Shortly after 8 am we headed off, thanking James very much. I promised to let him know what the next section of track was like as he is considering proposing an alternative route to the TA Trust that would cross the estuary and the next river beyond (where he would provide assistance with the crossings, presumably for koha/donation).
Jonty and I walked and talked for an hour before he kicked it up a gear and ran on. Farewell Joggerman! We both had half an idea to try and get to a place called Tidesong B&B on the Taiharuru Estuary. Jonty's problem was he might get there too early and therefore consider running on a bit further. My problem was it was 29 km away and I might not get there at all!
But of course, the only answer is to just keep walking and so I did, off up Ngunguru Ford Rd...mistakenly thinking the track turned off at an intersection. I should have looked at the map a bit more closely.
As planned the traffic on this road wasn't very heavy (although one pair of boy racers did come careening round a corner just as I reached it causing me to momentarily pray they didn't lose traction and take me out). After some time the houses became more closely spaced and the gravel road became asphalt, which was odd, but I walked on. If only I'd looked back over my shoulder I'd have seen the TA sign marking the trail on a side track at that point. But I didn't. I kept walking...until I met Andy coming in the other direction and immediately got that sinking feeling that I'd gone astray (Andy has a confident stride that suggests he's a man who know's where he's going).
Andy had been told by the people at the B&B to walk until the road became gravel and the trail turns off at that point. Infuriated with myself I realised that was the point I'd been at 2km back, and now I'd have to walk another 2km to get there again. With the prospect of a 29km now being a 33km day my hopes of reaching Tidesong faded into obscurity...maybe I could make it to Pataua? Or just freecamp wherever I ended up? Still, I was gutted as Tidesong has a reputation on the trail as being a great place to stay. Propelled by annoyance I was able to keep up with Andy as we marched the 2km to the trail turn off onto the Mackerel Track. We stopped for a quick boots off break before carrying on; I asked Andy if he minded if I walked with him for a bit, assuring him he should just take off if I started lagging.
So we set off through harvested pine plantation and mixture of bush-come farmland, at a pace that was faster than my own but which I suspect is a little bit slower than Andy's usual pace. He was also planning to get to Tidesong today. The last 3 km or so are a walk up the estuary and require a low tide, which wasn't due until around 5 pm, so lucky for me Andy was in no particular hurry. I thought there was an outside chance that if I could keep up with him I might still make it, despite my unfortunate extra 4 km.
The Mackerel Track involves two river crossings, which the trail notes indicate can be hazardous if the water is high. Happily the water was low for both, however while the first was an easy hop, skip and a jump across the gentle flow, the second, though still shallow, was fast flowing and required a bit more care (and a wring out of my socks on the far side).
The Mackerel Track is short, with only one moderately steep climb (that I managed without stopping for more than a few seconds, though I was puffing like a bellows). From then on it's a road walk along asphalt all the way to the Taiharuru Estuary. Andy and I chatted the whole way, sharing past experiences of walks and the like. The talk was both interesting and effective at keeping my mind off my aching feet. Andy's definitely at the lighter traveller end of the spectrum and doesn't carry anything he doesn't need to...but I think he appreciated the heavy but tasty orange I shared with him over lunch. Despite the faster pace and fewer breaks I was able to keep up ok, only requesting an extra boots-off break toward the end of the day.
Almost before I knew it we were walking over the footbridge into Pataua, and I knew Tidesong was within range. At 4:45 we reached the start of the estuary walk so after one final rest break we set off, past a pool of fish trapped by the outgoing tide, and out onto the sand flats. The estuary is lined with mangroves and it pays not to get too close as there the sand is typically muddy and boggy. Even then we struck some boggy sections which made the going difficult at times. After a couple of Ks we rounded a point and began looking out for the jetty that would signal we'd reached our desired exit point...but there was no jetty in sight. Andy rang the people at Tidesong but it was a bad connection. The lady on the other end asked us to wave so she could see if she could spot us. Quite something we must have looked, two hikers standing in the middle of a muddy estuary, furiously waving our arms in no particular direction.
