We had planned to dawdle up the South Island towing a caravan, see my whanau in Nelson and then dawdle back again. But two nights ago I developed a dull ache in one of my molars which turned into a very bright ache indeed and within a very short time went on to qualify as a fully certified genius of an ache. Luckily my dentist started back from his holidays the following day and could see me first thing in the morning. One root canal later I am able to sleep without mainlining codeine, but will need to see him again in a week to get part two done: 90 minutes of staring at his ceiling and trying to reply to his chat with several thousand dollars worth of ironmongery in my mouth. So, we will be belting up the country, seeing some of the best and wisest people I know and belting home again. I'll try and keep you posted
John is just walking the 80 metres back to his bike here, but you get the general drift. The question I get asked more than any other at the end of the Hikoi is "how are your feet?" It's nice that people care, but my feet have never been an issue on long walks. Good shoes and socks prevent blisters and cushion the effects of long distances on hard surfaces, but I have had other issues. When walking the Camino Santiago knees, Achilles tendons and shin splints have all at one time or another given me trouble. This time round, these have all been fine and I finished feeling as though I could just keep on going indefinitely; to Cape Reinga if needs be. Over the last couple of years I have learned 6 things that have made all the difference. Namely: 1. Footwear. On the Camino I wore walking shoes - Salomon in 2009 and Asics in 2012. A year ago I changed to full walking boots - Salomon Cosmic 2 - and the difference was instant and major. When walking more than 15 minutes...

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