Every Little Bit Helps

November 17/10 . DAY #34 . 22 KM .

Another day. Another dollar. Spent. Alex and I have found our place for the night in the middle of Mangawhai Forest. Ninja camping, as some call it. It's been a day of trekking, internet and simply trying to survive this heat that New Zealand will soon describe as summer. Even when we started out at 6:30 a.m. this mornign and the sun had barely risen enough to clear away the morning fog and dry up the dew, we were hot and sweaty.

Fortunately for us we were able to make a rather lengthy pit stop in Mangawhai Heads to catch up on internet and such indoors. As nice (and pricey) as that was, it sucked that we then had to head out of town at 2:20 p.m. in order to make some distance and find a free spot to camp. It was difficult not to notice how we were walking during the hottest part of the day. Not to mention that we were doing it with heavy packs on and normally we'd be setting up camp in preparation to actually be enjoying the heat.

On our way out of town we met a local who offered us a lift and a place to stay, but we politely declined - as is our way. It would be cheating otherwise. As it were, he bumped into us later on in the day and gave us a hand drawn map, directing us along where he assumed we were going. It was amazing to me to think of how he must have seen us. I don't know what he had thought as it seemed strange to me to assume that we wouldn't already have an idea of where we were going and what we were doing. Apparantly we looked as though we needed help and he figured he'd be just the guy to help us out.

As it were, his hand drawn map was not needed as soon after we followed our intended route off the main roads towards the coast where we have been able to set up camp admist the Mangawhai Forest. Nothing like going to sleep among the smell of pine trees to put a smile on my face!


November 18 . DAY #35 . 24 KM .

Every little bit helps. Or at least that's what I've come to think through Alex and mine's decision to do what we're doing. One step at a time and we will make our way across New Zealand. One person at a time we hope to inspire to go after their dreams. Anything is possible. One dollar at a time and we will be able to help out the Turusuala Community Centre in Solomon Islands. And now this.

A day or two ago Alex and I started talking of how we could better help promote environmental sustainability through our trek. It's all good and well that we're doing our best to stick to the trail and leave all camping areas as we found them, but we wanted to do more. We wanted to do more than promote the idea of alternative travelling - of showing the world that everywhere's within walking distance if you've got the time.

And so we decided that we would find a way to do something that might actually make a difference. Through the past month we've noticed quite a lot of rubbish along the way. Rubbish along the road. On the trail. Stuck in bushes. Floating on the ocean waters. Essentially - we've seen bits and bobs of human products EVERYWHERE. Up until today there hasnt' been anything we felt we COULD do about it. We're already carrying the maximum weight we want to on our backs and sometimes don't even have an opportunity to throw out our own accumulated rubbish for days. And so we've simply been passing by all the soda bottles, empty chip bags and used napkins, commenting on how bad all that is for the environment and hoping that someone would come along and take responsibility for it.

But the other day we had a thought. What if we were to MAKE it our responsibility? What if we were to pick up one piece of rubbish each per day as we trekked along? One piece isn't a lot. It's just one. But it's also one more than what we HAVE been picking up thusfar.

And so today we excitedly set off to find our one piece of rubbish that we could help out in making its way to the trash can. As it were - we happened to be passing through Pakiri which had rubbish bins, so Alex and I ended up doing 2 pieces each. It took us 2 seconds and we ended today knowing that we had made a difference - even if it was a small one.

But what if everyone did that? What if everyone took responsibility for picking up one piece of rubbish - even just once? We all look to the side of the road and comment on how horrible it is to see all the stuff strewn about - what if we all quit talking about it and did something?

In looking ahead - Alex and I have an estimated 4 months (give or take a few days) journey left on our hands. If we can clean up 1 piece of rubbish each for each day during that time, that's an estimated 240 pieces of rubbish no longer working their way to killing our environment. There isn't much wrong with that.

And what if everyone just did a little bit? A world doesn't change overnight. They say it takes a community to raise a child - what does it take to make a difference in our world? One step at a time. Every little bit helps. Every piece of rubbish cleared up. Every dollar given to someone in need. It doesn't take much. What can you do?


And that's what this portion of our journey has turned into. Challenging ourselves to do more for the world around us. Each one of us is part of this world and it's each one of our responsibility to take care of it. And so Alex and I challenge everyone reading this to find some way to help out as well. Each day has turned into an adventure to find that piece of rubbish to pick up. Sometimes we find nothing and so the next day we pick up two pieces. Some days we go through towns and such and have developed the habit of just picking up what we can as the rubbish bins are right there. And sometimes it's advocating our cause to other people who are too lazy to actually throw out their rubbish in the bins. And it feels good.



Feeding the lambs at Sheepworld

 From that day onwards, we worked our way towards Matakana which turned out to be one of Alex's and mine favorite places we've passed through to date. Complete with many cafes, a beautiful river and amazing people - well - Matakana makes a grey rainy day beautiful. After a lengthy lunch break at the Black Dog Cafe, Alex and I worked our way to Dome Valley (November 20/10) where we were in for a nice surprise at Sheepworld Caravan Park. Much thanks to Ian at Sheepworld who set us up in a small caravan for our stay. There Alex and I took a day of rest to enjoy the indoors as it rained outside. When the skies cleared up we were able to go and check out the Sheepworld tour where we learned all about what it takes to care for a herd of sheep. As part of the experience I even got to try my luck at shearing a sheep!


November 22/10 . DAY #39 . 27 KM .

