At 12pm on 1/1/24, we started our self-supported FKT attempt of Te Araroa (TA) at Cape Reinga. Over the next 54 and a half days, we trekked along beaches, navigated through muddy forests, waded rivers, traversed mountain ranges, and walked along many roads. The TA is a very complex hiking trail with many logistics to navigate. This includes timing low-tide routes, tidal river crossings, tide-dependent kayaking sections, ferries, and shuttles around rivers. We did every step of the official Te Araroa that was open at the time of our FKT. This includes all tide-dependent sections as these form the official route and we believe must be completed for an FKT attempt even when an alternate exists. Additionally, we only entered vehicles when required by the TA (e.g. to get a shuttle around a river).
We resupplied in towns that the TA passes through, using a combination of buying groceries at supermarkets and petrol stations, and collecting food parcels that we had sent prior to starting the track. Despite having our fair share of rain, we never had to delay due to dangerous conditions or flooding rivers.
Our live inReach tracker updated every 20 minuets, and we have both uploaded our watch recordings to Strava. We also posted regularly on Facebook and Instagram with updates on how the trip was going.
We will post our gear list and in-depth trip report at theadventuregene.com.