everyone comes to me with their problems to fix at work,
i like nothing better than to go and tramp alone, it's more relevant than ever now with cellphones, no one at work can get hold of me even though they try when i go on holiday.
cellphones and emails are a curse, at least pre that technology you got some reprieve if you were out and about working, people had to wait till you got back to your voicemail. but now everyone wants instant service and i have to juggle priorities. frankly i think theres going to be a lot more work burnout in years to come from modern technology. its been proven people sleep better when they get away from the modern world. fewer bright lights keeping them awake late at night making it harder to get to sleep..
i find i have to pick tramping partners carefully.
my first tramping partner was my best, I didnt realise till i tramped with a lot of other people, the silence was golden with my best tramping partner. It doesnt work with me when people talk constantly when tramping. Arent we supposed to be there to take in the ambience of the wilderness? you can gas non stop back in modern civilisation.. but in the wilderness, as far as i'm concerned, don't say anything if its not essential... I am not out tramping to listen to other peoples problems or their opinion of the world. i'm there to switch off from the clutter of society.... and all the crap they discuss.
i'm careful about the tracks i take , i take ones where injury risks arent too high, i give a detailed description of where i go, i take a PLB and a satellite tracker which has less reliability with satellite comms than the PLB.
I met my best tramping partner recently. We are absolutely on the same page, always.
We talk and laugh and sing when we feel like it, bouncing off each other.
We walk for ages in silent contentment at other times.
We both constantly reassess conditions and therefore plans, and we 100% have the same thoughts when it comes to safety vs adventure.
It's a shame I live in the SI and she NI. Even so, we plan many other epic adventures over the ensuing years.
A mate talking all the time can be a distraction alright. What I find is that some people need to 'decompress' a bit for the first few hours.
Then they settle down.
@Kreig
Trust me mate ... get onto the same island! People you really connect with like that don't come down the track all that often.
This post has been edited by the author on 22 December 2015 at 08:00.
Cheers Philip. She's swinging by this way in the next few weeks, which will be great, and I'll be spending a lot of time up in the North Island from about mid-2016 onwards.
Not to mention, we're already talking an epic Alaskan trip. :)
My best tramping partner was my dog Zac,unfortunately he passed away last year so bringing on another now.Dosen't say to much,always keen to go,warm at night,cleans up the scraps.
Our old dog ... now passed on a few years back ... was great company. Unfortunately being a short-hair she wasn't too keen on being left outside on cold nights. I'd take her own little fleecey 'bag and she'd curl up inside it, right at the end of my bunk with just her snout poking out.
She was a smart critter and knew very well that it was a big privilege; we never had a moment's fuss or noise from her. Especially if there was someone else in the hut as well.
A good dog you can rely on and responds well to voice commands is a great companion. They have a knack of creating wonderful memories, without ever saying a word.
Edit: We had stayed overnight at Mariua Springs while on a road trip, and after breakfast we decided to walk a few km up the valley floor on a beautiful, sparkling crisp morning. The river and beech forest almost crackled with pure South Is magic. Dog was getting on in years by then and a bit creaky.
But this morning she bounded, sprang through the under floor shrubs and quivered with that sheer joy only dogs can express so vividly. The purity of the landscape took a decade off her age for just an hour or so.
Then back in the car, she curled up in the back seat, taking up almost no room at all as she was a very polite animal, just happy to be with her pack and never be a fuss.
This post has been edited by the author on 22 December 2015 at 22:59.
