Hello from Waipu (pronounced Why-poo, seriously), where we are staying at the Waipu Wanderers Hostel and had dinner (and NZ beer for J) at the Waipu Pizza Barn (so good!)! We have traveled another 200K, or 120 miles, putting us at 420K of the total trek. Or 252 miles. Before I get into all the…
Hello from KeriKeri, which means “dig dig.” 123K–or 73.8 miles for us Americans–in the books, bringing our grand total so far to 223K, or 133.8 miles. Last I wrote, we were in Kaitaia resupplying. We were worried about getting a hitch from Kaitaia back to the trail in Ahipara. We made a sign and asked the…
New Zealand has 11,000 kilometers of coastline, and we have now walked along 1% of it. We have walked 60 miles (100 kilometers) from Cape Reinga, the northernmost tip of NZ and start of the Te Araroa, to Ahipara. Almost all of that was on the beach, including 90-mile beach, which is not actually 90…
Hello from the future! To be precise, we are 18 hours ahead of you east coasters (19 hrs from Midwesterners, and so on). We are currently in Kaitaia (pronounced Ki with a long I – Tie – A), which is in the “Northland” (north of the North Island). We took a 6-hr bus ride from…
Greetings from San Francisco! We are just hours away from our flight to New Zealand–eeek!! We got to see Seth Meyers live last night as a special treat and he did not disappoint in the laugh factor. He wished us well on our journey and gave us both kisses and hugs. Okay that last part…
Current mood: a bit frantic, but I believe we got everything done on our to do list. All systems are checked, the bags are finally packed (see pix below – all of that fit in 2 backpacks!) and we are on a flight to San Francisco today and a flight to Auckland, NZ Saturday! Ready…
Our base weights (without food and water) are: Justin 18 lbs Patrice 13.5 lbs Here’s the breakdown … Backpacks Justin – Gregory Baltoro 65 (2015 version) Weight: 4lbs 12 oz Patrice – Gregory Deva 60 (2015 version) Weight: 4lbs 6oz Tent: Big Agnes Copper Spur UL2 Tent (updated 2014) Weight: 3 lbs 2 oz Sleep System Justin Therm-a-Rest Auriga 35 degree down blanket (750+ fill goose down…
I’ve said this before. I don’t know how long J & I can ride this wave of working together in different areas of the outdoor industry, but some of our smarter friends said if we really wanted to keep it up, we needed to brand ourselves. So we are doing that. Step by step. Step…
We secured another sponsor! And, once again, it is a company we have known and loved for years. Big Agnes is providing us with our 29 square foot “home” while we are in New Zealand – the Cooper Spur UL2 tent. We actually used the Copper Spur on the AT, but they have come out…
On the AT, we loved getting our mail drops. People sent us 40+ pieces of “mail magic” in the form of letters and packages. Obviously this is not going to happen in New Zealand. BUT, I am posting our mail drop locations as a reference for other TA hikers (see permanent tab labeled TA Mail…
After 11 nights–some very cold and snowy nights I might add–of sleeping in a tent, we are wrapping up our mini (1850 miles) road trip with a few overdue showers and electricity (other than our solar power device). It’s good practice for the next 4 months, I suppose. Our return trip from the Grand Canyon…
J & I are now “master educators” for Leave No Trace (LNT). We spent 5 days with 7 other like-minded students and 2 instructors. Most of our course was in the backcountry of the Grand Canyon, practicing what we preached. J & I hadn’t been to the GC since we lived in Phoenix (2004), so…
Hello from the Grand Canyon, where J and I are becoming “master educators” for Leave No Trace. Yes, it is as cool as it sounds. Because we can’t do things the simple way, J & I decided that we needed to make the most of our road trip to the Grand Canyon for our Leave…
Anyone who knows me knows I am a planner and a worrier. These are my worst Type A personality traits that I inherited from my father, who books Thanksgiving dinner reservations in May. J is the complete opposite of me, and tries his very best to get me to go with the flow, but it’s…
8 memorable, adventure-filled years married 7 times we’ve rented a moving truck (Penske rocks!) 6 cats fostered 5 zip codes shared (of legitimate places we’ve lived for more than a few months) 4 godchildren, 4 nieces & nephews and 4 From Good Homes concerts together (J’s favorite band – he probably is approaching 400…
Current mood: Excited! Anxious! Overwhelmed! NZ trip planning brings out a range of emotions! Currently thankful for: Carving out some quality time with J’s side of the family here in CO. We have 2 young nephews on this side of the family and they are growing fast! Currently worried about: Well, besides the fact that…
It is no secret that J & I are gear heads. We couldn’t tell you who is running for the next election, but we could tell you what the latest innovation is when it comes to sleeping bags, tents, clothing etc. Over the years, we have definitely upgraded our gear and lightened our load. We…
Tramp [verb]: to walk long and far, hike, march or trudge. to wander about as a vagabond. to walk for sport or recreation To some (okay, most), backpacking means schlepping everything you need on your back just so you can get to a campsite where you’ll sleep on the ground and be eaten alive by…
First thing first. Happy birthday J!!!! Today he turns 38. This means, it’s just 2 years until he hits the big 4-0! However, he still acts 18 or so. Anyone agree with me? But, I love that he doesn’t act his age. My shout-out via blog serves as my bday card to him. J &…
We may be leaving Oregon in a week, but we will be back. We have to be back. We have some major unfinished business in the Mt. Hood Wilderness of Oregon. Back in May, J tried to climb the 11,240 foot summit of Mt. Hood and was turned back due to weather. And, as he…