Before Auckland we had a moment where motivation was running low. After two glorious falls in the bush, Eef injured her shoulder and took the last 100km in pain. The trail just wouldn't stop detouring to include every single hill on the way. Reaching Auckland, passing the 600km mark and taking a couple of days… Continue reading 20 hours without water: out of Auckland and in to the Hunuas
All along the way, people have been telling us that we should skip the north and head straight for the South Island. Apparently there is a lot of TA hikers doing this as well. Because the north is "boring". Because it's not as wild and off the grid as the south. Because you have… Continue reading Hike the north – Meet the people
Between the west and the east coasts of Northland lies a belt of subtropical forests. Te Araroa runs over the Ocean to Ocean Trail to get from one coastline to the other. A heavy storm damaged this stretch about 3 months ago, turning these beautiful forest walks into challenging mud-and-dense-bush crossings. And we are not… Continue reading The jungle to Kerikeri and Paihia
After arriving in Auckland we both wanted to get going as soon as possible so our long hike could begin. The next day we took a bus to Whangarei and had our last bed and last good meal. From there, we were picked up by lovely Jen who took us up to Kaitaia, the last… Continue reading Cape Reinga, Te Paki and the Ninety Mile Beach
So then, this is it! Tonight will be our final night in a bed and our last good meal before we get on the trail. We just got to Whangarei now, a small city in Northland. Tomorrow morning we are catching a ride with a vey friendly Kiwi woman who has offered to take us… Continue reading A final bed and a final meal
I always said that I would not fly to New Zealand for a mere month of holiday. Well, now that I made it here I am very, very happy that I don't have to go the same way back any time soon. That was one long trip to this far, far away country. And what… Continue reading Hello New Zealand!
Preparing for Te Araroa might seem like a daunting experience, especially if it’s your first through-hike. Yet it is not as hard as it seems, and the key rule is to remember that most things will explain and solve themselves when you are out there. The best piece of advice we’ve read before starting was to… Continue reading Te Araroa Planning & Logistics
Welcome to Crossing Aotearoa! We hope you enjoy following our adventure on this website.
Preparing for Te Araroa is taking up most of our free time these days. With 2,5 months to go before departure, we are trying to get a good picture of what is waiting for us and how we can deal with it best. A very important part of that is to find an acceptable balance… Continue reading Reading, weighing and calculating: getting ready for the 3000
To get ready for the 3060 kilometres we try to hike as much as we can. 3060 is not a small number, so when we are off from work we explore the wider region of southwest Norway. The mountain, glacier and fjord landscape around us provides excellent opportunities for some hard but very beautiful mountain… Continue reading Training for the Long Pathway: Jostedalen and Folgefonna National Parks
Team Belgica 