Te Araroa Statistics

[@BlackPete...]

Wow... Once again, Kurt, you have provided the most in-depth coverage of Te Araroa. That was a fascinating set of statistics.

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

Thanks heaps. I'm a bit of a statistics nerd.

[@ocin7917]

Thanks that was very helpful. I am planning to do it in the next 3 years, but I live alone so I am also having to save to cover my mortgage payments without income during the walk, so it’s nice to be able to have some indication of trail costs too! It will certainly be expensive but worth every cent! I can’t wait!

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

"It will certainly be expensive but worth every cent!" You got that right! I don't begrudge at all spending that money for this.

[@johnjordan4647]

Thank you very much for such a comprehensive break down of costs. Love the shower graphs

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

You're quite welcome

[@kerrywilliams8100]

Thank you so much have downloaded the Spreadsheet. Very appreciated 👍

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

You are welcome!

[@robfirmin8388]

Really thoughtful and helpful for yourself aa a record, as well as those considering planning their Te Araroa hikoi. Going forward they will have to bear in mind the cost of living and inflation when they do it. Finding that balance of frugal vs splashing out. Sometimes the "treats" are a necessity for restoring well being, and uplifting the spirit. Careful planning is the key, especially for the budget TA. Careful planning for all. You didn't account your whanganui river capsize as a rain day 😊👌 I had to laugh at your comment ... "if you're a cleanliness person" 😂 I'm a spreadsheet man too ... but not that organised. My spreadsheets were for Names, Country, Dietary Needs, LoS (Length of Stay) and the other was the Tide Times for both the Whanganui River, and the Turakina River. Whanganui tide to gauge the arrival time for the paddlers to Top10, and Turakina for the crossing. For departure times from our place, or arrival when expecting nobos. I can certainly see your information being very helpful, and a wonderful guide for many. Kia ora Kurt.

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

You're right about the treats. There were several times when the thought of a pizza or burger is what kept us moving. However, there is a potential downside for that...getting to a village and expecting to get at least a pie, but then finding NOTHING! Those were really devastating days! I'd be interested in seeing the results of this year's TA stats from your side when it's all over.

[@GeorgeBeck100]

Brilliant stats thank you Kurt. My first thought when looking at the pie charts was man that's a lot of money spent of food in towns !!! But then I thought how much you punish your body and I think it's a fair reward for mind and body 😊. Also great support for the economy. Sometimes looked like you might have shouted food in town for others on the trail. I think I would do this too because I would not have had to pay for flights to be New Zealand like some in the tramly would have. Rain and showers stats were interesting too.

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

Thanks for that feedback. Yeah, I didn't really try too hard to be economical in towns when it came to meals, especially on the South Island when I felt I was getting weaker from the weight loss. And for our group, there weren't too many more disappointing moments than when we had to eat trail food in town!

[@pjFaffsAbout]

This gives a lot of helpful info to visiting hikers. They can choose where they can save on expenses, or if they like the town comforts, then they may need to save a bit more before starting. Really good work

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

Thank you. Hope it is helpful

[@jeffcoad7534]

Awesome Kurt, you have provided so much insight which has been valuable to me. Keenly waiting to learn about how you did the video editing to do daily uploads. Thankyou.

[@grahameharris5557]

Wow Kurt. What a great summary of costs. I have followed EVERY EPISODE (EFE) haha, since your pre-TA hikes on KZbin, and thoroughly enjoyed and absorbed the experience with you. I'm a young pensioner (66) and not wanting to fund TA from Kiwisaver or other savings, so these details have been very meaningful to me. Very budgetable with some room to wriggle costs, it seems. Thanks so much. I see there's no allowance for the replacement SHOES you had. That would add maybe $600 as a 'running' cost' to the total. Yes? Also what do you reckon your body weight changed by, during the trip. Thanks so much, God Bless. GH

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

Thanks so much for watching! I bought four pairs of shoes before the hike. The place I got them from gave me a big discount because of that. that was $800 total for the four pair. I lost 23 kgs by the end of the journey. Working hard to keep it off and actually lose another 3-4 kgs for a healthy weight.

