Te Araroa Trail – Day 59

Monday, January 1, 2024
Distance/ Total: 27.7 km / 17.2 mi

By the time I got to the 4 square convenience store last night they were closed, so the first thing on my list this morning was to go pick up my two day food resupply when they opened at 7:00 am.

I returned to the hostel and repacked my food and finished getting ready to hike. I was on the trail a little after 8:00.

The trail was a road walk out of town and onto the Fisher Track. It was a gravel and dirt road that was now used as a bike and walking path. The trail did pass by an old homestead and the view from the trail on the side of the hill was amazing. As I was walking Claudio came up behind me and we walked the rest of the way to camp together.

The last 10 km was just more gravel road through farm lands with fences on both sides. Not real exciting, but we was able to make good time on it.

We reached Couper’s Crossing (run by Roger and Sharon Couper) about 3:00pm and visited with the other hikers who are now stuck here because the rain has caused the Whanganui River to rise and the canoe trips have been delayed.

The Coupers have an old metro bus that has been outfitted with beds and Claudio and I opted for those versus tenting.

At dinner the Coopers cooked a special New Year dinner for all the hikers and we enjoyed the food while visiting with them.

As soon as the sun dipped behind the hills it started getting cold and everyone grabbed their jackets and sweatshirts. I spent some time downloading audiobooks before turning into the bus for the night