Oh, The Places You'll Go!
Hey guys! So in today's blog post I wanted to chat to you (and make a series about) New Zealand and the amount of bloody cool bush walks we have round the place. Today we will be talking about the Hakarimata Track, more specifically the Kauri Loop Track.
It's located 7km south of Huntly and approximately 11km north of Ngaruawahia in the Waikato! Depending on whether you want to do the Kauri Loop Track or the Hakarimata Summit depends on how you go about getting there.
As you can see throughout the walk you are surrounded by lush green trees and bushes, the ground is crunchy under foot (something I weirdly adore) and the sun dappling through the trees makes you feel as though you are in a movie. I love breathing in the fresh air, and feeling the warmth on your back from the sun, something about being surrounded by trees makes me feel so alive. Anyone else?
This track in particular boasts tonnes of beautiful Kauri and Rimu trees which are native to New Zealand are are very special trees. Kauri trees are among some of the worlds mightiest trees, and can grow up to 50m tall (how's that for making you feel small) with the trunks girths getting up to 16m and can live for up to 2,000 years. Unfortunately New Zealand's Kauri trees are currently under threat from a fungus type disease so when/if you go to visit these beautiful trees please be very careful to not leave anything behind and clean your shoes before and after leaving the track to prevent the spread of this disease, and making sure not to touch/stand on the roots as any movement of soil around this area of the tree can spread disease. As always take only pictures, leave only footprints!
You can see just how incredible these trees are from these photos (and its not even all in the frame!) Rimu trees are the most common and widely distributed trees in New Zealand, they can live up to 1,000 years old but usually get to about 500-650 years old as older Rimu trees can get uprooted by strong winds.
This loop track is definitely not as steep as the climb up the Hakarimatas and is more of a steady incline, though there are definitely more than a few steps (Not enough to make you not able to walk the next day if you are fairly fit!) We (me and my partner Sean ) walked to the lookout at a steady pace while stopping to take photos and it took us about 45 minutes to get to the top!
Essentials if you are thinking about going: If there are two of you going I highly suggest two water bottles, Sean and I only took one and between us drained it fairly quickly and as it was quite a warm sunny day we got thirsty again in no time! I recommend an insulated bottle like this Oasis one, it keeps your drinks cold for a ridiculously long time, even when the outside of the bottle is very warm. Another essential I would suggest is to wear comfortable walking clothes, it's not a hard walk by any means but if it's a warm day you will get slightly sweaty so a shirt with moisture wicking material is probably a good bet. Comfortable walking shoes are another must, they don't need to be hiking boots or anything crazy I wore Nike Roshe Runs and my feet were fine, though it does pay to mention if you do have trouble already with your feet, wear the footwear that best suits you.
New Zealanders are incredibly lucky to be able to have walks and views like this 30mins to an hour away from them! Being able to breathe the fresh air, feel the sun on your face and see views like this is such a blessing and we need to start acting like it is and not take for granted that our environment is always gonna look like this.
The "Oh, the places you'll go" series is going to showcase some of New Zealands stunning scenery and hopefully get you motivated to get out and explore our beautiful country.
Please remember to stay safe, if you bring food make sure you take any rubbish with you when you leave, stay on the track at all times and wear sunscreen to protect you from New Zealand's incredibly harsh sun. That's all for todays "Oh, the places you'll go!" blog post. I hope it has inspired you to move your body, breathe some fresh air and get away from technology for a while and immerse yourself in the world around you. Lots of love, Hayley x