The final Countdown

What started with a few beers and led to a long intoxicated conversation with a friend, gave me a six month long idea on how to once again escape the states. Now, with a work visa, 25 lbs of gear, a $1,500 40 hr. plane ticket, and a drunken thought, I'm going to tramp my way across New Zealand.

With the help of many volunteers, the Te Araroa Trust and the NZ Department of Conservation (DoC) the grand opening of the Te Araroa trail is set for Dec. 3, 2011. The Te Araroa (The Long Pathway) is a continuous 3,000 km walking track from Cape Reinga to Bluff. . Enroute it explores New Zealand’s tombolos, volcanoes, mountain ranges, rivers, lakes and valleys.

So now the count down is ticking away. Three weeks till I'm staring into the vast Tasman Sea at the Capes light house with only one direction to go, south.