Hi guys. Regardless of your personal sentiments as to the validity of the TAT, I'd like your help please.
I'm only in the infancy of my planning; just decided last night, in fact, and will be hitting my boss up tomorrow to take 3-4 months off without pay in our quiet season. Fingers crossed!
Specifics I would like to know either from those who have actually done the trail, and also opinions from the more seasoned trampers here in this forum, are as follows:
What is the largest stretch between resup points?
I will be hiking solo, and as I always carry a day or two extra rations for the sake of safety, the distance between resup points will largely determine the size/weight of my pack.
Can anyone think of any pair of footwear for the entire 3000km journey??
Personally, I'm really struggling to come up with an optimal pair of boots/shoes for all the various sections. My personal thoughts are take a good pair of sturdy boots, as well as my Vibram Five Fingers. As far as boots go, I'm really open to suggestions on this one from the seasoned trampers. I live on the West Coast, which is usually, well, wet! Even just locally, the debate rages: try to keep your feet dry, or just taken it as a given they're gonna get soaked, so wear quick-draining/drying boots. Suggestions please!
:)
For comfort and ankle support, I really do love my Bates desert boots. They are not designed for the NZ climate, by any stretch, and having the hi-top version isn't really necessary here (got them for the ol' Joe Blake's back in Oz), but they're super comfy. Kind of funny that my two preferred styles of footwear are the ultra minimalist variety and the supertank version. :D
My thoughts on footwear are to wear the boots in the alpine and rougher sections, and my Vibrams in the wetter and road sections.
Whilst I don't really expect to ever have water problems hiking the TAT, does anyone have any info to the contrary? I should have stated that I plan to hike a bit off-season; start in the north in July/August, cover the trail in 120 days, arriving in Bluff end of October/November. I know I'll catch snow and of course, plenty of rain. But did I mention I live on the Coast? :D I expect rain pretty much every day anyway, even though it's been 7 weeks now with only one deluge.
I'll have a pretty basic Kathmandu tent. It's super quick to put up, and does the job getting me out of the elements. That's all I need in a shelter. Whilst I'm not going to be dawdling, I'm not exactly going to be speed-hiking either, so I'm envisaging a fairly quick set up after a long day, but a pretty relaxed pack up each morning.
I have a light Australian-esque sleeping bag. I learnt my lesson last winter when camping with the Scouts; it sucks balls at keeping me warm in the NZ winter! :D However, I remedied that perfectly by purchasing an arctic suit, rated down to minus 80 degrees. I've comfortably(ish) slept in a ditch wearing just this suit with boots and gloves. And a headsox over my nose/mouth. :)
3-4 months is a long time to be walking, no matter what the terrain. A few down-time days will be necessary. Any suggestions on where some of the better places might be to stop for a day or two? I won't be wanting too many of these, just a few scattered throughout the country. But not Auckland. I want to avoid the city as much as I can, so will be getting through Auckland pretty quickly. Might take the time for a shower though. :)
Whilst I look forward to meeting people along the way, I don't want to spend any time in buzzing places. It's not what I'm looking to get out of it. I might have a beer here or there, but certainly not looking to really be around a drinking crowd.
If people know of any little gems along the way - cool locals I should meet, hidden foodie havens, historically or culturally significant places that aren't listed on the trail, but are within a short side trip, I'd love to hear all about it.
Thanks guys! Hey, if these questions have been asked (and answered) in another post, please feel free to just send me the link. I looked, but couldn't find these specific questions. Cheers in advance.
This post has been edited by the author on 16 March 2015 at 19:14.