[@grahameharris5557]

@@freedom_on_the_trail Thanks Kurt. Keep on hiking!! 👍

[@robfirmin8388]

I'm drafting my end of season TA report presently. It means nothing to anyone but TAs (past & present) and ourselves.

[@TonkaHummer]

This is a fantastic breakdown, thankyou. I like thw comparison between the two islands. What is your thoughts on only completing the south Island if you couldn't take enough time off work to complete teh whole trail. Were you greatfull for the North island to get your body, equipment and mind ready?

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

if you can only do one island, the South is the best choice. If you went NOBO, you probably would be better off on the trail legs stuff then if you started from the top of the South Island. 3-4 days on the Queen Charlotte will not get you trail ready for the Richmonds. I think by the time you hit the big climbs going nobo, you'd have trail legs, and have dialled in your gear. The one issue is you do hit the Longwoods pretty early and that can do your head in if you're not prepared to embrace the suck. Uwe Stemmer has a vlog on YT and he went nobo this year. Watching his videos might give you some good info.

[@treblanietsnie]

Kind of joking and kind of not. Do you have any stats on Sandfly intensity and location? My wife and I attempted the TA NoBo but finished after 150ks. The sandflys around Macetown were viscous and I have only stopped scratching after about two months😢

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

Sandflies are no joke! 😫 We noticed them on the last night before we completed the Tararuas. That was the only place I remember them being a problem on the North Island. South Island had them from the top to Arthur's Pass. Then we didn't really see them again until the day before Albert Town. Then they were pretty present until the end. They really went after Richie. They seemed pretty intent on going after him. I didn't get hit so badly with them. I recommend hiking with someone who really attracts the sandflies! 😂 If I did get bit, it only itched for a little bit.

[@christinevinnie2157]

Thank you for the great breakdown. I would love a copy of your detailed spreadsheet please. Planning to hike TA for my EPIC birthday in a couple of years.

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

I have now added a link in the video notes. You can click on it and it will take you to a page where you can download either Microsoft Excel or Apple Numbers version.

[@SarahParson-o5y]

Such great information. Once again you have nailed the stuff we really want to know! A rather banal question- did you find that most of the showers provided soap and shampoo, alongside the water, or do you really need to carry your own supplies? Thank you

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

Not a banal question; I asked that last year too. It was probably a bit less than half the time for the soap/shampoo.

[@stmattschannel]

Love this especially the lodging sheet Mihi nui

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

I thought it would be helpful to break that down so people had an idea of what to expect.

[@daniel-6449]

Impressive!

[@pjFaffsAbout]

How many shoes did you wear out and were they easy to replace with the same or similar? Did you blow out socks often?

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

I bought four pairs of shoes before I started Te Araroa. I had trialled them and knew exactly what I wanted so got them all at the same time. Of those four, two are still usable...I traded one pair in at Christmas when I was home, and the pair I finished with still had life in them. I think I could have done the whole thing with three pair. Socks got destroyed mostly by the sandy beaches. I used Darn Tough socks from the States but even they got destroyed. I went through at least six pairs of socks.

[@oscarcan-ammotocicletta148]

Those are USD, not NZD right?

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

Nope, that's NZD.

[@Upsidedownorangejuice]

Some serious mahi at tracking the data, I have never seen the rain/sun days counted, really interesting.

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

Everyone talks about it but I thought it would be interesting to have data on it rather than just guess how much rain there was. We actually had more rain that I would have guessed at the end.

[@OutdoorsmanDave]

You’re such a stats geek 😊Impressively conclusive, the only metric missing is how many counselling appointments are now required to make up for that time off 😜

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

You volunteering to help me make up the hours? 😂

[@OutdoorsmanDave]

@@freedom_on_the_trail Can’t fix crazy 🤪

[@freedom_on_the_trail]

🤣🤣🤣