Tent designs that make a statement

Get a room!

I recently discovered the website for Field Candy, a company more concerned with the outside of the tent than the weight or functionaltiy - but if you're looking to make a statement when you camp this may be for you.

The tent pictured above is called "get a room". Perfect for those couples putting Sex in a Tent to use, and wanting to give fair warning to anyone in the vicinity!

But these tents aren't just for lovers, they're also for book lovers, animal lovers, circus lovers and many more. One of my favourites is this quilt inspired version:

Prices range from just over $600 to around $760 and they seem to have only one model available - a 2 person tent. Total weight is 16.3 pounds, so this is just for car camping!

You can check out their other creative designs on their website HERE.

No such thing as bad publicity

The Huffington Post is one of those online neighbourhoods where it's very fashionable to be spotted. So when I was told that Sex in a Tent had been featured in a post there, I was feeling very smug indeed.

The fact that it's on a list of "18 Sex Books with Unusual Covers" works for me. After all, Valentine's Day is just around the corner and nothing says "I love you" like a sex book with an unusual cover.

Read the post here.

Have fun celebrating with your loved one, in whatever way you choose! (Even if it involves sock moneys.) If you don't yet have your copy of Sex in a Tent - they're ready for shipping at Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble!

Coastal Wairarapa

Castlepoint Lighthouse seen from beach

The Wairarapa is a region to the east of the Rimutaka and Tararua mountains. Normally when we head out that way, we go into the Tararuas for some great tramping. But over Easter weekend we decided to keep heading east, all the way to the Pacific coast!

We went for a couple of walks out at Castlepoint, which is about an hour east of the town of Masterton. The beach is popular in summer, but there were quite a few people around enjoying the long weekend and an unusually warm day. There were even a few surfers in the water, later replaced by a few kayakers.

The walk up to the lighthouse is pretty trivial. It's a concrete path, and then some steps. But the rocky area surrounding the lighthouse is fun to explore. The rocky cliffs tower over the pounding surf, making for a dramatic view.

The other main walk in the area takes you up above Deliverance Cove, a sheltered beach where the peace was disturbed by some kids on dirt bikes and ATVs. That was unfortunate, because apart from the noise it's a lovely spot.

Deliverance Cove

The walk follows a ride behind the cove, then climbs a steep hill to the edge of the cliff overlooking the ocean. It towers above the lighthouse and is narrow enough to worry anyone with vertigo.

View from the ridge to the lighthouse

We were planning to do another walk the next day, called the Honeycomb Rock walk. It's a four hour return walk, which reveals some unusual rock erosion (hence the name) and a shipwreck. But we decided to be leisurely about our long weekend and instead headed to Martinborough for a day of wine tasting. Hey, even hikers enjoy an indulgent day now and then!

Sunday we headed back towards the coast, this time right around the southeast corner of the South Island to a spot called White Rock. We went for a trail ride with some local farmers, which was a real treat. My first ride in around 7 years, and G's first ride in about 25 years!


After that we headed down to the coast itself, and checked out the eponymous White Rock. The sand is black, which makes the limestone boulder seem all the more out of place. It's a deserted and rugged coastal area, at the end of a gravel road. In New Zealand, if you're willing to take a drive an hour or two out of your way you are almost always rewarded with a beautiful coastal scene all to yourselves. (One other car did show up at White Rock as we left, but it was Easter weekend after all!)

White Rock

So we didn't exactly go for "hard adventure" over our little break, but we did see some remote corners of New Zealand that were definitely worth a peek. And we did come home with a couple of very nice bottles of Martinborough wine!

Guest Post: Lingerie in a Tent

Photo: Jockey Underwear

Sorry for the long absence! Today I'm happy to say we have a special guest post from Maggie Ewles, who runs an informational website about swimwear and lingerie - two great things to take camping! You can visit her site at: www.swimwearandlingerie.com. Her post reinforces a lot of the advice in "Sex in a Tent", so it's nice to see more of us outdoorsy girls thinking along the same lines!

When hitting the great outdoors with your loved one for a little rest and relaxation, the authentic outdoors person will have a tried and true list of camping essentials. Topping the list will be all the survival basics such as a tent, hiking gear, cooking paraphernalia, knife, flashlights and bug spray. However, what if you were planning on surprising your partner with a little loving in the evenings? Nature lovers will shout out that true backwoods types don’t need props or foolish luxuries to get jiggy in the tent. However, I have found that a few tiny, pre-planned items included in your backpack can pack a heck of a wallop!

First things first…. We all know that bathing in the great outdoors isn’t always a sure thing. We also know that canoodling tends to involve the parts of our bodies that begin to smell rank right off the bat. You may be swimming every day, but quite frankly the things you have planned require a little more attention than a splash around four hours ago can provide. What’s a girl to do? Voila, to the rescue: baby wipes! Seriously, these little wonders offer more cleaning power and durability than your standard wet wipe napkin and they not only clean and freshen, your nether-belows, they also make pretty good kindling once they have dried out. Multifunctional and nice smelling things definitely deserve a little room in the pack, just be sure to pack them in a reseal-able bag or container.

How about your undies? Are you wearing the standard non-cotton (so they will dry overnight and not stay full of congealed sweat for the whole trip) underwear? Camping undies have come a long way in recent years. Backpackers can choose from a ridiculous amount of colors, patterns and styles and even find some that will double as swimwear which leaves more room in the bag for…yup a little lingerie.