Tramper discretion advised. That's what all the Te Araroa Trail signposts SHOULD say. Alex and I got lost today. Not like LOST lost per say - it's more that we dunno what happened to the trail. It completely disappeared. And so - instead of turning around and heading back, we decided to make camp on a secluded patch of farmland and try our luck at the trail tomorrow. Hopefully then we'll be able to make it to Puhoi. Happy tramping.


November 23/10 . DAY #40 . 11 KM .

Chatting it up with a local in Puhoi

Made it to Puhoi and here we got stuck. As many of the locals do I am sure. We got here in the morning (after finding our route - a critical orange arrow directing us in the appropriate direction had been taken down) and found the local shop with everything we could possibly want. Including a one Judith Williams.

Judith happened to be a friend of Inge (Ora Ora Resort) recommended to us. So we called her. By the time she found her way to us and we chatted while Alex and I polished off a fresh enclair each - we were reluctant to leave. And so we didn't.

And here we are - at the local historical pub where we've pretty well spent the rest of the day - catching up on postcards, book reading and the such as the rain poured on outside. And we're okay with that. Tomorrow we plan on heading down the Puhoi River by kayak.


Puhoi turned out to be yet another favorite place within our journey around New Zealand. The people. The sights. The complete atmosphere. It was easy to see how one could just come there and never leave again. And that's almost what happened. By the end of our day in Puhoi, we had endless amounts of offers from locals to come and stay overnight at their places. We declined each of them as we were set on sleeping in our tent. But then one local came and stated that we were welcome to stay at the local community centre play place. We simply couldn't turn down an offer such as that and ended up cozying up in our sleeping bags surrounded by massive collection of toys.



Kayaking Puhoi River

 The following day (November 24), we were set to head down Puhoi River by none other than kayak. Thanks to Puhoi River Canoes and Kathy and Cody who set us up with our individual kayaks and sent us on our way. 10 KM of weaving down the lazy river and we had arrived at Wenderholm Regional Park. It was such a unique part of our journey and was great to give our legs a bit of a rest. We couldn't have done it without Puhoi River Canoes as during this part of the journey along Te Araroa Trail, there simply isn't another option to get past Puhoi as the state highway isn't currently walkable.

And so from Wenderholm Regional Park we trekked, all the way to the south end of Orewa Beach. It was here that Alex and I began to adjust to being back in civilization - certainly not as overwhelming as what we knew the city centre of Auckland would soon be, but it was still a bit of a shock to the system as we had been a full 40 days outside major civilization (other than a few periods of trekking through small towns/communities). Away went the hiking poles and we made our way to a local caravan park for the night.



About to cross Weiti River

 On November 25 we found ourselves needing to cross the Weiti River to continue on the trail. As we walked towards the local yacht club, a man called us over from his balcony and informed us he would gladly take us across the water. After a quick cup of tea with Gunter, he brought us to the yacht club where we piled into his dingy - Alex and I cautiously perched on the edge still wearing our heavy packs. The vision of us tipping overboard flashed through my mind and I pushed it away as Gunter started the motor and slowly maneuvered the dingy to deeper waters.

Once across, Alex and continued along the trail through the bush until we came to Browns Bay. Alex and I knew almost immediately that we were in trouble. There was no caravan park in sight and everyone we stopped to ask where the nearest one might be didn't know. All we could see is residential area, local communities, schools, malls and everything in between. We had arrived to the outer edges of the Auckland mass population. And there was no clear indication of where we could stay. The thought of ninja camping appeared impossible. And so we found ourselves at a local realstate agency.

When we walked in (wearing the same clothes from the past few days and carrying our massive packs on our backs) the receptionist jokingly asked us if she might be able to find us a home. We laughed and said we were just looking for one for the night. When we explained our situation and asked if they knew if there was a caravan park nearby, the realtors replied that the nearest one was almost 20km away. Definitely not within walking distance as we had already gone 30km at that point. But then one of the realtors, Shane, spoke up to say that we could probably crash at his place if we wanted. The only catch was that his "place" was actually unfinished and the builders were still in the process of finishing it. But it was closeby, Shane didn't have a probably with it and, best of all, the location was right along the coast on Te Araroa Trail. So we said yes.



Our room for the night (Browns Bay)

 After getting aquainted with the building crew, we dropped off our packs and set out to explore Browns Bay while the construction crew finished for the day. Later we settled into one of the unfinished rooms overlooking the ocean and got down to the buisness of dinner and sleep. It was a good day.

The following day we woke up as though it was Christmas. It was the day we were due to make it to Auckland's city centre. We were almost there and we were both so excited we could hardly stand it. After a lazy breakfast down at the beach (with fresh strawberries for the oatmeal), we were off and going as fast as our legs could go. As we went our way down the coastal walk, we ran into a few locals out for their morning exercise and within about 10 min it seemed as though everyone there knew what we were doing and continued to shout words of encouragement at us, offer us places to stay and ask questions about what we were doing. It was a little surreal in that sense to still have the feel of a laid back small town where everyone knows everyone and yet know that we were reaching the brink of one of the largest cities in the world. Go figure.

By midday we had reached the Devonport Ferry Terminal and estatic doesn't even begin to describe the feeling of knowing we had finally reached Auckland. 43 days from when we began and we had made it. Catching the ferry to cross to the city centre of Auckland, I found our journey's adventures to date flash before my eyes and I stared in awe at the skyscraping buildings ahead of us. We had done it. We've come so far and yet we have so far to go. The adventure of a lifetime continues and I can hardly wait to see what's around the next corner.



Made it to Devonport