Te Araroa Trail Blog 2025

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The Te Araroa Trail New Zealand is a premier long-distance hiking trail. It opened in 2011 and is still a work in progress. Every year new sections of trail are added and upgraded. Te Araroa is popular with New Zealand and Australian hikers but is becoming more popular with hikers from Europe and North America.

I hiked the Te Araroa Trail in 2018-2019. I have included my complete Te Araroa Trail blog as part of this post for those interested in reading a daily journal. For those who are not, there is more than enough information to assist in planning for the Te Araroa Trail.

Having completed the Pacific Crest Trail, Continental Divide Trail, and Appalachian Trail, I was keen to hike another long-distance trail. Enter the Te Araroa Trail.

Te Araroa Information

Te Araroa Guidebooks

As yet there are no Te Araroa guides suitable for hikers. Stick with this blog and soon I will provide a complete guide of Te Araroa Trail for all future hikers on the trail. This Te Araroa Trail Blog should help with a lot of the planning.

When to hike the Te Araroa

New Zealand is called the land of the long white cloud. The trail should only be hiked in the southern hemisphere summer.

October would be considered the earliest that a hiker should start the trail if heading southbound. Many parts of the trail are closed before that date as they travel through farmland that is closed. The southbound hiker should finish the trail before April. Snow and cold weather blowing in from Antarctica can close the trail.

Northbound hikers should start the trail in the south island around December or January in the hope of reaching the tip of the north island before winter and closures of the trail to allow access for sheep on certain sections of the trail.

Te Araroa Trail Maps

Phone Apps provide the best Te Araroa Trail Map. I used the FarOut App on my smartphone as my primary map, GPS, and guide for the trail. These are the best Te Araroa Trail Maps. I have previously used these guides on other trails and like the layout and simplicity of using a smartphone to navigate. Using a stand-alone GPS is not necessary, smartphones are best.

Paper maps can be downloaded for free from the Te Araroa website. Be sure to leave a generous donation in return for this free service.

Click to download the FarOut App for the Te Araroa.

Te Araroa Trail Notes

A complete list of trail notes is regularly updated by the Te Araroa Trail Trust. Download each section from https://www.teararoa.org.nz/trail-notes/

Bounce Box for the Te Araroa Trail

As with every other long-distance hiking trail that I have hiked, I used a bounce box. I would post this bounce box to myself as I hike along the trail. The box contains my computer, cables, extra pairs of hiking shoes, and some spare clothes that I will not need when hiking and I’ll have a couple of items of food. I send the bounce box to selected places along the trail where I plan to take a rest day.

I usually don’t like to send food to myself as I prefer to support the local shops and buy local, even if it can be more expensive at times. You could resupply on the trail if you are not a fussy eater by buying from local shops along the way but most will send one or two food boxes.

Resupply

Read my Complete Guide to Resupply on the Te Araroa Trail for all the information about resupply, bounce boxes, sending packages in New Zealand, and all the addresses and contact details.

Charging Electrical Equipment in New Zealand

New Zealand uses the same 220-240 volt three-plug electrical outlets as Australia and China.

Europeans, North Americans, and hikers from most places in Asia will need to bring an outlet adaptor from home or purchase one locally. They are available at the airport duty-free in Auckland. Or this one at Amazon.

Insurance

Travel insurance will be necessary for most hikers as they may not be covered for accident, illness, or injury when in New Zealand.

Stove Fuel

In New Zealand, fuel for canister stoves and alcohol stoves is widely available along the trail.

It is most common to use a backpacking stove that uses a gas canister. They are widely available along the trail in most larger towns and even in many smaller ones.

The alcohol used in stoves is known as Metho or Methylated Spirits and can be purchased at any hardware store along the trail.

All the trail towns that sell gas canisters are listed in A Complete Guide to Resupply on the Te Araroa Trail.

Getting to the start of the trail

Getting to the start of the trail at Cape Reinga can be a mission in itself.

I was lucky to get a lift to the start of the trail with Ross, a long-time reader of this blog and an all-around good guy. Thank you, Ross.

Hikers need to catch a bus from Auckland to Kaitaia. From Kaitaia, it is possible to hitchhike to Cape Reinga. If not hitchhiking you could get a group together and take a taxi which would not be too expensive. The third option would be to take a bus tour and ask before getting on that you would like to be dropped off at Cape Reinga, but this would be the most expensive option.

Best Lightweight Gear for Thru-Hiking the Te Araroa Trail

Some of the best outdoor gear for hiking in New Zealand is made by Macpac. With the extremes of weather, they make some awesome gear, they also sell gas canisters and have stores all along the Te Araroa Trail.

