Let’s try this again

Fingers crossed… no more lockdowns… and I’ll be able to leave in 12 hours from now! My flight is booked and my bag is packed!

I stayed at work this week because stuff happened that meant work was busy this week. In a way delaying my walk until tomorrow was almost a blessing in disguise because now that that’s out of the way I can walk and not have to worry about leaving behind unfinished business at my job.

I’m all set to go… here is 9 days worth of food, to last me from Queenstown to Colac Bay (although it doesn’t look like that much).

It weighs 6kg, plus I will add a 500g block of cheese once I get to Queenstown.  I’m still apprehensive about carrying this much food, because it’s heavy and it’s hard to fit that much food in the pack, and also I don’t know if it will be enough – I’m going to have to ration it! But like I decided last time that doesn’t really matter.  I can hitchhike out and get more food if I have to.

The pasta, one of the packets of rice and one of the Back Country Cuisine meals are the exact same ones that were in my pack when I flew back from Queenstown a year ago. They have been in my pantry all this time! And also, the cash that I am taking with me has also been in my wallet for the same length of time.

I put feelers out there to see if any other hikers are in Queenstown and who might be getting a shuttle around Lake Wakatipu this weekend… but got no responses. So right now I’m the only one booked Sunday morning on an Info & Track shuttle between Queenstown and Greenstone on the other side of the lake. There’s a very real possibility I’m going to see very few people for the next 2 weeks. Other Te Araroa walkers I’m following on Instagram who I hoped I might get to meet in person aren’t yet at Queenstown.

It’s going to be nice to be away from civilisation for a while. Away from the little irritations of everyday city life, and away from the constant notifications from my phone. I don’t know what the cellphone reception is like down there, but I’m guessing there is not much. It’s going to be great.

12 thoughts on “Let’s try this again

  • Yipeee – what great news Matt! I was hoping that you would finish. Be interesting how it feels to be back walking. Best of luck! Enjoy the peace. Must say that doesn’t look like a lot of food!

  • That most certainly isn’t enough food, when you consider how many calories you will be burning and should be replenishing each day. Unless you have taken that into consideration, in which case, all good. You did once tell me that nutrition was never your strong point when you were running.. Perhaps hiking is the same thing 😜

    • It’s hard to say, it’s pretty much the same meals I had every day during the trail but with maybe less snacks. I don’t think hiking burns as many calories as people think. Besides, if I’m walking so hard that I need more calories, then I should get through the section in less than 9 days so I’d be fine anyway. Time will tell. I got through the Richmond Ranges with exactly the right amount of food, hopefully I can do it again.

  • Have an awesome time. Beware, my parents are lurking down that part of the country, if you sense intense sarcasm or dry humor they may be close.

  • heading back to finish off the mission you started
    matt, we hope the weather is kind to you,looking
    forward to hearing from you.all the best from
    dad and lin’

Leave a Reply

Leave a Reply to matt Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *