I made sure to be ready at 6:30 because the lovely woman I camped at, drove me the 2 km back to the official trail plus 1 kn further. To the house of Dee.

An absolute sweetheart who let us camp at her place last time. I say we because we were with 7 in total. I put the photos I printed out in her letterbox, the dogs started barking as if I was an intruder. To check it out Dee came out of the house. I was amazed that she remembered me and we chatted for a while.

But as I hadn’t walked a step I knew it was time to get the show on the road. I waved goodbye and headed on.

In the next village, I met again a lovely Kiwi. This time an older gentleman who offered me avocados. Can’t say no to that. I took them with me and decided on an early break so I could eat them at the beach and throw out the trash. To be fair I didn’t want more weight.

After that, the trail followed the Helena Ridge Track. A beautiful trail which I longed for after so much road.

The trail can be a bit steep in places, but eventually, it is only a bit of sweat and a little bit of effort. Can’t complain about that.

While on the track I met new hikers. They all seemed like a fun bunch and I could even practice my Swedish. The only thing that annoyed me was that another fellow hiker addressed hitchhiking the roads as cheating. To me, that is unnecessary being rude. Everyone is allowed to do the hike as they want. There is no write (right sounds like 🤣) or wrong way to do it. So I don’t like it when someone uses terms as cheating. So I told the hiker that. He kinda brushed it off with that the girl he was talking about it, didn’t mind. But as I too took a hitch yesterday, that comment applies to me too. Obviously, I get offended about it, and as my philosophy is don’t say something negative if your opinion hasn’t been asked. I felt I could explain the above.

I walked a bit of the road with Catty but needed to refill my water. So she continued.

I finished the road walk. Although I had to use an alarm technique to keep me going. 45 minutes of walking and then a break.

As soon as the trail was completed I took a hitch to cover the 1.3 km to the free campsite. Expecting the other. With only a campervan with David was here. David is retired and chatted merrily about his van and his life whilst I cooked at eat. Glad with the conversation, I drank my tea there as well.

Now off to bed!!

I think my new time to wake up is 5 o’clock. Bit too early so I stayed in bed a bit longer. Today will consist of road walking and road walking only as the beautiful Russel forest is closed to protect the Kauri tree from the Kauri dieback disease. I applaud DOC for the drastic measures to protect New Zealand’s native forest. But selfishly I wished it wasn’t.

The road walk was okay. Sometimes nice views however without a shoulder and many bends. I crisscrossed over and over.

One part of the road walk was a quiet gravel road. Which is definitely better, but still not the same as a trail.

As the day continued I took a few breaks. Something very unfortunate happened and I still cannot believe my bad luck.

As I was making a phone call to arrange a place to sleep tonight. I heard a dog barking. A bit concerned I eyed him. Some dogs are too protective and bite. While on the phone the dog approached me. Not wishing to pet an unknown dog I gave him no attention. I hung up the phone and the dog sniffed my bag. I made sure he didn’t eat my food and while I was thinking if he was skinny and whether I should feed him some. The dog peed over my backpack!!!!! I screamed at him, which startled the dog and he stopped. Very angry I yelled go away and reluctantly he obeyed. I cannot believe this happened. I used water to rinse it away. But it is freaking disgusting. Why trailgods why??

After that break, my spirit was low. Road walking all day, blisters because I stupidly chose to wear the same shoes I wore to the UK and Sweden, and worst of all my left Achilles heel started to hurt. As the next 6,5km contains nothing spectacular (having it walked once before) I decided I would hitchhike. And so I did.

It was a short ride to the exit for my camping and for the last 1,8km, I walked again. Giving an odd pattern on strava.

The rest of the evening was simple. No other hikers. So I showered, cooked, ate, and drank a large amount of tea that would help my recovery and subsequently keep me peeing all through the night. I’ll come back with a number tomorrow. (It was ‘only’ 3x).

As it’s 9 pm my eyelids are starting to fall and it’s time to go to sleep.

I slept very well in a bed again. In the morning I heard the pilot (Maurice) getting up and although I probably could have slept a little longer, I wanted the start the day so I would have plenty of time to wash, resupply, and eat in Paihia.

I said goodbye to Carol and looked but the others weren’t up yet. I expect they were awake, knowing the rhythm of Colin.

The trail once again differs from 4 years ago. This time because of logging in the forest. This also means that the beautiful forest of last time was chopped away. Not all of course, but a large bit was. Definitely the downside of logging forests.

I took my first break at a beautiful look out point and I’m surprised because it seems that my hikee hunger is starting to kick in. I ate most of a bag of chips and half a chocolate bar. Oopsie.

After that, I continued to walk and burn the consumed calories.

I arrived in the morning at Paihia. The supermarket didn’t have to self scooping bins so I ended up with large quantities (for example 750gr oats) for only 3-4 day hike! Definitely got a heavy backpack again.

During laundry, I updated my blog, because writing at the end of the day is not everything done. Although I never read them again, scared of the dreadful stories, I do use a grammar corrector. Furthermore adding the text, photos, and other items takes more time than I knew.

In Paihia, I finally ate an Indian curry and soon after that, I continued with a very full stomach. Especially with a full backpack, the stomach straps wasn’t very pleasant.

I continued after lunch realising I wouldn’t make it in time. So I chose a campsite closer to me. A beautiful trail prevented a lot of unpleasant road walking. Hopefully, tomorrow will be better.

Af the campsite there was 1 other TA hiker. Very lovely French guy who also walked Kungsleden although it was a few years ago. Nice to have company. Now off to bed because tomorrow is going to be far and I already almost fell asleep while writing this…. So good night

PS, I fell asleep a few times while writing the above. So sorry if it’s incoherent.

Today would be 25km to Kerikeri and another 8-ish km to stay and the brother of the Kiwi brothers. I was really excited to eat. So I hurried today.

Again a group got up at 5! And unfortunately not very quietly. So I just did the same. I was down to 5 oatmeal bars and mashed potato. So I eat breakfast while walking. I also made some phone calls.

The trail was much more beautiful than I remembered and I think it was rerouted for the better! An unexpected waterfall and not getting lost in paddocks.

The distance depends on where you divert from the trail and head to the city center. At that stage, I walked together with Max and Jorn. Nice to meet a fellow Dutchie and he spent years abroad. So he had impressive stories, especially about the pilgrim’s hike he walked in Japan.

Max was feeling less happy than Jorn and I. The obvious cause was a too heavy backpack. Which he fully knew. As he just wanted to be done, we took the first possible exit. I was glad to get a large burger! After that, we split up. They would look for accommodation and take a rest day tomorrow. I resupplied and bought a rubber ring for my water filter and an extra water bladder. with a second blader, I can create my own gravity filter and I HATE spending time on filtering water. So this is perfect for me!

After that, I walked back to the trail. I was a bit tempted to go back to where I left off. But that would mean an extra 3km and I wanted to finish and relax. So I skipped a little bit of trail.

The rest was mainly road. Only the beginning was a bit of trail.

I reached Maurice’s house (brother of the Kiwi brothers) at 5 pm. To make it more complicated his wife’s sister lives there as well. So we had a group of 9 for a delicious dinner and wine. Aah, absolutely heaven. A shower, a bed, and great company. Even a game was played!!! Couldn’t wish for more!

Today will be such a lovely hike! Last time I loved it, but thought it was quite challenging. Especially the middle part where you walk on the slope next to the river. The trail would be small with little detours up and down because of fallen trees or landslides. I also remember that halfway there was a sign saying another 5h to the campsite, but it was significantly less. Seeing how much easier Reatea forest was. I was certain I would find Puketi forest enjoyable.

What wasn’t enjoyable, was the night. At midnight the Possums called each other with horrible screeches and took over our campsite. I heard them near my tent, so I got out and ran after them. My previous experience is that if you do that about 3 times, they’ll stay away. Nuhuh! These knew that they could get away with it. After my neighbor took his trash away from the vestibule, the possums moved to the other side. Their mistake because there was Andy and his hiking poles. But even as he hit them, they would still come back. Luckily no tent had been chewed through, but some food had bite marks.

At 5 am, the first group woke up, and as I was near the kitchen, so did I. I packed my tent and took my time to eat breakfast, and take a group photo with the hikers I met on the first campsite (minus Grant).

Not sure about the departure time, but soon I saw the mud that stopped me yesterday. It was very slippery, but I went straight through. The river will clean my shoes anyway.

Soon I saw the group that left before me. As two wore sandals and therefore a bit slow (constantly getting sand and gravel in their shoes). I walked a bit with them, but the pace was too slow and so I went ahead. I reached the junction where you have to take a small detour on the left because otherwise, you have to swim across. Some poor people miss this and swim across with their packs. Heard it last time, and heard about it this time.

I got there early and decided to go for a swim, created a ‘stop’ with stones, and sunbathe. Waiting for the others to point them in the right direction. The Kiwi brothers saw it themselves, the group after that was the one that I did Reatea with and left after me. As I told the group I passed this morning, I felt I could join them again and the other group would know where to go.

The crossing was still a bit deep, but nothing too crazy. Just when we finished. The other group arrived and they still missed it. Even after my warning. Luckily we could point them in the right direction before they plunged in.

The trail after wasn’t as difficult for me as it was the first time. I stayed with Sonja, who hurt her ankle on 90-mile beach, and just wanted to keep her company.

Before lunch, I saw the 5h sign. We took a small break and the four of us (Andy, Anna, Sonja, and I) were ready for the stairs. To be fair I underestimated it this time. But we all succeed. When they decided to take a break, I continued and soon bumped into Gordon. He was left behind by his speedy brother and I felt it would be helpful if I stayed with him. Having another person hiking in front makes it easier to continue yourself. I never asked and he never said so, but we did the last half hour together.

Once we hit the 4WD track, we saw Colin and the rest of the Reatea group. Who just woke up from their lunch nap. My own lunch was interrupted by a speck of rain.

The rest of the road was easy and the campsite even had a shower, although cold.

Dinner was cut short by another short shower and everyone disappeared into their tents

Today wasn’t an extremely interesting day. A road walk to start with. A road walk to finish with and a road walk in the middle.

We would walk past a small shop that was happy to serve me fries at 10:30 am. So while the rest ate pastries I ate fries.

The road was first State Highway 1, normally a busy road. However, due to storm damage, the part further ahead is closed so only local traffic uses the highway at the moment. So nice and quiet.

The rest was a gravel road. I walked by myself which I liked and preferred. I was ‘playing’ catch-up. But I passed the group when they took a break in the fields and they passed me when I ventured to the old campsite (didn’t reach it because halfway through I was like why??). Eventually, I caught up with Róisín and we started walking together. Unexpectedly I saw Ben walking towards us. He was on his way back to retrieve his water filter bottle. Luckily I saw it and expected someone left it accidentally behind, I took it with me. So I saved him around 6km roundtrip. He escorted us to the campsite which was only 2 km further.

There are many tents and the two groups I have met so far are now all at the same site. Plus the Kiwi brothers! Full house! But as everyone is happy and the sun is out, it doesn’t matter how small or large a group is. It is always fun.

There is a water tank at the campsite but no flowing water. I made the bad decision to not walk back to the stream we passed. But down 300m to the river. Almost there, the track became too muddy for me to cross without getting dirty. So intending to get cleaner, there is no point in continuing. Walking the 300m back up, I came back dirtier….

To cope with my sticky skin I put all my thermo layers to bed. And so here I lay. Early to bed which made me miss the first card game (FOMO!!). But never mind I’m sure there will be a next one.

It rained during the night and I thanked my lucky stars that I waterproofed my tent! It holds the rain pretty well, but I’m not 100% convinced that it will hold much rain. So I need a new tent.

When my alarm went at 5 am, another rain cloud floated passed our campsite. I snoozed for another half hour and started packing. Today I walked Raetea forest, notorious for its mud, and to do that comfortably I wanted to leave as early as possible.

Today the earliest possible was 7 am. The trail doesn’t start right away with mud. It gives you first a 4D track. After 2km it starts! And there is no escape. I followed the wisdom of Moss a kiwi I met last time: ‘just go straight through the mud’. And so I did.

There was so much more mud than last time. But in a better hiking shape and a circa 10kg lighter backpack. I could enjoy it much more.

I saw the others, who started soon after me, a few times. Until they joined me for a break on one of the view spots with a view. We still had the occasional rain cloud, but the sun started to peak through a bit.

After the break, I walked with Martin. A Swiss man who tackled the mud barefoot. We chatted for an hour until there was a hold-up because of a mud pool. I followed the Wiss Moss and went straight through. It brought me to the front and I continued at my own speed.

I felt really good. Found another spot with a view for lunch and slid through the mud. I did make a wrong movement with my right knee. Luckily I wore a knee brace and the trail didn’t ease up like last time. So it added some time. Me taking the wrong turn also caused a delay in my arrival time. Unfortunately, I forgot to unpause Strava so the wrong turn isn’t recorded.

In that time the rest of the group apparently passed me. I arrived at the campsite with them being there.

Cleaning my legs, shoes, socks, shorts, poles, and rain pants took a while which made me have up on cleaning half the stuff. It will either get dirtier with me or clean in the river of the next section.

After a nice dinner, the Kiwi brothers turned up. I chatted with them as well.

Now my eyes fall close whilst writing this. Do I’ll call it a day and go to bed.

There was a slight drizzle in the night, but before my hopefully waterproof tent was put to the test, it stopped.

This time I started packing at 7:30 with 1 item that still needed a waterproof coat. So I packed up everything else and then another light shower passed. I brought my backpack to the communal area where my camping neighbor offered me a ride to Kaitaia. I could make his suggested departure time. However, the four new hikers I met yesterday could and he would even drop them off at the supermarket.

After breakfast, another shower came and afterward, I got busy with the waterproof spray. Now without the sun, the drying took long especially because another light shower came. Luckily I saw it approaching and moved everything to a covered area.

When it was finally dry, I lost my attachment to my charging cable. The search didn’t result in a finding so I asked Ròisín if she could buy me one and I will bring her her poles that she forgot. She agreed and I was glad to be able to charge my phone. On the other side, I was frustrated at the fact that I put it in my pocket and I had no idea where and why it fell out.

After that, I could finally leave. A lovely woman gave me a ride back to Kaitaia and I started the road walk that would bring me to the edge of the muddiest forest I know.

On the road, a car stopped and I saw Martin and Ròisín in the car. He wanted to offer me a ride, but I kindly denied it. I’m walking all the way. Or at least that is the current aim. Surprised I drove away after I gave the hiking poles back to Ròisín.

The rest of the walk was uneventful, until the last 2km when I caught up with Antoine and Claire and walked the last bit together.

It was busy at the campsite, but nice. There were even two incidents :

a gas stove that started burning from the attachment point instead of the usual outlet

2) a pot of boiling water that nearly tipped over.

As the sun was setting, I got to bead. With the alarm at 5 so there would be enough time to tackle the muddiest forest I know and couldn’t complete on my own last time (still loved it. It looks like the Droomvlucht but with loads of mud).

I let myself sleep in till 7 am. Still early but I wanted to get up. So I started packing everything except my tent because I was staying another night. You might wonder why even pack at all because not carrying a pack would feel like cheating.

The others were packing up as well, but as they got a ride to town, it would be a solo hike.

I left at 9, but after 500m I saw Gordon and chatted for a wee bit. After another 500m, I saw Grant enjoying a coffee. I couldn’t resist the offer to join him. He got in this morning with only 13km it didn’t take him long.

I was most curious about Sandro but he had stuck to a short day and was feeling much better. In the meantime, Gordon came and joined us because he would meet up with Colin here. And indeed Colin joined us later.

With everyone having a different plan, it will be unlikely that we will meet again in this setting and although I don’t know them very well, Concurring 90mile beach creates a bond. In essence, I feel that sharing hardship removes all differences and everyone is just simply another human being instead of an old woman or a young bloke. Something I rarely experience outside of thru-hiking.

After Colin finished two slices of pie, we said goodbye to Grant and headed off with the three of us. Colin counting and recording birds as a part-time job, constructed a 24-page Health and Safety document. So he had both front and back high-visibility items. He told me bird names but they meant very little to me. I’d never heard of them and so with the given name, my mind was still blank. But I enjoyed trying to spot birds as well and with that the road walk was definitely not as terrible.

In town we separated. They went to get lunch and I to resupply. Even though I made half a shopping list I didn’t check it and thus I forgot a few items that are unconventional, like a lighter. But I’ll make it. After resupplying I went to a Fish and Hunting store and to my surprise they had waterproofing spray for tents.

I got a ride back into town and the Indian restaurant wasn’t open yet, so I got Subway instead. Definitely my second choice.

After a hitch back, I started the process of waterproofing my tent. Also some laundry and chatting with new hikers who came from the beach. And I even saw Sandro who enjoyed the hike but was probably going to stop to enjoy New Zealand summer with friends instead.

I went to bed on time but couldn’t sleep. After a midnight snack at 1 am, I finally fell asleep.

The final day of 90 mile beach. It remains such a milestone to complete it and I was looking forward to a change of scenery, although the thought of the following road walks terrified me.

To complete the beach, I had the same game plan as yesterday. Get up in the night, walk as far as possible in the dark and dawn, and then suffer the last kilometers with the sun burning. In comparison to yesterday, I felt much better! Packed my bag faster, got more headgear ready as soon as the sun got out, and carried more water. This resulted in a doable 25km.

Of course, I took breaks to enjoy the beach, to eat, and most importantly to air my feet. I saw hikers behind and on my first break (7,5km) Hayden speed-hiked past me with the message he might as well walk to Kaitaia (an additional 15km).

On the second break (km14) I saw my hiking buddy Grant. Unfortunately, he stayed halfway so we could only walk the remaining 3km together. He was so kind to take photos of me where I posed like I was hiking.

At the exit ramp towards his destination of today we said goodbye. Unsure if we would see each other again so we swapped phone numbers. I continued my happy stride along the beach. Fully submerged in my audiobook.

On my third break (24km) I tried to find (affordable) accommodation in Kaitaia for tomorrow. The cheapest I could find was $40 and that is way way too much for me to pay for a tiny tent and the cold shower I prefer. So I decided on a more complex schedule. I wanted some shorter days to have a less taxing day for my body and more time for recovery. So I would stay two nights in Ahipara and the lovely and to me still expensive ($28) holiday park. Tomorrow I walk to Kaitaia and hitchhike back. The day after that I’ll hitch from Ahipara to Kaitaia and continue from there.

The plan made me happy, but at that point, the skin on my heels had enough. And when my skin has enough it becomes red swollen and hot. This meant that normal foot motions weren’t possible as stretching my foot was extremely painful for the swollen heel. Now this is something I have experienced before and I know tomorrow it will be fine. So grit my teeth and push on. The pace subsequently slowed down. I chose a parked car ahead of me as the location where I could pause. Unknowingly this was 2 km ahead so it took a while. But having a clear aim helps. Once I arrived there the sun was high and I ate my two peanut butter wraps in the blazing sun.

I continued to finish the final 3km. I decided that it was worth it to walk in the water, so my skin could cool down. Didn’t help. But I did make it. Of course because as tough as it was. The first 4 ago was SOOO much worse. So in comparison, it wasn’t that bad, but it definitely wasn’t as easy as I thought before starting.

I arrived in the afternoon. So still plenty of time to recover. I chatted with TA hikers who finished yesterday and who were enjoying there rest day. But I mainly did the things I had to do (pitch my tent, cold shower, and hydrate). I joined the other group for dinner, but I was too tired for much of a chat.

So off to my tent and on my way to a good night (and long) sleep

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