Day 8 Raetea – Makene – Omahuta – Exploring New Zealand

Raetea – Makene – Omahuta

3 Oct, 149 – 169km, 20km, 10:20hrs

Overcast, rain predicted tonight.

I didn’t cook last night because I was low on water and wild camped due to not getting to my destination. My plan was to get there and rest.

I woke and ate salami and cheese for breakfast and broke camp at 8:30 to walk the last way out of Raetea Forest. It took forever to reach the barking dog farm house once I left the forest. I scared a herd of 5 goats off the track, pigs could be heard in the bush beside the track. Cattle, goats and pigs make the mud forest track almost impassable in many places.

A lovely little camp a wee way down Makene Rd is where I got water the first supply for two days. There is also a toilet at the Makene Rd camp. I decided to press on through the road walk to Apple Tree Camp in Omahuta. Since it was only midday.

Walked to the end of Makene Road, the couple who provide the camp drove past and stopped for a chat and gave me a boiled lolly. Their directions were 5km to the dairy, then 10km to Apple Tree camp,gravel road then grass. My aim is to have some rest time. Take the road up to Mangamuka Dairy, turn at the sign to walk up to find the camp.

On the main highway I met Penny the builder from Mitimiti and we chatted a while. He was building a shelter to be offered to walkers in the future. An older man was with him, he had been collecting plants for rongoa and talked about the land and ownership along that way.

I left my rubbish in the Mangamuka Dairy rubbish bin, the dairy was closed it being Sunday.

I met a farmer walking who later mentioned he had cancer, and talked about access to treatment under Covid in Auckland. But he had no idea where the camp was. He sees lots of walkers though.

I ate lunch at a turn off at 5:00 and just kept walking. The gravel road was a steady incline, notes said 700m climb there’d be a turn off. I think that was elevation not distance.

Walked up until 6:30. Found a wayside grassed area and set up tent for rain as it had already started. Fixed blisters on feet. The wind was strong all night, rain after midnight was a downpour.

There’s no Internet service and I had no GPS. I was low on water. My plan was tomorrow get to Apple Camp and wait for the rain to pass. Gee I don’t seem to make any destination to put my tent up properly, rest up, cook properly, and get sufficient water.