Four of the NZ Great Walks I've completed, so I've set out to complete my goal of walking at least five (eventually, I want to walk all of them). Meaning "sea of rippling waters" in Maori, Lake Waikaremoana is a spectacular lake. Stocked up on stuff for a multiday walk, I hitchhiked north from Napier and made it as far as Wairoa. Inland, I would get picked up and get to the trailhead of the Lake Waikaremoana Track in Te Urewera. "Te Urewera" literally means "burnt penis" in Maori.
What makes this Great Walk different is that it's partly managed by the local iwi, Ngai Tuhoe, rather than solely by DOC. From the start, the track was all uphill but was nothing too difficult. A panoramic vista of this beautiful lake beckoned...
A tree in the shape of a scary hand seems to guard the lake.
A late start I had today, and I was concerned that I was going to have to get out my torch. As a collector of sunset photos, another spectacular one was on display this evening.
It turned out I didn't have to get my torch out because I arrived at the hut only a few minutes later. Time estimates on the Great Walks are overestimated. It stated at the trailhead that it takes about five hours to walk to Panekire Hut, perched majestically on Panekire Ridge. As a fast walker, I made it in three hours and 20 minutes. This track seems to be one of the less popular Great Walks, as there were only about four other trampers at the hut. The fire was already lit, and I cooked up some sweet and sour lamb and then had some biscuits and wine as a post-dinner treat. There is nothing like the feeling of arriving at a hut after a long day of tramping.
When I first came to New Zealand back in '08 I set myself a goal of walking at least five of the Great Walks, and I only walked two: Milford and Kepler. I don't know why I didn't stick to that goal as I didn't do another Great Walk until I walked the Rakiura Track in '18. Eventually I would like to walk all of the Great Walks and then walk some more. My grand goal for my 40th birthday, which is in two years, is to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. It will be even tougher than any of these Great Walks or even Mt. Fuji or Mt. Wilhelm. I'm starting to ask myself if I could possibly climb Mt. Everest someday. However, I've never had an interest in technical mountain climbing. Tonight it started to rain...
