Wilderness May 2020

IT’S A COUPLE OF WEEKS LATE, but finally you’re receiving the long-awaited May magazine. I hope it’s been worth the wait – I certainly think so. I thank you for your patience and, more importantly, for your support. I know everyone has had a tough ride during the Alert Level 4 Lockdown. And that tough ride hasn’t ended just because we’ve moved into level 3 – life as we know it has not come rushing back and nor will it for some time to come. But through the stress of the lockdown, the uncertainty over jobs, family and health, many readers offered their support and kind words of encouragement to us. Normally, this magazine is put together by a team of six. This month, it felt like a team of…

EDITOR Alistair Hall alistair@lifestylepublishing.co.nz DEPUTY EDITOR Matthew Cattin matthew@lifestylepublishing.co.nz ART AND DESIGN Pelin Hall pelin@lifestylepublishing.co.nz ROVING EDITOR Shaun Barnett shauncbarnett@icloud.com ADVERTISING SALES Cherie Final Cherie@lifestylepublishing.co.nz SUBSCRIPTIONS Andrea Cowan Mandy Mattison subscribe@lifestylepublishing.co.nz Phone: 09 5702 658 PUBLISHER David Hall CONTRIBUTORS Maddy Bellcroft, Heather Grady, Neil Silverwood, Sarah Fyfe, Neil Stitchbury, Kathy Ombler, Nina Dickerhof…

I RETURNED TO THE TRAIL, TOO Thank you to Nikki Slade Robinson and others who contributed to ‘Return to the trail’ (April 2020). Hearing other women’s stories is inspiring and encouraging. In late October 2018, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. When my surgeon asked me if I had plans for Christmas, my reply was: “Yes, I’m booked to tramp the Routeburn, Kepler and Rakiura”. Sadly, I had to accept this might not happen. My surgeon’s response was the most positive statement I’ve ever heard. She simply said: “We’ll make that happen.” In early November, I had a lumpectomy with radiation therapy scheduled to start two days after we arrived home from the South Island. I was able to complete the three walks with amazing support from family and friends.…

SACRED SUMMITS The article ‘To summit or not to summit’ (April 2020) raised some interesting ideas, but I respectfully suggest the conversation is missing an important consideration. People should be free to act as they see fit, provided it does not adversely affect others, regardless of who they are. It is unjust for any one group to expect or demand compliance with their beliefs from other groups who hold different beliefs. If one group does not wish to stand on the top of a mountain, they are fully entitled to do so. But they should not expect or demand that others, who do not share the same beliefs, do the same. For me to feel I have completed a summit, I will have climbed to the top and returned safely…

Get your photo published here to receive a SOL survival blanket worth $19.80. It weighs only 100g, but will reflect 90% of radiated body heat. Learn more about SOL at e.ampro.co.nz. Last Weekend submission criteria can be found at wildernessmag.co.nz…

THE MONTH of lockdown has been a trying time for all sectors of the outdoor industry. Bivouac marketing manager Andrew Powell said the level 4 lockdown halted all operations for the retail chain, but all staff has been retained. “I’m proud that Bivouac has done the right thing in completely shutting down during this period and not pretending that we are an ‘essential service’ in the midst of a life-threatening pandemic,” he said. “Accepting economic hurt in the short-term is a hard option, but the most likely to result in a faster recovery for the nation and quicker return to some form of normality.” Powell said online sales will be available during level 3, before the eventual shift to in-store retail. “The transition to retail will require changes in systems…