I'm reflecting on how sometimes I feel my mental illness is due to a lack of mental fortitude, which is unfair given you wouldn't say a person with diabetes or high blood pressure could or should just think themselves better
Victoria and Emilie roll up their sleeves and help restore Stanfield Hut, giving back to the backcountry hut system that has sheltered them along the Te Araroa trail.
With pit stops along the way for homemade cake and ice cream, road walking has its perks. Mother and daughter duo, Victoria and Emilie, continue their journey along beaches and agricultural land, eventually reaching the famous Rescue orange Whiowhio Hut in Palmerston North.
The wettest part of Te Araroa is the paddle down the Whanganui: Victoria and Emilie enjoy the chance to rest their feet and stretch their paddling muscles
Victoria and Emilie brave wild weather and snoring hut mates in their voyage 'round Mt Ruapehu.
When weather causes plans to change, Victoria and Emilie venture on a side-trip towards Ruapehu. With only a short walk to Whakapapaiti Hut, Victoria takes the luxury of an afternoon to sit and ponder.
Mother and daughter team, Emilie and Victoria, make the jump from the freedom of Ninety Mile Beach to the rolling agriculture of Kings Country, continuing all the way to National Park.
From the freedom of Ninety Mile Beach to Level 3 lockdown, Te Araroa was already promising to be one crazy adventure.
All great journeys begin with the first step. Victoria and Emilie fly over a locked-down Auckland to the top of Aotearoa and begin their adventures on Te Araroa.
Living with post-traumatic stress disorder is a bit like living with a brain that's constantly on the lookout for invisible Sabre tooth tigers.
I started my first overnight tramp anxious and overloaded, just me with my little Miss Four in tow.
The backstory on why we're going for a rather long walk, and why we're asking for your help!
If you always bring a tent, even a flooded river won't take away the fun of a weekend in the mountains.
In the hills we're all equal, and no one minds too much what state we're in; even sheepishly nursing a bruised bum and wet undies from a forgettable stumble.
