Today 20.5 km. Total 418.5 (+ 9 km as lost 1 km as crossed from Reatahi Bay not McLeod Bay). 4 1/2 hours (0700-1130).
I woke up a little early to be sure I would be on time for my ride and without trying had my fastest morning routine yet. I emerged from my bush hideaway and walked down to the boat ramp to wait for my ride. the wind was a little less than yesterday but still a little rough. The guys have their routine down and it was less than three minutes from the car arriving with the boat to them being on the water. Unfortunately it was a wet feet entry and the water was cold. In the little boat I was sheltered by tucking under the front. The crossing only took a couple of minutes. Not a bad way for these guys to commute though when the weather is rough they have a long drive. I thanked the guys who were a little bemused by the whole thing and was on my way.
The beach was in perfect condition with the tide out. The sand was firm and the angle of the beach was not much. The only issue was the cold wind and occasional showers. It was 10 km to the Ruakaka River mouth. After 7 km I started seeing people. I spoke to one lady who a couple of years ago had let an English girl doing TA stay at her house because the tide was too high to cross the river. She offered to drive me around the river as she was concerned I would get wet. I thanked her but explained I expected to get wet and that my shoes were already wet from this mornings boat. Not long after I did my 400 km photo. It was a little late but I forgot to do it earlier.
The river was only knee deep and not running fast so was an easy crossing. I took a break after the crossing and had a chat with a runner who was interested in TA. She seemed impressed that I had just crossed the river which I found funny considering how easy the crossing was.
It was now another 6.5 km of beach broken by the occasional Kite Fisher. They use a kite to take their line over the breakers and then pull it in. There were also a few cars parked up and they were fishing too. At 1030 I was off the beach and on the short road walk to Waipu. At 1115 I grabbed a small lunch (pie, chicken roll, caramel slice, cheese scone, fresh up and coffee) and walked to the Waipu Wanderers Backpacker where I got the last room. Unfortunately I had to have the room with a queen bed so I guess I will just have to suffer tonight- ha ha.
I had a shower, washed my clothes, did a few little chores then just relaxed all afternoon. For dinner I went to the TA famous Waipu Pizza Barn which was packed, and had a great pizza. It was big but I had no trouble polishing it off. I spent the evening reviewing my possible schedule for the next week and the changes to my resupply plan. I will need to reduce my next planned resupply as I still have heaps of food left due to going slightly faster than expected and buying more than expected.
I woke up a little early to be sure I would be on time for my ride and without trying had my fastest morning routine yet. I emerged from my bush hideaway and walked down to the boat ramp to wait for my ride. the wind was a little less than yesterday but still a little rough. The guys have their routine down and it was less than three minutes from the car arriving with the boat to them being on the water. Unfortunately it was a wet feet entry and the water was cold. In the little boat I was sheltered by tucking under the front. The crossing only took a couple of minutes. Not a bad way for these guys to commute though when the weather is rough they have a long drive. I thanked the guys who were a little bemused by the whole thing and was on my way.
The end of the rainbows (look closely and you will see two) is at Marsden Oil Refinery
The great guy who gave me a ride across the channel
Destination Marsden
The beach was in perfect condition with the tide out. The sand was firm and the angle of the beach was not much. The only issue was the cold wind and occasional showers. It was 10 km to the Ruakaka River mouth. After 7 km I started seeing people. I spoke to one lady who a couple of years ago had let an English girl doing TA stay at her house because the tide was too high to cross the river. She offered to drive me around the river as she was concerned I would get wet. I thanked her but explained I expected to get wet and that my shoes were already wet from this mornings boat. Not long after I did my 400 km photo. It was a little late but I forgot to do it earlier.
Looking at what I had traversed yesterday
And what I have ahead today
Small distractions
400 km (probably closer to 403 as I was a little late with the marker)
The river was only knee deep and not running fast so was an easy crossing. I took a break after the crossing and had a chat with a runner who was interested in TA. She seemed impressed that I had just crossed the river which I found funny considering how easy the crossing was.
It was now another 6.5 km of beach broken by the occasional Kite Fisher. They use a kite to take their line over the breakers and then pull it in. There were also a few cars parked up and they were fishing too. At 1030 I was off the beach and on the short road walk to Waipu. At 1115 I grabbed a small lunch (pie, chicken roll, caramel slice, cheese scone, fresh up and coffee) and walked to the Waipu Wanderers Backpacker where I got the last room. Unfortunately I had to have the room with a queen bed so I guess I will just have to suffer tonight- ha ha.
Night 17
I had a shower, washed my clothes, did a few little chores then just relaxed all afternoon. For dinner I went to the TA famous Waipu Pizza Barn which was packed, and had a great pizza. It was big but I had no trouble polishing it off. I spent the evening reviewing my possible schedule for the next week and the changes to my resupply plan. I will need to reduce my next planned resupply as I still have heaps of food left due to going slightly faster than expected and buying more than expected.
Hi Kirstine. Sounds like you are having a great time, i am glad to see you are tramping purist (No lifts) keep it up. Its interesting reading of the diferent weather that you are encountering than that i had this time last year. I had similar leg and knee issues but it was about now it all came good and i found the hard road serface sections a lot easier. looking forward to your future posts with a certain amount of envy. David
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comments David.
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