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Liberatedkiwi

Writer. Wellbeing advocate. 2 years sober. Welcome to my collection of projects

07/02/2026

‘I just hiked the North Island from top to bottom’ is not a sentence I ever expected to say.

1,740km of beaches, forests, rivers, mud, mountains, doubt, pain, joy, breakdowns, breakthroughs and everything in between.

Cape Reinga to Wellington. North Island: done. What a journey.

04/02/2026

Day 73-77. The Tararuas.

In 5 days:
- 43km walked, slipped and climbed through mud, forest and alpine terrain.
- 4073m gain.
- 4075m loss.
- 1460m max height.
- 4 stays at DOC huts.
- 2x 💩 with a view.
- 2x sore Achilles.
- 1 DOC hut cleaned.
- 2 new catch phrases.

Day 1: Poads Rd to Waiopehu Hut. This took longer than expected, our 600m climb through the forest was mud, and we left late. 9km takes 4-5hr up here, it was 2pm and whiteout, so we decided to stay here the night. I made a fort under the table.

Day 2: Waiopehu Hut - Dracophyllum Hut. 1200m gain / 1100m loss (est) in one day - you climb Waiopehu peak (1094m) Twin Peak (1097m), Richards K**b (985m) then descend to Butchers Saddle (690m) before climbing to Te Matawai Hut for lunch.

Afterwards, we climbed Pukematawai (1432m) before descending to Dracophyllum Hut. The day was long. Estimated 8-9hrs, took 11 hours.

Day 3: Dracophyllum Hut - Nichols Hut. I rose having “enough of climbing mountains already” to walk the 5km to Nichols Hut. Mostly ridge line walking across a few peaks then a drop down to the hut. We lost one of the group here as they had a lot more in the tank. We spent the afternoon cleaning up the hut a bit & relaxing. My Achilles started to hurt.

Day 4: Nichols hut - Waitewaewae hut, 8km, 4-5 hours. I think it took us about 6. We were chilling, and i rose with some pretty decent swelling of the Achilles. It was misty, but we reached the summit of Mt Crawford in 1.5 hours (1462m)

I added 5mm of drop and taped myself up before the 1240m of descent to Waitewaewae. That’s right, 1240m of DESCENT. OUCH.

Day 5: Waitewaewae - OUT. By now, supplies were running a little low as we expected to do double hut days the whole time, and i was a little worn out from the terrain, mud, and pain. The exit to Ōtaki from ōtaki forks was too good to resist.

We met some fellow travellers in the car park. They took us to Waikenae so we could set up camp and relax for a zero the next day. Phew.

Now i know that i can climb mountains for 5 days. I didn’t know that before. Not bad for a first time hiker i reckon.

It’s time for me to rest and sort out the 1300 journey across the South Island now. Whoo!!

31/01/2026

The other day, number 70 of walking the length of New Zealand on Te Araroa - I crossed the halfway mark at 1529 kilometres.

It was during my biggest day yet, 35+km in one go, from Palmerston North to the Western edge of the Northern Tararua Ranges, where I stayed at the Motorimu Shelter.

The journey, what has been incredible already - has begun counting down in Kilometres rather than up.

Something I said as the South Island approaches: “We have just switched from kilometres per hour, to hours per kilometre”

Already coming true, as I am sitting here writing this Mid-Tararuas after a 5km day that took close to 5 hours to complete, to Nichols Hut - but that’s a story for another day.

So for now, this is a congratulations to all of those who have passed the halfway mark already, and my first big pat on the back personally for what has already been accomplished.

Peace,
J.

21/01/2026

Days 57-65 across Te Araroa. A few shots.

From freedom camping in a car park in Waimarino, to walking a 26km bike track, getting caught in the weather at a trail angels, canoeing the Whanganui river, and enjoying the sights in town.

1400km walked (mainly), biked, hitched, kayaked & canoed.

Pretty tired after 3 days of paddling the Whanganui river in the wind. Many capsized, me once, right at the end before Pipiriki camp.

I have traversed beaches, mountains and hill ranges, forests, marshland, boardwalks and every kind of road in every kind of weather.

I have made many friends, said goodbye to a few - only to see them again later, and begun processing my life leading up until now.

It has been trial by fire - first my knee pain, then the exhaustion and sickness, then the achilles. After 50 days of not being able to keep up with anyone, i was able to do the Tongariro crossing backwards followed by walking around Mt. Ruapehu in 4 days with the last day being a 32km.

It has stripped me down physically only to build me back up and it is now seemingly moving into the same process mentally. I’m exhausted but alive, sore but fit, scared but confident and uncomfortably secure.

Next, i rest and enjoy a few days of town followed by the Tararua ranges and 400(ish) kilometres to finish the North Island.

14/01/2026

My new years resolution is -
No resolution.
No extra “thing to do”
Cause I don’t need a list,
I need a life.
One that is my own.
To move as I choose,
create when it flows,
feel when I need to,
And continue becoming
the person that I always
knew I could be.

12/01/2026

I had a few days to spare before canoeing the Whanganui river - so I took on a hike called “Round the Mountain” anti-clockwise in 4 days.

We stayed at Mangaturuturu Hut, skipping Whakapapaiti on a 20ish km day. Wonderful views of Ruapehu and tussock grass and forest.

Then Mangahuehu, 12.5km away - for some reason this day was quite hard. Rocky terrain and waterfalls - we had a nap right next to Mangawhero falls without even realising.

Day 3 was to Rangipo hut, 10km, very windy. I saw my first “dust devil” - and fought through the 100km+ gusts for 4 hours straight. Some arrived injured from being blown off their feet - and the local crossings were closed. We bunkered down in the hut and waited out the wind.

Day 4, i felt like i was on the moon or some other place, it was rocky, gravely, and rough. Walks through Lahar zones, and more wonderfull views all the way to Waihohonu - where I decided to just walk off the mountain back to Whakapapa, making it a 30+km day.

This track is a challenging hike, for me it was a great test of my abilities, and it definitely led to some emotional moments; like yelling “wheres the damn trail markers,” or begging the wind for mercy “please don’t blow me off this mountain”

I would recommend taking 5 or 6 days to truly take in the surroundings of this beautiful yet challenging range.

The Round the Mountain Track is a ~66 km backcountry loop that circumnavigates Mt Ruapehu in Tongariro National Park. Walked anti-clockwise, it climbs gradually from the Whakapapa Village side into exposed tussock and volcanic river valleys passing 3 huts before Rangipo Hut (the highest point of the circuit) and dropping back through Waihohonu and Whakapapaiti forest. The circuit involves ~2000 m+ of cumulative elevation gain, multiple unbridged river crossings, and is usually completed in 4–6 days.

07/01/2026

On day 50 I did The Tongariro Alpine Crossing. One of NZ’s great walks. Up 1860m then back down to 1200m to camp at Mangatepopo hut campsite.

Doing it in reverse is considered a little outside the normal as it adds elevation, i reckon its the best way though - You don’t have to slide down the scree, you get to climb up it 😂

I have never been so excited for an egg, a fellow hiker had carried boiled eggs for the day and made it to the peak 1.5hr before me. He waited. I was gifted an egg as a summit reward. Has to be the beat boiled egg i’ve ever had. Haha.

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