Tramping

I've been getting into tramping a bit, lately.  I haven't tried carrying a pack of even the smallest size yet (my shoulders really don't like carrying weights at present), but am slowly toughening my heels to wearing boots.  While on holiday at Tokaanu (south end of Lake Taupo) I went tramping up a small hill reserve (plus an extended walk back to the motel) with Dad.  The track was quite overgrown, the rain made us quite wet in spite of our coats, and the plasters on my heels slipped so that I not only developed blisters but also broke them, but it was GREAT.  I had this photo taken when we returned, after which we changed and headed straight for the hot pool for a soak!

While getting a map of this little track (Mosquito Hill) from the hotel office, I was also given a map and pamphlet of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing.  For the first time ever, I am actually interested in climbing it.  Something to do with the view from the top, I think, rather than the bare track getting there, hehe.  Then when we got to Dannevirke (where I stayed for a week) a visiting young German couple talked enthusiastically about their hike over the Crossing and mentioned the amazing silence up there, which increased my interest.  So I kind of have that as a middle-distance goal.

In the meantime, I went with Dad on a tramping track in the Ruahines (near Dannevirke) that I hadn't been on for something like 20 years.  I took a photo of the map at Tamaki Reserve's picnic area, and we walked some of the way up to the A-Frame.  An hour up a steep track, a sit-down with a view, and a half-hour back down that made jelly of my thighs...!  I saw a deer in the bush on the way up, and two wood pigeons near the end.  I was exhausted and still had to make dinner for Dad, Narelle, and myself, but it was a wonderful day.  I'm loving tramping! :D