New Zealand 14

The Desert Road and reliving my 'Highway Cops' television memory from my world run.

Jim had offered to bring my backpack on ahead to Waiouri and meet me at an Italian restaurant. On the way, I met a man called Deejay who stopped and amazingly gave me his address and said I had a place to lay my head that night. Kiwis are so incredible! It was a pretty hilly day but I took it all in my stride. Poor Dermot the Irish cyclist I mentioned in my previous blog was having a hard time in the mountainous north island. Some other cyclists I met mentioned the same thing to me. I wasn't sure why, but I didn't find those hills as difficult as these cyclists did. Perhaps it was because of my slower, the more gradual approach. I have always loved mountains, they are in my blood and that's why I lived in Colorado for eight years. 

When I finally caught up with Jim and Raewyne they had a feed of fish and chips waiting for me at the restaurant. I gave the Deejays address which was in a military housing residence. They went on ahead with my pack. Jim, as ever was fast on the draw and joked to Deejay that he had only one Irishman that night whereas they had two!  

"Well Jim, the January sales and two for the price of one are over!"

I had a pleasant evening over dinner talking to my latest host about military life. 

In the morning he had to rush off early and I was told to just pull the door closed when I left. 

That took me to the start of the so-called desert road, a road that often closes in the winter due to excessive snow. It was a little hard to believe the extent of the winter here. Jim told me that they can't get their car in their driveway in winter and have to park it outside on the road. Another man told me about a walker who was pulled off the road by the cops because of snow. 

Just then the clouds darkened and it looked like rain was on the way. I had stopped at a sign of a Kaimanawa wild horse, named after the mountain range of the same name. These horses are a protected species and are usually highly-muscled. Their feral existence has enabled them to adapt to the harsh environment and to survive on very little. They are usually sure-footed and tough.

Just as I was taking a photo of the sign an off-duty police officer stopped and spoke about a rainstorm which was on the way. I had only walked eight kilometres, there was absolutely no shelter and as the area, I was in was a military training area camping was prohibited. In a flash, I weighed up my situation. I could go 55kms forward to Turangi and dump my pack in the Extreme Backpackers hostel. I could use the hostel as a base. That meant I could hitch back here and walk to Turangi in two easy days, escape the rainstorm and in the horse picture I had the perfect return point. 

The officer that picked me up also stopped for a Malaysian hitchhiker. As we drove over a short pass he told us that he was glad for our company as he had been up until 4:30 am filing reports! I had planned to return that day as the storm didn't manifest as the officer had mentioned. After a while trying to return to my route that day I decided to pull the plug on my day, eight kilometres walked, what a waste of a day. Instead, I hung out talking to people at the hostel.  

  Then I had lots of luck hitching to and from the hostel to my route. I walked two memorable days of 24 and 31 kilometres. That first day Alex the owner of an electrical maintenance company took me back to where I finished at the horse sign. He was on his way to Waiouri to install street lighting. As his company employed 28 people he arranged for a couple of his men, Jay and Larr to pick me up on the road that evening and to collect me from the hostel the following morning. 

On the road, a friendly woman from Perth, Australia who was on a short holiday stooped to check on my welfare. She thought I needed a bit of fattening up and went to enormous trouble preparing me a delicious tomato, salami and pepper sandwich and an electrolyte for the road. I sat chatting with her in her hired car. She was on her way to a rock concert.

 On the left we could see two volcanoes, Mt Ruapehu is considered active and last erupted in 2007. Just down from it is Mt Ngauruhoe which has been marked down as unlikely to erupt. Several movies, most notably The Lord of the Rings had scenes shot on the slopes of these volcanos. In fact, as I ran this same desert road in my world run five years ago I had my own piece of television drama!

 The following is an excerpt from my blog at the time:

http://www.theworldjog.com/blog/?m=201301

"Next day, I ran the rest of the desert road, 60km of nothingness through Tongariro National Park with stunning views of the active Tongariro and Ruapehu volcanoes. Then I run through Waiouru I am about to call Gill to come out and pick me up at the end of my day. A cop car pulled up on the hard shoulder. A police officer got out and then a television cameraman. The cop mentioned that ‘they lost a driver' because a motorist didn’t expect to see a runner on the road! I was not sure if that meant a cop or one of the community was killed. I backed off from that conversation but I really wanted to ask why he was making problems for legal runners running on the verge and not directing his grief towards motorists for reckless driving. He told me I couldn’t run on the road after dark that night, I didn’t argue as I was going back to Gills that night anyway. The cameraman continued to film. Then the cop asked me about my world run and seemed to have a particular interest in South America, and the food there. His tone had changed, as these are not normal police questions!

”Bolivian, Ecuadorian and Peruvian food is the most disgusting food, I lost 6 kilos while I was there.”  when the cameraman turned off the camera I asked him where he was from.

”Ecuador! And you don't like our food?”

Oh! Yes, once again I put my foot in it!

Then I realised that I was filmed for a police television show, a bit like the tv show Cops. Later, I got an email asking my permission to use the segment in the New Zealand show called: Highway Cops. Years later I still get messages from my friends back in Ireland and in many other countries to say they have seen the episode! I believe it's in the first season of the show.

I emailed the program makers and they won't give me a copy without signing a "no share" agreement. Naturally, I don't want to do it. Perhaps someone in NZ or elsewhere might like to keep an eye out for it for me and make a recording!