Distance travelled today: 25 km
Total TA distance covered: 2028 km

Easy day

It was warm overnight with a NW wind blowing and made for a very comfortable and rested sleep. Sandflies were still an issue in the morning. Even with shaking the tent door to disperse them, every time I was in or out of the door, at least 10 to 20 would find their way in. Urgh.

There really isnt a lot to write today.

The ground was flat all day following the Waiau River through open grassland areas and the occasional patch of bush on a defined foot pad. The walking was fast and easy walking down one valley for most of the day before reaching a junction and turning to the west to walk down another valley on a four wheel drive track for the most part. I had the ipod in today just to keep me entertained as I meandered along.

There were quite a few creek and river crossings along the way and it was not a dry feet day. Many crossings were just too wide to have dry foot placements right across. Initially I tried to keep my feet dry as I’d just washed one pair of socks this morning and had them drying on the outside of my pack and didnt want to get the 2nd pair wet. In the end I just had to suck it up and plunge in shoes and all for a crossing just above my knees. The sun was out again today and the wind up so I knew my washed pair of socks would be dried by days end.

The excitement for the day was crossing a long swing bridge in the strong winds and getting pushed around a bit. I made good time to Anne Hut, arriving just after 3 pm and thought about pushing on but decided on a shorter day. I’d got my 25km in and if all goes to plan should arrive at Boyle Village tomorrow, two days ahead of the date I set with the Outdoor Ed Centre to pick up my next food parcel. So there was no need to rush or push for bigger miles today. How to fill in time in an empty hut then? Have a cook up of the surplus food you’ve been carrying all week, knowing that there is a whole lot more to pick up tomorrow. I’ve completely over estimated how long it would take to do each section between food parcels by at least a day or two.