View this post on Instagram

A typical evening inside a hut on the Te Araroa trail. What I'll remember most about this particular evening are the four best friends we met. All in their 60s. The close bond and comraderie they all shared from decades of hiking together is something that has stuck with me. At every meal they would cook for the whole group. They also walked in a single file line never separated by more than a few feet chatting away and laughing. Like ducklings following their mom in a row except all grown up. The scene above is from Kiwi hut. The first thing you'll notice is the number of people. The amount of walkers on the TA has increased dramatically over the years and although the huts have an old fashioned charm (built 1960s), many are not built for the amount of walkers that pass through nightly. On this night, we fit 8 in a 6 person hut with 2 more sleeping outside. Cozy! Did a single day pass on the South Island without a river crossing!? I'm not sure, but most evenings were spent drying yourself and your clothes. Either putting them out in the sun or as you can see, decorating the hut. Most nights we met other TA walkers. Sometimes you only exchanged pleasantries. Sometimes you spent the night engrossed in conversation. Sometimes one night was too much.

A post shared by Kamil (@kamil.skwarek) on Sep 10, 2019 at 4:14am PDT