Completed the first section - to Ahipara

Four days walking along the beach is a great intro to tramping the lenght of NZ. The weather has been wonderful, shorts and T shirt conditions the whole way down and I even had a swim in the surf on the Thursday. Got sun burnt yesterday, as I packed in 34 km to reach the holiday camp and a warm shower. Some great campsites at Twilight Beach and again at the Bluffs. and plenty of freash air. Good stuff. More to come as soon as I get the time.

Day one on Te Araroa - Tuesday - Cape Reinga

Well what a great adventure, starting the Te Araroa trail at long last. And it was a beautiful day, with the sun streaming down between the clouds. Started quite late so only made 6 km the first day, camping above the cliffs near Twilight Bay. Photos to follow once I get to big town.

More meals being prepared for my Te Araroa journey



Vacuum packing machine in action



Pasta broken down into meal lots



For multi day tramps, like the Te Araroa trail, I find that by using a small vacuum packing machine, I am able to both reduce the size (and bulk) of the meals and improve the shelf life. By sealing the meals in airtight conditions they often last for weeks without deteriorating and it reduces the chance of moister getting in to things like milk powder. I now have over 357 separate meals ready to use on my Te Araroa journey.

Food packing well under way - dehydrated and vacuum packed, ready for use.

For the 5 month journey I will need over 450 separate meals, plus heaps of snacks and nibbles. Some of this can be purchased in the many small towns I will pass through walking the length of NZ, but most will need to be prepared in advance and re-located in food drops up and down the country. To date I have dehydrated, measured and weighed about 245 separate meals, most of which have been vacuum packed to preserve their shelf life.