Wilderness December 2023

WILL YOU join me and thousands of others in walking 1200km over 12 months? Whether you're a subscriber, and tramp every other weekend, or have bought Wilderness for the first time because you do the occasional bushwalk and want to expand your horizons, or hopefully you liked the look of our beautiful national park maps, you, and everyone in between, can benefit from participating in the Walk1200km challenge. I know of at least one person doing the challenge in a wheelchair. Octogenarians have done it, new mums have joined and pushed their sleeping babies through hundreds of kilometres of walks. If they can do it, or at least try, then so can you. Don't shy away because it'll be one of the best things you ever do. The fitness and…

On the topic of storing outdoor gear (‘Where gear resides’, August 2023), I own numerous banana boxes which I find far better than the large plastic storage containers for the following reasons. 1. Banana boxes are free. 2.They're more compact and stack better than plastic containers. 3. Banana boxes ‘breathe’ which means if a gear item is stored damp it will dry. 4. Banana boxes hold lots of gear. They are big and strong enough to hold several of my snow shoes in one box, my tents, alpine and rock equipment. They'll also hold sleeping bags in their net storage bag. 5. The boxes are easy to label. 6. They can be put straight into the car for trips away. 7. They're recyclable. When you no longer need your banana box, just put it into the…

I'm a hunter and really enjoy Wilderness – there's more info than traditional hunting mags. It's always interesting to read ‘What's in my pack’, and there are some great articles on new places to explore. The gear guide to three-season tents (November 2023) omitted the Macpac Duolite, which is much cheaper than the others shown. It's durable and a product from a New Zealand company. – A note to readers, Macpac declined our invi tation to participate in the tent guide. – AH…

It was great to see the article about the father and his Down Syndrome son tramping (‘Hiking the Hooker Valley’, October 2023). We have taken our son Leroy (pictured, also with Down Syndrome) on many expeditions. He struggles where fine footwork is needed, and sometimes with the ability to visualise the destination. But his fitness is fine, and he pushes us on a good track. Sometimes the backcountry population can seem a bit uniform. Many of the facilities are taxpayer-funded, and it behoves us all to invite new (and different) people to share in the activities that we love.…

I was born to walk, and my greatest loves are hills, flora and fauna. I'm impulsive by nature and the idea of ‘having to’ or ‘must do’ doesn't appeal. However, Wilderness – the best magazine on the newsstand – has been a perfect gift to give and to receive for years. Therefore when the Progress Tracker fell out of the October 2022 issue I decided to give the Walk1200km challenge a whirl. The timing was perfect as fitness would be the key to enjoyment for my planned Kepler Track trip – a family tramp booked after my neice's March wedding in Te Anau. We moved from Darfield to Richmond last year. I'm in my 8th decade and have tramped many tracks and climbed a few lesser mountains, so I happily…

We discovered Leith Hill, near Castle Hill, thanks to Wilderness (July 2023). While the photos in that issue were of a snowy ridgeline, doing the walk on a sunny Labour Weekend was a different experience: we encountered conditions more akin to a moonscape. We started on a lovely loop directly from Castle Hill Village. When we reached the high point, we left the track and headed up the ridge. It's definitely a puffer! At the top were great views of the Craigieburn Range. There appears to be a viable scree run as a (potential) fast descent, but having left the gaiters at home, we opted to go back the way we went up. It's a great half-day walk relatively close to Christchurch. – Leah receives a Real Meal dinner. Readers,…