It turns out we hadn't quite gone far enough, but a neighbouring farmer, Larry, had also spotted us and let us trudge out of the estuary and cut through his paddocks (and kindly turned off the electric fences for us!). We followed his directions and met Hugh from Tidesong who had come down to meet us. We followed him up to the house, a lovely fabled building nestled in native bush about halfway up a hill, overlooking a broad sweep of the estuary below.
I recognised a pack leaning against the front wall as Jonty's and soon went inside to find him sitting at the dining room table, beside a large tray of fresh baked scones, courtesy of our hosts Hugh and Ros. Yum!
It turns out Ros and Hugh did Te Araroa last year, Ros walking & biking and Hugh driving the support vehicle. They did it after Ros donated a kidney to Hugh and used the expedition to help publicise live organ donation. I had a flick through their scrapbook and was glad to see they got so much positive publicity. Great stuff guys!
We sat around the table for a bit, with tea and scones, reminiscing about our experiences on the trail. Turns out Jonty had had quite the adventure that day: reaching the estuary well before low tide he had tried to cross and nearly ended up swimming before turning back. He'd then tried to hitch around it and pick up the trail on the far side, but his lift had taken him far too far, meaning he'd skipped a whole section if the trail, so he'd jogged back along it and crossed the estuary again to end up at Tidesong. Poor guy. I could sense and shared his frustration, after all I'd done four unnecessary kilometres that day (through no one's fault but my own). The upside if this is I ended up walking the same distance I would have had I not taken the over-the-estuary alternative route. 33km. A new PB! But I couldn't have done it without Andy...and boy I was paying for it now.
My feet were so sore I could barely walk and in the end I had to excuse myself from the table conversation to go and shower and try and use the soothing power of hot water to bring my feet back to life. Happily it helped and I was able to emerge from the bathroom on foot without wincing...but rather quickly assumed a seated position on a chair in the living room.
While Ros and Hugh prepared dinner, Andy, Jonty and I chatted. We wondered whether Scott and Joanne might turn up, but doubted it as Andy and I hadn't arrived until 6:30. We suspected Nathalie had gone past already, along with a 4-time TA thru-hiker named Paul; we could see their tents erected on the far bank across the estuary. (We weren't sure how Nathalie had got ahead as she had been behind Andy that morning...but it turns out they'd hitched a short section of the road walk in order to make the low tide...passing Andy and I in the process).
Andy was in the middle of explaining his tracker to me (it sends a ping with his coordinates out every hour along with other preconfigured messages to his friends and family back home in the UK so they know where he is and when he's stopped for the night etc...yes Mum, I know, you'll want me to get one), when the found of shattering glass came from the kitchen. Apparently a glass tumbler had exploded as it was taken from the dishwasher. Luckily no one was hurt.
A short broken-glass-induced delay later we all sat down to dinner: casserole, roast kumara and potatoes, and salad. I did that thing where you're accidentally the first one to pick up a fork and go to eat when Hugh quickly but politely intervened to say grace. Whoops...I shall have to mind I don't blasphem in this house! (If I'd been less tired I would have noticed the inspirational Christian quotes on various items about the house and put two and two together...but as it was I hadn't and I'm my father's daughter: he always used to say to never let hot food get cold and so I'd automatically gone to tuck in!). Still, gaff averted I said "Amen!" with as much enthusiasm as everyone at the table, heartily grateful for the food (just privately ambiguous about to whom...).
I didn't last long after dinner. Andy had booked ahead and so got the official guest quarters. Jonty and I had the option of staying in the garden cabin for free, or in the house for koha. We opted for the house due to the added rbefit of warmth plus beds with sheets and pillows, and so occupied the two single beds in a spare room upstairs. The chimney from the living room fire goes through our room so it's toasty and warm and the bed is definitely the most comfortable on this trip yet. Looking forward to a great sleep tonight! After a 33km day, I hope I've earned it.
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