A trip to New Zealand has been a dream of mine for a long time. It has been spurred on, no doubt, by my love for The Lord of the Rings, which my wife also shares. So when we decided to take some time to travel during our transition of moving from Kansas City to Salt Lake City, backpacking in New Zealand was a no-brainer.
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The impulsive adventurer in me first looked to the Te Araroa, a ~1,900-mile behemoth stretching from the southern tip of New Zealand’s South Island to the Northern tip of the North Island. But after considering things like, you know, months worth of time, money, and my wife’s limited tolerance for that kind of thing, I quickly pivoted towards New Zealand’s “Great Walks.”
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The Great Walks of New Zealand include eight hiking trails, or “tramping tracks” as the Kiwis call them, and one canoe/kayak river journey, each taking 3-6 days to complete. After our obligatory tour of Hobbiton and a glow worm cave tour, my wife and I will be tackling four of these tracks – two on the North Island and two on the South Island:
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New Zealand’s Great Walks are well maintained and managed by the New Zealand Department of Conservation (DOC). To prevent the over-crowding of these trails and the natural damage caused by stealth camping, the DOC requires reservations to be made at designated hut and/or campsite locations for each night on the trail. This proved to be a serious logistical challenge as we planned our trip. Every day is accounted for regarding mileage, campsite reservations, shuttles and water taxis, etc. We decided to give ourselves two days of buffer between each track to allow for travel, resupply, rest, and more exploration if time and energy allow for it.
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Here is a brief overview of our trip (~4 weeks):
- Kansas City -> Auckland
- Auckland: Tour to Hobbiton, Waitomo Glow Worm Caves
- Travel to Waikaremoana Trailhead
- Waikaremoana Track
- Travel to Tongariro National Park
- Tongariro Northern Circuit
- Travel to South Island: Marahau near Abel Tasman
- Abel Tasman Coast Track
- Travel to Heaphy Trailhead
- Heaphy Track
- Nelson -> Kansas City
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We are tremendously excited to soak in the beauty of this country. The four tracks we are hiking will offer us an eclectic mix of environments: Forest, Arid, Jungle, Beach and Alpine. This website has some great photos to check out before we add our own from the trip. We are also excited to be in the ranks of Kiwis and fellow travelers as we tramp along.
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So what are we bringing?
I have a rule for myself to have my base weight under 15 pounds for any backpacking trip. This also works to our advantage as there is a 15-pound weight limit for carry-on bags on domestic New Zealand flights. So we will be travelling pretty light, but comfortably. (For the most part, my wife will be taking the women’s versions of my gear.)
- Backpack: Gregory Mountain Products Paragon 68 Liter Men’s Backpack, Sunset Grey, Medium/Large
– stripped down to the way I like it, it weighs right around 3 pounds and is extremely comfy.
– stripped down to the way I like it, it weighs right around 3 pounds and is extremely comfy. - Sleeping Bag: REI Co-op Magma 15 – I bought this excitedly for our future life in Utah. A 15 degree bag may be overkill for New Zealand’s hottest month, but this guy only weighs 1 lb. 14 oz. and I’d rather not be caught off-guard by cold weather during our higher-elevation nights.
- Shelter: Nemo Dagger Ultralight Backpacking Tent, 3 Person. Coming in right around 4 pounds, this tent will serve my wife and I well. It’s pretty roomy, which we will appreciate while we share it for four weeks of travelling. And while 4 pounds isn’t exactly desirable, it’s pretty lightweight for its size and comfort (plus, my wife will be carrying the poles).
. Coming in right around 4 pounds, this tent will serve my wife and I well. It’s pretty roomy, which we will appreciate while we share it for four weeks of travelling. And while 4 pounds isn’t exactly desirable, it’s pretty lightweight for its size and comfort (plus, my wife will be carrying the poles).- Sleeping Pad: Therm-a-Rest NeoAir Xlite Ultralight Backpacking Air Mattress, Standard Valve, Regular – 20 x 72 Inches. Very lightweight and comfortable for good sleep – well worth the price!
. Very lightweight and comfortable for good sleep – well worth the price!
- Hydration: Sawyer ProductsSawyer PointOne Squeeze Water Filter System, Black/Blue. Not sure if we’ll really need this with water services at huts, but better safe than sorry. We will be using Smart Water bottles for side pocket water storage.
Not sure if we’ll really need this with water services at huts, but better safe than sorry. We will be using Smart Water bottles for side pocket water storage.- Jacket: Patagonia Micro-Puff. Very warm and very lightweight (8 oz.). I doubt I’ll need this very often – but a jacket is a must, so I’m glad that it won’t be weighing me down. The Patagonia Men’s Nano Puff Jacket (Carbon w/Carbon, Medium) is a good choice too.
is a good choice too. - Rain Gear: Kuhl Rain Jacket
- Clothes: 2 Changes
- 2 synthetic t-shirts
- 2 pairs synthetic boxer briefs
- 2 pairs Darn Tough socks
- Synthetic zip-off pants
- Running shorts
- Ball Cap
- Sunglasses
- Storage: Sea to Summit Ultra-SIL Stuff Set XXS, XS, S for clothes and miscellaneous items. Sea to Summit Lightweight Dry Sack,Blue,Large-13-Liter (2x) for sleeping bag and food bag. Sea to Summit Travelling Light Stuff Sack Set (S/M/L) for odds and ends.
for clothes and miscellaneous items. 
(2x) for sleeping bag and food bag. - First Aid: Super-Adhesive Cloth Band-Aids, Neosporin
- Headlamp: Black Diamond Storm Headlamp, Black
- Camera: iPhone 11
- After research and advice from friends, we found that the new generation of phone cameras were nearly at-par with many mid-tier traditional cameras. So we decided to take advantage of some Black Friday sales and upgrade our phones. We’re very excited to see what these can do for us!
- Trekking Poles: None
- I love my Leki’s, but don’t want to risk them not making it through airport security (trekking poles are in a gray area that is left up to the discretion of individual TSA agents…)
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Stay tuned to hear how it goes!
— Kris
For more details on traveling to New Zealand, see our post: How to Plan a New Zealand Backpacking Trip
Read more: New Zealand Great Walks- Waikaremoana Track
Read more: New Zealand Great Walks- Tongariro Northern Circuit
David Rowdy Rough
January 27, 2020 2:30 amI am indeed excited to read more of your New Zealand adventures. The four hikes sound pretty incredible – even for Hobbits. The gear sounds vaguely familiar. Is it a little lighter than you AT thru-hike? I look forward to your photos!
Motown
February 25, 2020 4:04 pmHey Rowdy! I’m finally getting to posting about the hikes – you can check them out in the “Hike” section. Yes, my base weight was a little lighter on this trip than on the AT – at least in a sense. My gear weighed significantly less, but I had more creature comforts such as cookware for hot meals. Definitely a lot lighter than when starting the AT at ~25 lb. base weight!