trail!” a number of times. Continue reading “Hiking the Cape to Cape Trail, Australia”

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Hitchhiking Australia: some tips

Hitchhiking Australia is pretty easy and is a really memorable experience. Our waiting times ranged from a couple of minutes to 24 hours!

Many Australians are some of the open, friendliest people we’ve met in the world, so if you’re hitchhiking, expect to be invited in and welcomed wherever you go. And it’s not just drivers who host you. We met people in supermarkets, on local transport, and on the street, who invited us into their homes. And these people contacted their friends in other towns, telling them to host us, so we experienced hospitality everywhere. Continue reading “Hitchhiking Australia: some tips”

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Hiking the Larapinta Trail, Australia

The Larapinta Trail is an amazing 223km hiking route in the West MacDonnell Ranges in Central Australia, which took us 17 days to complete.

The trail takes hikers through remote areas without a soul around, and then emerges into tourist-filled gorges. I actually liked this combination!

Hikers can walk the trail in either direction,  so we opted to start from Redbank gorge (which is the official finish-point of the trail) and walk to Mparntwe (Alice Springs), therefore finishing in the city.

We hiked the Larapinta Trail in the first half of October 2017. It’s taken me a while to type my notes up!

This post is a day-by-day account of the walk, including the amount of water we carried (because I know that this was my main concern before I hiked) and the time it took us (without breaks). We pretty much followed the suggested itinerary and usually camped in the locations that the official trail notes suggested.

A follow-up post covers the logistics – how we did the food-drops etc – as well as reflections of the trail, and tips for others. Continue reading “Hiking the Larapinta Trail, Australia”

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Hiking the Te Araroa Part 5: Reflections on the hike

I have been walking the Te Araroa hiking trail in New Zealand. This post covers the section between Lake Tekapo and Lake Ohau. After this we decided to quit the Te Araroa two-thirds of the way down the south island. Below I talk about our reasons why we quit, and I reflect on my time on the Te Araroa and whether it was a good hike to do.

You can also read part 1, part 2, part 3 and part 4 of our hike.

—- Continue reading “Hiking the Te Araroa Part 5: Reflections on the hike”

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Hiking the Te Araroa in Aotearoa (New Zealand): part 4

I am hiking the Te Araroa, a long distance hiking trail which spans the length of Aotearoa (New Zealand).

This blog post covers the following sections of the trail on the south island: Rakaia river to Rangitata river; Rangitata river crossing;  Two Thumb Track. (We did not attempt to cross the Rakaia river on foot, and we met no other hikers who did this). You can also read part 1, part 2 & part 3.

Rakaia river to Rangitata river

Rivers rivers rivers. I can’t remember when we weren’t walking through rivers, streams or creeks, and today I’m sick and tired of it. When was the last time I had dry shoes? I can’t remember. Continue reading “Hiking the Te Araroa in Aotearoa (New Zealand): part 4”

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Hiking the Te Araroa in New Zealand: part 3

This blog post covers the following sections of the trail on the south island:

Waiau Pass; Boyle Village to Arthur’s Pass; Arthur’s Pass to the Rakaia river.

You can also read part 1 & part 2 of the hike.

1) Waiau Pass trail in the Nelson Lakes: 115.5km, 8 days:

It’s raining. The river hurls water downstream and the track becomes part of the river. We huddle in hikers’ huts until the weather clears.

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The river bursts its banks and the way becomes engulfed by strong water
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The trail is here somewhere…
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I can’t remember when I last had dry feet…

And then, when the sun comes out and we start to climb away from the valley, the Waiau Pass section becomes spectacular. If you’re choosing just a few sections of the Te Araroa, pick this one! Snow-capped mountains surround us as we climb higher. Continue reading “Hiking the Te Araroa in New Zealand: part 3”

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Hiking the Te Araroa trail in New Zealand: Part 2

This blog post covers the first 230km of the Te Araroa on the south island: the Queen Charlotte Track, the Pelorus river trail and the Richmond Ranges. You can also read part 1 of the trail.

“This is not a trail,” I splutter at Chris breathlessly as I huff and puff my way up, terrified of falling. “It’s a scramble up a cliff face.“

We’re back on the trail! After a two month knee injury (which still hasn’t fully recovered) Chris and I rejoin the Te Araroa at the start of New Zealand’s south island. Continue reading “Hiking the Te Araroa trail in New Zealand: Part 2”

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Hobbling and hobbits on New Zealand’s north island

“You can’t hike any more. You have to change your plans,”  the doctor says sympathetically. “Was it your dream to tramp across New Zealand? Had you been planning it for years?”

“Well, no,” I reply, “but it’s really disappointing. How long will I take to heal?”

“Three more months, maybe…or keyhole surgery.”

I have torn a cartilage in my knee just 160km into the Te Araroa hike across New Zealand. It’s now very clear that I won’t be able to hike the whole trail. But because I can stay in the country for six months, it’s possible that I’ll recover in time to walk half of it. Continue reading “Hobbling and hobbits on New Zealand’s north island”