Cheviot to Hundalee (19.25 miles/31 km)

Long and challenging day today, and more miles than I was going to trek, that has a happy ending.

Susan knocked on my door this morning as I was packing up, to give me a hug and say good bye. That was nice of her. After that I got out the door a little before 8:00, and didn’t have any real plans on where I wanted to go today as there wasn’t a town for about forty miles. It left me a little unsettled this morning as I wasn’t sure how to plan my food, etc., as I didn’t have any except two of my freeze dried meals. Luckily I found an open cafe bakery in town, and I had breakfast and I also got some food for dinner tonight.

Traffic was light when I started out, which was a good thing, but the road started with an immediate steep uphill out of town. It was actually a good preparation for things to come because that would be the road all day, steep ups and downs, with many sharp windy curves. There were also a couple of very long steep climbs that were at least a few miles long. My calf’s were actually sore last night for the first time and I could feel them on those longer climbs.

Fortunately the weather was cool this morning and it was heavily overcast. The sun broke through around 1:00 and I was preparing for that dreaded sun and heat, but amazingly it stay a very pleasant temperature in the 60s.

The terrain and landscapes change constantly from beautiful green fields and hills to very dry looking landscapes. There were also areas with small patches of pine tree forests that look like old growth.

After a long steep uphill that end at Hawkswood, I was out of energy and decided that I would start looking for a place to camp. Hawkswood actual has a campground and cabins, but it was a mile or more off the road and some of the reviews were not to good. I didn’t want to walk that extra distance and then not stay there, plus it was only 2:00.

I decided I’d only go until 3:00 and then look for a place. As my luck would have it, I started looking before 3:00 and could not find a place to camp for miles. All the properties along the road where fenced and there were no open areas. I was pretty tired and concerned when by 4:00 I hadn’t found anything. I didn’t really see any farmhouse near the road as I was thinking of knocking on someone’s door again. Just as I was feeling nervous I saw a sign for for rest stop! Great!

The rest stop is at the bridge going over the Conway River. The road for the rest stop runs under the bridge and rest area is up a little from the river. However, there was a nice trail going off of the road down to a grassy area under some large trees, and overlooking the river. This was better than I could have wished for!

It was 4:30 by then and I was anxious to set up my tent when a nice young German man and woman said hello to me from up on the bridge. Apparently they have been hitch hiking all over the country for months. The had passed by me on the road earlier, and were just dropped off by another car when they saw me coming down here. They just came down to say hello and ask about my trek. They were so nice, but I was so tired I could barely talk with them. I don’t think they noticed, and thankfully they went down to the river to swim while I quickly set up my tent. Later they came back to say good bye and they also yelled good bye to me from up on the bridge. Nice young people.

Once they left I stripped down to my underpants and had myself a nice cool bath in the river. My bar of Dr Bonner’s (biodegradable) and lots of suds! Wow, did it invigorate me! I felt like a new man again. I always sleep better when I am clean too.

After my evening mediation, dinner was a vegetarian, and a chicken vegetable pies. Simple and easy, and hit the spot.

After a long tough day, finding this beautiful spot, taking a river bath, and now laying here listening to both the birds and the soothing sound of the river, all that happened today melted away. I am in my cozy sleeping bag and tent, and will get a chance to read some of my book.

Tomorrow? Kaikoura is the next town with accommodations, restaurants, and stores, but it is 22 miles, and more than I may want to trek. I’ve had many 20 plus mile days, and they take it out of me, and after yesterday, I said I was going to stop at 3:00 if I have to camp. I’ll take it one day at a time.

Best wishes to all,

Ted

Please excuse the typos, spelling, grammar, etc., as I am typing this on my phone, and I am probably pretty tired.