Te Anau - Tuatapere - Longwood wild Camp

Jeg tog videre mod Tuatapere, hvor jeg skulle mødes med Svea igen, inden vi påbegyndte Longwoods. Fra Te Anau fik jeg et lift med et newzealandsk par, som jeg havde snakket med dagen forinden. De kørte mig til den næste by, selvom de skulle den modsatte vej mod Queenstown, hvilket var utrolig sødt af dem. Herefter hitchhikede jeg videre mod Tuatapere med et par, som levede af at flyve turister rundt i området i helikopter. Tuatapere er i New Zealand kendt for deres pølser, hvilket ærligt talt var en lille smule skuffende, men et eller andet skal byen brande sig selv på.

Dagen efter tog vi med en shuttle med en, der gik under navnet Sausage Queen, som kørte os til starten af Longwoods. Nu bliver der taget hul på de sidste 150 km til Bluff. En meget mærkelig fornemmelse, at det er ved at være slut! Det sidste rigtige trail går igennem den berømte Longwood Forest, som bl.a. består af 3 km mudderparadis, der er meget omdiskuteret.

Vi startede med at følge en flok får fem km langs en grusvej. Herefter begyndte det første stykke mudder, men vejret og humøret var stadig relativt okay. Vi gik imellem eukalyptustræer, som duftede i regnen. Herefter begyndte det at blæse og regne, temperaturen faldt langsomt, og samtidig faldt humøret! Da vi efter nogle km havde nået toppen, gik det ned ad en simpel grusvej, hvor vi længere nede slog vores telte op og fik startet et bål, som reddede dagen! Senere på aftenen kom en nordgående vandrer, som var godt gennemblødt og mudret, og som var ret så taknemmelig for, at vi havde lavet bål. Han havde fødselsdag, så vi sang fødselsdagssang for ham og lavede varm chokolade.

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I continued on towards Tuatapere, where I was going to meet Svea again before we began the Longwoods section. From Te Anau, I got a lift with a New Zealand couple I had spoken with the day before. They drove me to the next town, even though they were actually heading in the opposite direction towards Queenstown, which was incredibly kind of them. From there, I hitchhiked further towards Tuatapere with a couple who make a living flying tourists around the area in a helicopter. Tuatapere is known in New Zealand for its sausages, which, to be honest, was a little disappointing, but every town needs something to brand itself with.

The next day, we took a shuttle with someone who went by the name “Sausage Queen,” who drove us to the start of the Longwoods. Now the final 150 km to Bluff begins. It’s a very strange feeling that it’s almost over! The last real trail goes through the famous Longwood Forest, which, among other things, includes 3 km of mud paradise that is much debated.

We started by following a flock of sheep for five kilometres along a gravel road. After that, the first stretch of mud began, but the weather and our mood were still relatively okay. We walked among eucalyptus trees that released their scent in the rain. Then the wind picked up, the rain intensified, the temperature slowly dropped and so did our mood! After a few kilometres, when we reached the top, the trail descended along a simple gravel road, where we pitched our tents further down and managed to start a fire that saved the day! Later that evening, a northbound hiker arrived, completely soaked and covered in mud, and he was very grateful that we had made a fire. It was his birthday, so we sang happy birthday to him and made hot chocolate.Læs mere