Tales and adventures of a Belgian lady and her fourteen furry friends
If there is one thing that characterizes the last few days it is definitely a mixture of emotions. I've rewritten this post 3 times and rewrite it now once more according to the mood and emotion of the moments passed, being enthusiasm, tiredness, cold and back to enthusiasm. We've spent a lot of time thinking… Continue reading Summer’s Over – @ Wanaka
After crossing the Rangitata river we immediately started going up Two Thumbs Track. We wanted make it as far as possible that day, to Royal Hut, right before Stag Saddle, so we would be in pole position to get across if the opportunity arose. The terrain was more challenging than we anticipated. The section between… Continue reading Caught in the storm – Two Thumbs Track
A few natural barriers form breaks in Te Araoa's continuum. The Cook Strait is one, the Rakaia and Rangitata rivers are two of the others. Water from the Southern Alps is drained in their endless braids, filling up their huge shingle beds measuring up to 10km across. Both of them are Hazard Zones and unpassable… Continue reading The Big Two
Now that our journey to Bluff has become under a 1000km long, an optimistic mood set in. Only a few mountains, a couple of valleys here and there, a river or two to deal with, we'll be there in no time! Yet we feel that our bodies are tired, and our heads too. There is… Continue reading Life on Trail
There are few things more satisfactory in life than enjoying lunch in the sun on top of a remote alpine pass. Waiau Pass Track is my number one favourite track on the TA so far. It's landscapes are high up with the other highlights, with the wonderful addition that it is a quiet place. Rugged… Continue reading Nelson Lakes National Park: Waiau Pass Track
Nice as it was, the Queen Charlotte Track was merely a warm up to the rest of the South Island, an easy stroll along the coastline leading us to the mountains ahead. This is it. The 700 roughest, wildest, most physical kilometres of our journey across New Zealand. It's exciting, slightly intimidating, somewhat astonishing that… Continue reading Pelorus River and the Richmond Ranges
After a good rest in Wellington we went on a mission. We had to figure out where to send food parcels to and get all the food to put into them. We loaded two carts almost to the brink with food that will fuel us for 31 days. We sent out food parcels to Havelock,… Continue reading South Island Logistics & Queen Charlotte Track
It seemed surreal, standing on the north island's southernmost point at the end of the City to Sea Walkway. No more north island to walk on. We sat on top of the island's last hill for a while, looking over the ocean, over the Cook Strait, and over the rugged south island outlined in the… Continue reading Reaching Wellington – Remembering the North Island
The Tararua Ranges are the first real mountain section of the trail before starting the South Island. They are notorious for their rapidly detoriating weather, their steep ridges, and their high amount of altitude difference along the path. Almost bordered by the sea and overlooking the southern half of the North Island it is a beautiful… Continue reading Traversing the Tararuas
Between Whanganui and the Tararuas we had a relaxed section to get back into the trail rhythm. First, we had a long thought about what to do with the stretch to Palmerston North. It consists of 100km almost purely on the road, mostly asphalted. Unpleasant memories of how our feet used to cope with this… Continue reading The halfway mark
Lost in the Hills 