Text – Rachel Lecompte | Illustrations – Florence Rivest

Last November, on the other side of the world, Florence Rivest, illustrator and outdoor enthusiast, and Rachel Lecompte, designer-editor and mountain climber, crossed New Zealand on foot. The Te Araroa trail, or 'the long way' in the Maori language, welcomed these two friends, hikers and outdoor enthusiasts for their mythical 3,000 km walk across the country. Between November 21, 2022 and April 7, 2023, they walked the Te Araroa, which runs between the country's two main islands, starting at the Cape Reinga lighthouse on the North Island and finishing in Bluff, at the tip of the South Island. 

New Zealand is kind of like if you took all of North America's most beautiful landscapes, then condensed them onto two tiny islands in the middle of the South Pacific Ocean.

Every square mile contains its own slice of beauty. With 3,036 km straight of hiking from north to south, you'll pass through every landscape the small country has to offer: endless white-sand beaches (including the famous Ninety Mile Beach), tropical forests with an intense humidex factor, knee-deep mud trails, city-side highways, rural hamlets with cows and sheep dotting the horizon, snow-capped mountain ranges, massifs of volcanic origin, icy rivers with pastel sediments, woodlands with native vegetation and birds, lush green valleys, lunar landscapes that seemed covered in rust, and the list goes on. A typical day in Kiwi country resembles four seasons in no particular order - frost on your tent in the early morning, a cold wind for your coffee break and suddenly, suffocating heat when it's time for a peanut butter wrap under the midday sun.

"Walking about 25 km a day without the slightest comfort - why would you want to put yourself through that?!" It's a question I've often been asked when talking about this big project. And my answer is always the same. Why not? When else would I get the chance to live outdoors and walk for five months through picture-perfect postcard landscapes, accompanied by my amazing friend? But there's more to it than that: the other concern of my family and friends, of course, was hiking safety, especially as women. 

But to tell you the truth, Florence and I felt safer than ever on this trail compared to elsewhere. Nature was kind to us, as were the people we met along the way. There was a respect between us that went without saying. Were there times when we were afraid? Yes, especially when nature reminded us of how insignificant we were. We'll always remember the crossing of the Ahuriri River, which I aptly renamed the "catastrophe river," in which we almost lost a trail friend, as well as the extreme cold on a summit that left Flo on the verge of hypothermia.

So how does one prepare for a hike like this? By walking! Obviously, there was the physical (and mental) preparation, as well as the logistics of putting work and personal life on hold. Then came the fun part: the choice of gear. We were already equipped for long-distance trekking, but we'd never been zealous enough to weigh our gear and go ultralight. When you carry everything on your back for such a long time, climbing 2,000 m mountains and walking sometimes up to 45 km a day, lightweight products quickly become non-negotiable. That's why we opted for lighter, more resistant equipment, like our own mobile home: Big Agnes' TigerWall tent. We also swapped our usual hiking boots for real trail shoes, opting for the Altra LonePeak 6 like real thru-hikers. 

This adventure for two was a wonderful human experience, sometimes difficult, but all in all beautiful, sincere and full of fun... At camp, the other hikers could surely always hear us crying with laughter in the tent. Was it the fatigue talking, or our bad puns? I guess we'll never know. 

And whenever we were asked, "How long are you here for?" - we quoted our good friend Drake: 'We're here for a gooooood time, not a long time!'

Walking for so long and living according to Mother Nature's whims confirmed to me that happiness is to be found in the little things, and that you don't need much to be happy. Like having dry feet in your sleeping bag, or enjoying lukewarm instant coffee in the tent when it's raining in the morning. Because every day, all we felt was infinite gratitude to be there and have the chance to just exist. Being in the moment, taking time to live and enjoy the adventure, one step at a time. Since returning to our life back home, we often wonder if we'll ever fully come back from Te Araroa. I guess not... until our next big adventure!