What is the Te Araroa Trail?
A relatively new thru-hike, the Te Araroa Trail was officially opened in 2011 after 30 years of planning.
Meaning “The Long Pathway” in Maori, Te Araroa stretches for 3000km, 1700km in the North Island and 1300km in the South Island. Starting at the famous lighthouse in Cape Reinga, the trail takes walkers over beaches, volcanoes, mountains and swingbridges, and through forests, gullies and rivers before arriving at Stirling Point in Bluff.
Best done North to South due to the section of canoeing down the Whanganui River, the trail takes roughly 4-5 months to complete, at an average of 25km per day.
Seeing hundreds of thru-hikers each year and thousands more section or day hikers, the Te Araroa Trail continues to grow in popularity, inspiring numerous books and documentaries.
Where does Te Araroa go?
Why did I decide to hike Te Araroa?
One of the first things people ask me when they find out I hiked the 3000km-long Te Araroa Trail, is why. Why would I want to hike day after day for five months, over mountains and through knee-deep mud, carrying a heavy pack?
I always struggle to answer them. Not because I don’t know why I wanted to do it, but because it is a combination of many different reasons. For me, hiking the TA wasn’t just something I wanted to do, it had always felt like something that I needed to do.
I have always craved escaping the monotony of every-day life and challenging myself to see what I am truly capable of, and walking Te Araroa offered that. I was sick of living in a limbo state, always waiting for something exciting to come and save me, and so I decided to save myself.
Life had become too complicated, dealing with multiple mental illnesses, and the struggles of adult life, I wanted something to shake me and remind me of what life is truly about, something to strip me down to my core and build me back up a better, stronger, and more grateful person.
Te Araroa felt like the right thing to truly kick off the part of my life that I would actually be proud of, that I would actually enjoy.
Read about my journey…
On the 8th November 2021, I started from Bluff, aiming to walk for 6 months straight to Cape Reinga.
However even the best laid plans don’t turn out how you think. Read my blog to see how my journey turned out!
What Is The Te Araroa Trail?
A relatively new thru-hike, the Te Araroa Trail was officially opened in 2011 after 30 years of planning.
Meaning “The Long Pathway” in Maori, Te Araroa stretches for 3000km, 1700km in the North Island and 1300km in the South Island. Starting at the famous lighthouse in Cape Reinga, the trail takes walkers over beaches, volcanoes, mountains and swingbridges, and through forests, gullies and rivers before arriving at Stirling Point in Bluff.
Best done North to South due to the section of canoeing down the Whanganui River, the trail takes roughly 4-5 months to complete, at an average of 25km per day.
Seeing hundreds of thru-hikers each year and thousands more section or day hikers, the Te Araroa Trail continues to grow in popularity, inspiring numerous books and documentaries.
