My girlfriend of 43 years.
New Zealand 9
Still I enjoyed my
evening and my stay in the pretty town of Cheviot and was delighted when
Trina the hotel manager gave me a hotel bed for the night 
Thankfully, the supermarket was open in the morning and I was able to
stock up with snacks for the road. I paused outside The Tea Shop cafe to
ask a waitress who was busy pulling down a parasol if she could fill up
my thermos mug which contained a packet of noodles with boiling water. A
few minutes later I was inside drinking a complimentary cappuccino.
That day I walked 32 kilometres and spent my New Years night under
canvas at a roadside rest area. There was an SUV parked beside me, I was
a little apprehensive about stopping there first but in the end i just
pitched my tent. In the morning I was greeted with a cheery smile from
Karel and Monika, his wife. They were a young couple from the Chech Rep
and were touring New Zealand in a hired vehicle. They though I was a
park ranger for freedom camping, as its called here is only allowed in
designated areas and even then only with a certified camper van which
has a toilet. Yes, this is the only drawback in New Zealand is that its
not as camper friendly as Australia and doesn't have as good roadside
facilities with toilets and even hot plate barbeque facilities as so
many places have in Oz.
Karel and Monika's vehicle
was equipped with a cooker so I was delighted when they boiled up water
for my coffee, instant oatmeal and noodles for the road. It was time to
move on for the sand flies were biting hard.
Further
on up the road I got talking to a strange Irish motorcyclist whose name
and place of birth I will withhold for he is only the third man in
almost six years of my travels (between my global run and walk) who
refused a photo. Before I asked for the photo we had an interesting chat
as he has lived here for about twenty years. We spoke about the
Kaikoura November 2016 earthquake which hit the region and registered a
7.8 magnitude.
The
other two male photo refusals were in a certain country while I was
allowed to sleep in a police station. After I returned from a shower I
noticed that a substantial amount of dollars were missing from my bag
when i returned. As I had no proof and I would probably not recover the
money I didn't say anything. However, there was one officer I suspected
and my suspicions were confirmed when he was the only officer in the
police station who refused to have his photo taken.
The
second incident was while running in the Bolivian altiplano area and I
stopped for water at a small farm. I stopped to chat for a while to the
man there and along I felt he was a pretty shady character. In my
experience its rare for a man to refuse a photo, countless women do!
I
walked on towards Goose Bay where much to my horror I was told that due
to unstable cliff movements in the aftermath of the quake that an eight
kilometre section as far as Peketa was closed to pedestrians. I ignored
the request from a road traffic control vehicle to get into her car for
even though New Zealand is "extra walking" onto this continent which
was technically completed when I got to Bondi beach in Sydney, I still
want it to be an unbroken path. After she drove on I ran through Raramai
tunnel and then down to the ocean and was rewarded by an amazing close
up encounter with about ten seals and their pups (please see my recent
video) Fearlessly I shot a video and later I was surprised to learn that
seals often attack with a ferocious bite if one gets too close.
Especially, had I gotten between them and the ocean and obviously
anywhere near their pups.
I walked on and along
some large rocks and boulders for a while until I came into an exposed
section of the road and was spotted by the road traffic controller. As
the road closes at 8.30pm
and it gets dark around ten I had considered hiding and waiting the
three hours until dark. In the end I wouldn't have made it as the rocky
beach ran out as the ocean smacked against a cliff wall. Nor would I
have gotten far as there was a single lane road. In the daytime I was
told that this was a stop and go one way area; not because of lack of
road but because the road was so unstable that it couldn't support two
way traffic. I also noticed frequent cameras and was later told that the
cameras were monitored looking for offenders and they were so powerful
that they could see the blackheads on ones face. When I was told that
had I not gotten off the road that the police would be called I had no
option to get into the road traffic controllers vehicle and be escorted
to the end of their zone in Peketa. * NB: Later I was informed by the WRA World Runners Association that this infraction is deemed as 'no mans land.' Please see more detailed information at the foot if this post.
From there I walked on and past Kaikoura regional airport and stopped
for the day at a rest area about an hours walk before the city. I chose
the best piece of grass to pitch my tent on which was beside a plush
motor home owned by a friendly retired couple from a nearby city called
Blenheim. I introduced myself by just asking Richard and Claudie for
some boiling water for my noodles and soon I was invited inside to enjoy
my snack which was supplemented with tea, Christmas cake and fruit.
Richard like to tease people by introducing his wife as his girlfriend
of 43 years! Apparently, people usually pick him up on it and ask him
why he never married her! Of course he did he just loved teasing the
boss! He had worked as a mechanic for the New Zealand defence forces in
Singapore and spoke more about the huge humanitarian aid which New
Zealand received from the Australian and American navies. It was
challenging as the port had raised up fourteen metres so it was a bit
challenging for ships to navigate. Much of the aid drooping was done by
the Americas who flew it from ships to Kaikoura. (Perhaps Richard can
kindly elaborate more in a comment to this post as to which type of
aircraft and vessel and any other pertinent information please?)
Then
in the morning my new friends invited me back inside their motorhome
for breakfast and another great chat and an invite to stay with them
when I get to Blenheim.
* NB: Later I was informed by the WRA World Runners Association that this infraction is deemed as 'no mans land.'
The
WRA monitors ongoing attempts and provides the most credible rules for
adventurers who want to circumnavigate the globe honestly and on foot.
In addition they will have a huge experience pool and advice is only an
email away. They are more credible and demanding than any other set of
rules as the WRA rules were set by and agreed by circumnavagitars with
experience and not by an entertainment records manual. Those attempting
an around the world foot adventure are advised to contact the WRA.
No mans land means an area which is barred for the foot traveller and
cannot be traversed legally. Such gaps may also occur between sensitive
border crossings between countries with historic conflicting issues. For
more info on the WRA and the rules please see
https://
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