Hello, kia ora and welcome!
On 21st October 2017 I will be embarking on a solo trek of New Zealand’s 3000km Te Araroa trail. This
journey will take me from Cape Reinga at the northern tip of New Zealand, to arrive in Bluff, at the
southern tip, some 5 months later in March 2018.
I am proud to undertake this challenge in aid of the great work carried out by SANE, a UK based charity
who provide care and emotional support for people suffering from mental health issues. For many
sufferers just getting out of bed in the morning can seem more daunting than the 3000km target that I
have set myself.
I hope that my journey may help to raise awareness of the difficulties faced by people every day and
perhaps even go some small way to reducing the stigma surrounding mental health issues.
I welcome you all to join me on this adventure.
Ben
Te Araroa (pronounced tee are-a-rho-a) is Maori meaning ‘The Long Pathway’. It is a continuous
3,000km (1,864 mile) walking track stretching from the Cape Reinga lighthouse at the tip of the North
Island to Bluff at the bottom of the South Island.
Te Araroa’s boundaries are the natural boundaries of New Zealand itself. It starts and is brought to a
natural halt against the sea. En route it explores the huge diversity of New Zealand’s many habitats; from
beaches to mountains via some of the worlds most spectacular forests, rivers, lakes and valleys.
Credit for the existence of the Te Araroa trail belongs to New Zealand journalist Geoff Chapple, who
advocated for a single trail to bring a politically divided country together. To pursue that dream, in 1994,
he formed the TA Trust to work with government and private landholders on creation of the trail. The
trail was officially opened in December 2011, the culmination of more than 15 years of painstaking
planning and negotiations.
No official statistics exist, but it is estimated that since the official opening, numbers on the trail have
doubled annually. Summer 2017/18 should see around 1,600 hikers from across the world attempting the
trail.