Te Araroa Trail Blog

• Te Araroa Trail Gear list
• Guide to Te Araroa Resupply

Te Araroa Trail North Island Guide

• TA Day 1 – Getting to the Start of the Te Araroa
• TA Day 2 – The Beach Walk
• TA Day 3 – Man Lipstick and Rogue Waves
• TA Day 4 – Then It Rained
• TA Day 5 – Kaitaia Resupply
• TA Day 6 – Roadwalking through Farmland
• TA Day 7 – The Muddy Death Forest
• TA Day 8 – Illness and Stupidity
• TA Day 9 – Man Flu
• TA Day 10-12 Resting in Kerikeri
• TA Day 13 – Back on Trail
• TA Day 14 – River Walking Paradise
• TA Day 15 – Forest Hiking
• TA Day 16 – More Hikers
• TA Day 17 – I hiked too far
• TA Day 18 – The Brewery
• TA Day 19 – Solo Again
• TA Day 20 – Farmland Trails
• TA Day 21 – 500km
• TA Day 22 – Stillwater Paradise
• TA Day 23-24 – To Auckland
• TA Day 25 – Urban Hiking in Auckland
• TA Day 26 – Hiking more than 50 kilometers
• TA Day 27 – Attack Dogs
• TA Day 28 – Hakarimata Forest
• TA Day 29 – To Hamilton 25% done
• TA Day 30 – Friendly Locals
• TA Day 31 – Mt Pirongia best day yet
• TA Day 32 – You can’t always get what you want
• TA Day 33 – Heavy rain brings out the birds
• TA Day 34 – Rest in Te Quiti
• TA Day 35 – A bit of trail maintenance needed
• TA Day 36 – All day road walk
• TA Day 37 – The Timber Trail
• TA Day 38 – 1000km one third done
• TA Day 39-40 Tamaranui decision time
• TA Day 41 – Hiking solo
• TA Day 42 – River Crossings
• TA Day 43-44 – Alpine Crossing retreat
• TA Day 45 – Hiking backwards
• TA Day 46-47 – Tongariro Crossing
• TA Day 48 – The Fisher Trail to Whakahoro
• TA Day 49-52 Canoeing the Whanganui River
• TA Day 53-58 – An Early Christmas Break
• TA Day 59 – Halfway
• TA Day 60 – Wine and Bread with Dinner
• TA Day 61 – River Walk into the Tararuas
• TA Day 62 – Bad Weather forces retreat
• TA Day 63 – Stuck in a hit for Christmas
• TA Day 64 – The hardest section of the whole trail
• TA Day 65 – A PCT Reunion
• TA Day 66 – The Escarpment trail
• TA Day 67 – 69 – Wellington to the South Island

Te Araroa Trail South Island

• TA Day 70 – Happy New Year
• TA Day 71 – Summer is Coming
• TA Day 72 – Food is Important
• TA Day 73 – Seven Days of Food is Heavy
• TA Day 74 – Too Many things are breaking
• TA Day 75 – This is the TA I’ve been looking for
• TA Day 76 – River valleys and mountain passes
• TA Day 77 – St Arnaud Village
• TA Day 78 – Conservative Hiking
• TA Day 79 – The Drought has broken
• TA Day 80 – Two high passes in one day
• TA Day 81-84 – 2000km
• TA Day 85 – One too many slips
• TA Day 86 – 100 river crossings
• TA Day 87 – Arthur Pass
• TA Day 88 – Rescued on the Te Araroa Trail
• TA Day 89 – It’s windy in New Zealand
• TA Day 90 – The long wide valleys
• TA Day 91 – Rangitata river crossing
• TA Day 92 – Thunderstorm on the High Pass
• TA Day 93 – Highest Point on the trail
• TA Day 94-99 – Lake Tekapo to Twizel
• TA Day 100 – Back on Trail
• TA Day 101 – Almost washed away on a river crossing
• TA Day 102 – So cold I was peeing Ice Cubes
• TA Day 103 – Best Views Yet
• TA Day 104 – I am not immune to stupidy
• TA Day 105 – Long steep climbs
• TA Day 106 – Riverwalk to Arrowtown
• TA Day 107 – Queenstown and Beyond
• TA Day 108 – Hiking up Glacial valleys
• TA Day 109 – I hate sandflies
• TA Day 110 – Windy Roadwalk
• TA Day 111 – In Sight of the Southern Ocean
• TA Day 112 – A Day on the Farm
• TA Day 113 – Toilet Paper Everywhere
• TA Day 114 – Cracking my head on a tree
• TA Day 115 – I Just Hiked the Te Araroa Trail

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