My world walk blog new Zealand 19 Alas the end is nigh

Alas, the end is nigh.

For the fourth day on the trot, I got to walk on quiet rural backroads and loved it to bits. However, for the first two hours, I followed the moderately busy highway 22, after which my walking was bliss. My day was set up well when Hoss, my host offered to take my backpack on to Murphys Law Irish bar in Drury 38 kilometres away.

 I walked past broccoli, corn and onion fields and stopped to talk to a farmer and his Indian foreman. Gone are the days when farm workers planted seeds by hand. This farmer had four  Indian workers driving a farm vehicle through the field while three workers who were sitting in it hurriedly fed broccoli seeds into a revolving plate which punched them into the soil. The growing time for broccoli and onions is ten weeks I was told. No sooner where the onions pulled up when it was time to plant the broccoli. I ran over a narrow bridge which was about two hundred metres long and had no footpath. Anytime a vehicle came from behind I had to jump up on a ledge.

That took me to a small town called Tuakau for lunch. I dined on a couple of meat pies, the staple diet of Kiwis the owner of the supermarket joked, and they sure do like their pies. I also bought a litre of milk and as the pies were cheap I bought a couple more for the road. The weather was mild, about 23C. These last few days I walked over short leg-sapping hills. Just before eight o'clock I made it to Drury and was treated to a drink by a Wexford barman in Murphy's Law bar when I picked up my pack. He has been living here for six years and I'm afraid to say that I missed his name and he went home early. Thank you, my friend. The manager let me stay for free in a campsite around the back of the bar.

All good things must come to an end. Alas, the end is nigh. I have enjoyed New Zealand immensely, so much that it's my favourite country of the walk so far. Almost certainly tomorrow, Friday will be my last road day as I walk into Auckland. I have decided that I will end New Zealand at the same spot where I began the country on my world run five years ago. At Mechanics Bay in Auckland's Waitemata Harbour. Please see photo map, its 41 kilometres from where I am tonight in Drury. I plan to walk that tomorrow and perhaps connect up with a couple of Irish men who live in the city as they have been messaging me a lot lately.