a magical place

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so here goes. i've just finished 10 days on the trail in the most magical soul-full (i made that word up just now) place in the entire world. a note on pictures before i start. i busted my camera on day 3, but fortunately i had a backup disposable....that means you'll have to visit me to see the photos i took. hah.

day 1: oban bay to port william hut 12km
today is the beginning of my journey on the north west circuit. a 10 day tramp wrought with mud and thick bush and spectacular skies. i am brushing antarctica....or as close to it s i will ever be. i am on my own, my company the words in my head. i am ready to be this way, to mlet my mind wander and wonder as my feet do the same....i am ready for this.
i woke late this morning and was hurried in my packing. i planned to get an early ferry to the island, but discovered it was full and i would have to settle for a later departure. this news also forced me to rearrange my days....ah well....it got interesting before i even started walking. meesh dropped me at the ferry terminal and was on her way to learn to surf and sheer sheep or something. by the time i had arrived on the island, hired my 'personal locator beacon' (in case something should go terribly wrong), and got everything sorted with the department of conservation office it was nearly half past 2. with a 4 hour walk ahead of me i was feeling mildly frustrated with myself for not planning better. i set off and after a few minutes walking my good mood was restored.
i walked today along the main road of stewart island's only settlement. the houses that studded the shoreline were in neat small rows and few in numbers. road walking is easy and went quickly. the trailhead was set just behind a beach being massaged by slow rolling hollow waves. the sun shown bright in the sky and a light breeze was up. perfection!! i walked on an amazingly grated track....a walkway really. the trail took me first into beech forest thick with wirey tall trees and knarls of black hanging vines. then i walked along a small quiet beach. the tide was receeding but still reaching for my feet each time the ocean rolled ashore. the sunlight beamed onto the uneven surface of the water enlivening it with what looked like a million lightening bugs skating atop it....a beautiful sight in a small sheltered bay. from there i walked inland into a forest standing tall and wide and green. old fat beech trees, eucalyptus, tall ferns and low lying ferns all formed the walls of woods around me. finally i walked into a clearing to find port william hut....modest in size, but great in the views i affords for its weary walkers (or not as the case may be ;o) the hut fronts magnetic beach whose sands are black like a magnet....fancy that.
i have company tonight as this section of the trail is part of one of new zealand's 'great walks' which many people do. it is nice to have conversation now, but equally as nice to know that i will be on my own for most of my tramp. tomorrow the trail, i'm sure, will become less pronounced....without stairs or boardwalks. i have a long day ahead and should get some sleep.

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Comments

[melissa]

i wish i could have been there
more than anything!