Waikanae to Paekakariki

1/11/21, Day 24, 23kms, Total 700kms
Elevation Gain: 311, Loss: 341
A very pleasant beach walking day.
Today I walked 13km on the beach and this time I got it right. The tide was out so the sand was smooth and hard all day, plus the sun was shining. A gentle breeze off the sea meant that I didn’t get down to T shirt and shorts although I nearly did.
Caught the earliest available bus out of Levin at 10.40am for the 30 minute trip to Waikanae.
The track down the Waikanae River was very well done and rather pleasant.
Then the track went through the Waikanae Scientific Scenic Reserve which is huge and benefiting from a massive replanting effort by the locals.
Then the beach all the way to Paekakariki.
I was surprised at how close Kapiti Island seemed to be. Stopped in at the Kapiti Island Tours shop and enquired about doing a day or overnight trip there. That would be really good. Not sure if it will happen though. The Tararuas have priority.
The Trail Angels living in Paekakariki that I had messaged had not got back to me so I’m in my tent tonight in a camp ground. I haven’t slept in my tent since I stayed at Camp Epic on the Timber Trail. Such has been my luck since then with the Trail Angels.
I had 2 nights with Geoff in Levin and he too is an outstanding host. Another of those amazing people who expect nothing in return but our company while I get to enjoy a nice bed and share their food. It is indeed very humbling to be treated this way.
I felt really good today. This was helped by my pack being the lightest ever as I’m not really carrying any food. It’s probably less than 10kg which is great.

I stopped to chat to a whitebaiter at a small stream a 100m short of a bridge. I wanted to keep my socks dry but was too lazy to walk to the bridge. The stream was only a couple of metres wide at that point so I chucked a log in the stream to shorten the distance and proceeded to cross. It went really badly. The log rolled as I jumped so both my feet got wet and I face planted in the sand on the other side. Took some skin off my knees as well. The guy who was whitebaiting is probably still laughing.