Some newbie-questions concerning Te Araroa :)

"And this goes off-topic now and I must apologize. I'd just like to ask about fire's and tents and also something about electricity. So do they sell tents in which you can light a fire? What do you do if they don't, and it happens to rain outside, how do you keep warm? My second question is, I'd very much like to bring my laptop (just to play games, no need for internet connection), so is there a way I can charge it up reliably? I've seen some power-boxes but those are horribly heavy. " Even running a small stove inside any tent is considered not to be done. Reasons are first the fire risk second the carbon monoxide. Having a fire inside a tent makes both of these 10 times as bad. In some very cold countrys they do use wood burning stoves inside tents but these are special stoves with chimneys taking the smoke out of the tent. Also these are full size tents and heavy stoves. You wouldnt want to carry one more than100 meters tops. Nothing you could take tramping would be safe to use any heating in. Rain wont put out a camp fire that is burning well. I have to carry a laptop for work It takes up half my work backpack and weighs half of the backpack. The work backpack ways as much as my weekend pack ready to go. Forget the laptop and get a tablet or smartphone and play games on that. If staying in huts also get earphones. You can buy battery packs to charge these. Personally I wouldnt bother.Talking to other trampers will fill your time just fine

Although I’ve followed this thread from the start, I haven’t posted in it because I didn’t think it was genuine (and still don’t). Perhaps Matthew could confirm that the poster’s IP address is hosted in Europe (or not)?

Fair enough, but I have started to wonder if the forum's being stirred. I probably should have chucked a :) smiley thing or two in my previous comment.

hopefully this chap is genuine and at least he is asking for help i see people wandering around with sleeping bags outside their packs, nothing to keep any rain off. using thin ponchos in the worst weather. or just an umbrella. down jackets used as raincoats. honestly for every rescue in nz there must be countless of people in nz mountains who narrowly avoid hypothermia or death.... people climb ngauruhoe with no comprehension of how big it is, and find themselves up there in the dark with just street clothes, no torch and pllummetting temperatures.... does it ever rain in peter jacksons movies? do any characters in his movies ever complain about being cold or wet? so its winter and like all winters in NZ one thing is certain, ill prepared trampers around NZ will need rescusing and somewhere one or more people will die in the mountains because they didnt prepare properly for their trip.. hopefully they will meet their end quickly rather than after a lot of suffering like quite a few people unfortunately do i know people who have died of hypothermia going out running for an hour or two in the hills... and unfortnately for a lot of people who suffer hypothermia it will be slow and incideous and they won't even know its happening till its too late and they can't help themselves anymore.. they will become irrational and difficult to deal with making helping them when they most need it all the more harder... I SPEND A TRUCKLOAD OF MONEY ON THE RIGHT GEAR BECAUSE I HAVE GREAT RESPECT AND SOME FEAR OF THE ELEMENTS IN NZ. i want to stack the odds of surviving those elements in my favour...

Hi Altbingler, enjoy your hiking in Europe. I recommend the Tour du Mont Blanc... its a fantastic walk. Also anything in the Canton Valais... very beautiful scenery there and a bit like New Zealand. Good luck!

Yeah the whole fires / tents / keeping warm question makes me think surely this guy ain't for real. Glad I started tramping before ipads and smartphones existed, so we had no option but to learn how to entertain ourselves! (or enjoy doing nothing at all).

i took an ex girlfriend to milford sound, she flipped out when she realised there was no cell phone coverage, "oh my god, oh my god" she kept saying...

some of us started before cell phones full stop....

"Yeah the whole fires / tents / keeping warm question makes me think surely this guy ain't for real." That and planning to walk 3000 continuous kilometres on the far side of the world, starting in a month yet not knowing basic things about it, having no equipment and never having learned any outdoor skills, yet *supposedly* having all the food arrangements sorted, but not yet having bought a plane ticket. Maybe it's just curious questions but they're very unusual curious questions.

mate I tell you, never overestimate tourists wanting to tramp in NZ, someone was seen taking a suitcase on the routeburn track... a lot of western countries have manicured tracks and more stable summer weather than us