Christchurch 360

I may have mentioned it before on this blog, but there's a 135 km-long loop trail around my hometown called the Christchurch 360 Trail. Affectionately known as The Meurky Way in honour of its chief architect, ecologist Colin Meurk, it was designed to highlight the diverse ecology of the area, which ranges from marshes and wetlands to dry savannah ecosystems, from verdant bush remnants to the exposed hilltops of the Crater Rim. It was officially opened in 2015.

Though I've done a lot of hiking around Christchurch over the years as part of my training for longer walks in Japan, with the exception of Te Araroa (the 3000 km trail extending the length of the country), the thought of doing an epic walk in New Zealand has never appealed to me. But times have changed. I've already had to cancel a planned trip to Japan next month due to the corona virus, and it's unlikely I'll be going there again for a while. Who knows when we here in New Zealand will be able to indulge in international travel as freely as we once did?

This new reality got me thinking about doing a longish walk closer to home. And what could be closer than a trail almost literally on my own doorstep (the Christchurch 360 Trail passes less than 2 km from my house)? I wouldn't have to travel to get to it, so I could do it all at once or in stages, choosing fine days and taking breaks if the weather turns bad or if my knees start to play up again.

Of course, I'd have to wait until our lockdown ends before attempting this. And since I'm so out of shape, I'd have to do some training first. But after the ignominy of having to abandon my last walk, I'm looking forward to trying something a little less challenging. 

Te Araroa revisited

Back in August 2007 (yes, this blog really has been going that long) I wrote about Te Araroa, the proposed walking track running the length of New Zealand. I mentioned that it was due to open in 2008.

Well, today, some three years behind schedule, it was officially opened. In this story on the Radio New Zealand website, the chief executive of Te Araroa Trust, Geoff Chapple, who conceived the idea of the track, is quoted as saying he'd like to see all New Zealanders make it their goal to walk it.

"I remember Mao Zedong saying every Chinese has to see the Great Wall at some time," he says. "Cultural goals are fun...so we'll put it up as a goal: walk New Zealand in your lifetime."

The official Te Araroa website is here.

Post-Nakasendo

Strange though it may seem, I spend quite a bit of time thinking about what I'm going to do after I walk the Nakasendo. I'd heard about a plan to create a walking track the length of New Zealand, but when I went to look it up the other day I couldn't remember its name. Well, last Thursday night Keiko and I went to a play called Hatch, based on the true story of a local politician who was responsible for killing millions of penguins and having them boiled down for their oil, and in the programme it mentioned that the playwright, Geoff Chapple, was also the driving force behind the track. It's called Te Araroa, and it's not a single track but rather a project that involves connecting existing tracks and forming new ones in such a way that they'll eventually stretch the length of the North and South islands. I must admit I haven't explored the website much yet, although what I did see looked pretty interesting. Some people haven't been able to wait until the proposed opening in 2008 and have already walked the route. Maybe a project for the future. Distance walked today: 3km Total distance walked since blog began: 449.8km Days left until launch of Kisokaido soon Project: 70