This page is for anything you think trampers might find useful

Many trampers have phones with large screens and a GPS. With the right apps and maps that are stored on the phone, these can be invaluable for checking that you are where you think you are, or how far it is to the next hut/river/track branch. Click here for a discussion of Locus Maps, one of many, mostly free apps used for this purpose.

This block contains links to gpx files that you can download

Clicking the link will place the file in you downloads folder, on Windows Systems

Teds Track, Kaimais (Near Thompsons track. Click here for the .gpx and here for the location map

New Pylon Track, Kaimais, Waiorongomai. Click here for the gpx and here for location map

Champion Hut & Mine 5 Oct 2014 Neavesville Click here for the gpx and here for location map

Te Rereatukahia shortcut (Near Tuahu Track). Click here  for the .gpx and here for the location map

Toatoa Pylon 13th jan 2018. Waiorongomai Click Here for the gpx and here for location map. NOTE The section up the ridge south of Mill Creek is very indistinct and requires great skill and care with track finding. 

Orongo Rd quarry to Ngatapuwai. Part of Te Araroa but substantially different from the LINZ 1:50000 series tracks. Click here for .gpx, and here for location map

There are occasionally discussions on the shortest routes to tramping areas. This pdf gives you some routes that are significantly shorter than those commonly used.

If you are using mapping programs on your computer, and have a GPS or a mapping app in your smartphone, you may want to move track routes from one to another. I found that working with the file system on my Android phone less than intuitive, so I have documented in detail (mostly for myself) how to move files in both directions - in my case between MapToaster on the computer and Outdoor Atlas on my Samsung S5 Android smartphone.

Some of the important and not obvious steps will be the same for other hardware and software, so I have made my notes available as a .pdf here.

These are my ideas from recent tramps. Stimulated by all of us forgetting vital things such as cutlery! You can download a pdf of this article here. Ray Hoare

Clothes

• Very personal – just be sure there is a warm layer even at height of summer. Consider sun protection, too, in summer.
• Toilet gear – pills, tooth stuff, towel, soap, toilet paper, wet wipes, insect repellent, sun screeen
• Hut shoes – very light.

Wet weather gear
You always need this if you are going above the bush line. Windproof trousers that you can put on over your boots, Gaiters, Parka, warm hat.

Misc personal  gear

• Camera, phone with maps of the area downloaded, Battery recharging pack (with connectors)
• Torches – modern 1watt LED.
• Water bottle – at least 1.25 litre,
• Sleeping bag.
• Cutlery, bowl or plate for eating from. Large cup – 400ml or more.
• Compass, whistle. Lighter, or matches in waterproof bag. Sunglasses, especially if you will be on or near snow.
• Sun protection cream. Get something with a cap that screws closed. Changes in air pressure as you climb can cause a real mess in your pack when the tube has a flip top.
• Towel – small, but thick

Party gear

• Cooker, and gas bottles at 1 per 2-days. Number the gas bottles and use them in sequence so you don’t run out.
• 2 billies, sized for the size of the group.
• Large sharp knife.
• A wooden spoon weighs little and is great for stirring porridge and some kinds of evening meal.
• Measuring cup for making dehydrated food up correctly.
• Tea strainer for billy coffee.
• Spare zip-lock bags, small and large, for food management and rubbish.
• Dish wash detergent in small bottle, metal pot scourer, dish rag, tea towel so you don’t put wet plates in your pack.
• Tent and sleeping mats if you expect to need them.
• Small scales to use at the start of the trip to share out the food and gear by appropriate weights. No need to take them with you if you can leave them somewhere safe.

First aid gear

• Antiseptic cream.
• Antihistamine cream for stinging nettle and wasps.
• Burn cream/gel.
• Paracetemol, anti-inflammatory pills (e.g. ibuprofen) – both are great for painful knees.
• Bandages,
• Cleaning wipes, 
• Band-aids of different sizes, plain sticky tape (sports tape) for incipient blisters.

Packing your gear

• You need to keep your sleeping bag dry. Use something that will at least keep rain out. If your bag is in the bottom of your pack then a pack cover is not enough. Pack liners work, but can be inconvenient. Some use a plastic bag inside their sleeping bag stuff sack.
• I like a pillow at night – it reduces my snoring. I carry a pillowcase, and pack my clean and dry clothes in it.
• If you are carrying lunch or snack food, have it near the top of your pack.
• Make sure your water bottle won’t easily drop out of its pocket on the side of your pack.
• Remember that huts, motels and cars can have mice in them, and they love cereals. Hang up your food at night.
• Keep your toilet paper dry in more than one sealable bag.

Other lists

http://www.trampingnz.com/info-gear-list

http://www.autc.org.nz/wiki/trips/gear_lists/tramping

http://www.alpinesport.org.nz/gear.htm

 

My meals are based on a simple breakfast, hard biscuits with stuff for lunch, and dehy meals for dinner. Lots of snacks make it easy to adjust food intake to the amount of work you are doing, and individual preference. I assume that food is to be prepared for the whole party - not for individuals. You can download a pdf of this page here. Ray Hoare

Breakfast.

• Porridge – 70 gram per person per day. That is a bit more than half a cup (dry weight). I use a ready to eat type, that does not need salt or sugar added. Harraways do some good ones. Measure out the amount for your party into one bag for each day, and note how much water to add, in cups, on the bag. It is then easy for anyone in the party to empty the bag into the billy, add the prescribed amount of water, and stir like hell till it is cooked, without it sticking or burning.
• Milk for the porridge and drinks. I allow 20 gram powder per person per day. (About 1 heaped desert spoon.) For 3 people this is about a half cup.  (Hint – make up milk powder by putting measured powder in a ziplock bag, adding 3 times this amount of water, and shaking the sealed bag.)
• Coffee or tea. Make real coffee by putting one rounded spoonful of grounds per person into expected amount of boiling water. Filter with the tea strainer when pouring. You might need sugar for drinks but I don’t carry it.

Snacks

• Energy bars – 1 or 2 per day per person. Chocolate – one large slab should do 3 people 2 days.
• Dried fruit – get a mixture from the bulk bin at your supermarket. About 30g per person per day.
• Mixed nuts – as fruit.

Lunch

• Tararua biscuits – see recipe in the .pdf version of this note. 100 gram per person per day. – 2 or 3 biscuits unless you are working really hard. Put the biscuits into daily ration lots for the party.
• Cheese 30 g per person per day Daily lumps
• Salami 20 g per person per day for the meat eaters. One or 2 day lumps.
• Jam – 215 g per person per day In a strong sealable container, perhaps in a sealed bag. It escapes with changing air pressure as you go over a mountain pass.
• Margarine – 15 g per person per day. Contain well.

You will probably have a snack with lunch.

Dinner

• Instant soups are wonderful at the end of a cold wet tramping day. Allow 1 per person per day
• Freeze Dry meals are good. Can be individualised.
• Pad out with rice or pasta if you like, but no real need to. Take salt if you do.
• Sweet biscuits – ginger nuts and other biscuits that don’t crumble. ¼ packet per person per day is ample.
• Drinks – as breakfast

 
Packing the foods

• Use strong ziplock bags – some cheap ones split at the bottom seam.
• Before you begin the trip assign separate meals to different people, and make sure they know what they are carrying. Give people equal weights of food and party gear or adjust according to ability.
• Carry spare bags for rubbish.
• When you assign a stack of food to people, don’t use disposable supermarket bags – they tear too easily. Use the re-usable supermarket bags, or tough ones from clothing resellers.

Ray Hoare, Wanderers Tramping Club