About the Te Araroa: November 5-March 4

Oh man, where to begin with the Te Araroa. Well, first off, it is 1863mi/2998km and runs the full length of both islands of New Zealand. One of the few hikes in the world that hikes the full length of a country. Second, it is relatively young (officially opened at the end of 2011) and still has a lot of growing to do. The range of experiences on the TA is quite great varying in terrain including road walking, beach slogging, mountain hiking, water crossings, canoeing, farmland, jungled muddy forests, and countless other experiences. It’s going to bring on a wide range of challenges in both terrain and weather (wind/rain). Daily distance hiked each day is significantly lower than the US long trails given the slower terrain, but know that my pace was a couple weeks faster than most would take to complete this track if walking the full length.