We all love the look and feel of silk but let’s face it, silk really doesn’t pack or travel well. You want your fellow hiker staring in stunned awe at your curves and not your crinkly wrinkly whatever-that-thing-is hanging off your shoulders. So maybe now is the time to break out a little mesh slip or teddy that is completely inappropriate for the great outdoors. Seriously, the surprise factor here and the idea that you have planned this will be more than enough fuel to get your buddy fired up.

Next up, we have some important considerations for your body. If you are the type to shave/wax/depilate, consider changing the design of your bikini area. Like a gift being unwrapped, each layer provides a new surprise and thrill. If you are not the de-furring type, pat yourself on the back for not having to waste a good chunk of your life worrying about this crap.

Along with keeping your body clean and potentially less hairy, having visible chafe marks or grooves left from your standard daily underwear is pretty high on the not sexy list. Nothing like a massive welt running up each side of your hip to scream out; “I was wearing ill-fitting granny pants that reached up to my rib cage the whole day.” A likely mood killer, so, why not shop with an educated eye for a good fit and long term comfort when you are grabbing your camping gear?

Now is not the time to be overly eco-concerned. Bamboo and cotton are replenish-able resources, however, in a high humidity and sweat inducing environment, these are not the best choices. You could either bring a pair of cotton undies for each day of your trek with a few extras for those just-in-case scenarios, or you could bring two pairs of nylon/spandex or wool underwear and simply give them a good wash each evening and allow them to dry overnight, poof, so much more room in your pack for all of the little extras right? But don’t just grab the first pair of nylon briefs you see. Take a look at your body and decide what style is the most flattering; brief, bikini, thong or boyshort? Thank goodness the Tilley high-waist travel panties aren’t the only option any more. Once you have the style down, make sure they have no-chafe flat seams, are wedgie proof through all motions and are truly moisture wicking. If you are feeling fancy, by all means invest in some of the cooler high-tech options such as the inclusion of silver ions in the fibers for their anti bacterial/microbial action, sun blocking fabrics or the new no seam styles.

Now that we have your day to day stuff worked out and guaranteed not to leave unsightly wear and tear marks on your body, let’s talk about lingerie. A matching set definitely has a wow factor, but only if there is light in the tent. In which case, you will also be putting on quite the puppet show for all the forest animals and any intrusive camping neighbors. How about texture? Will you bring along something that is satiny smooth or heavily embroidered? Little ribbons and bows are really cute…until they get caught on the zipper of your sleeping bag and you end up needing to be cut free from the metal teeth. The lesson here is don’t bring something you don’t mind losing or destroying. Think of the shock and awe philosophy; after all you aren’t looking to get some real wear and tear out of it, just stimulate some interesting conversation.

We can move on to the third consideration; scarves. Lovely, long, silk or organza scarves can be used in so many different ways. Like… to hang up your every-day undies while they dry, restrain and immobilize an over extended… ankle that you sprained while distractedly daydreaming during your hike or even to tie up… a pulsating wound in a tourniquet when someone overestimates their lumberjack abilities. See? Scarves can be justified for a multitude of uses while also being exceptionally light and easy to pack and quite frankly an excellent source of entertainment, limited only by your imagination.

Whatever you decide to pack in your bag, just remember that confidence is truly the most titillating part of any lingerie set. Now stand tall and show off those sequins, just remember that Park Rangers seldom have a sense of humor so don’t try to pull any streaking Yeti jokes.

Maggie Ewles is the type of person will forgo that extra emergency food ration in order to pack a sexy little camisole set. She is an avid hiker and believes that women have sacrificed comfort for style for far too long. There is no good reason that stylish swimwear can’t look good and be wearable at the same time.

Backcountry New Year's

Rather than spend another New Year's Eve sitting around with a few friends waiting for the clock to tick over, we've opted to get out of town and go for a New Year tramp.

Not being the sorts to do things half-way, we're going to be on a 5-day tramp from December 28-January 2. Having not really done any multi-day tramps since last summer, I'm pretty sure this is going to be painful!

Discomfort aside, I've been mulling over the New Year's Eve part of the tramp. It would be nice to somehow mark the occasion, and I'm sure the other trampers at the hut that night will be feeling festive. But what can you do to celebrate New Year's Eve when it requires carrying whatever you need for three days before?

I'm thinking a bit of alcohol may make its way into the ol' backpack - but not the traditional bubbly. It's both too heavy to carry for three days in a glass bottle (and won't be bubbly if we remove it from the glass bottle) and not particularly nice to drink at room temperature. A bit of fancy chocolate or something is also a possibility. But I'm not sure what else.

So if you have any suggestions, I'd love to see them in the comments down below! Have you ever celebrated New Year's in the wilderness? What did you do to mark the occasion? Did you dress up? Light fireworks? Make a gourmet meal? Go for a midnight swim? Snowball fight?

Meanwhile, the dehydrating of dinners is already underway!

CNN: Is Hiking Better Than Sex?

Trust CNN to ask those hard-hitting questions! A recent article on CNN.com looks at other activities that stimulate the brain's pleasure centres in the same ways that great sex does.

Along with mountaineering and hiking, which can give participants a thrill when they achieve physically demanding goals, the article highlights the (apparently ecstatic) joys of shoe shopping and public speaking.

The fact that something like public speaking can make anyone orgasmic, when it makes me simply want to vomit, brings up an interesting comparison with outdoor adventures (which don't generally make me want to vomit, unless I spin around too much).

It seems to me that there's a very fine line between "exciting" and "terrifying". So while I consider summiting a mountain in the first category and public speaking in the second, I can see where for some people an outdoor adventure would be just as scary as making a speech in front of thousands.

Those things that put us on the edge, and get our adrenaline pumping, can be either the best or worst experiences we have. Often, we can't predict which way it will go until it's all over - and we either feel orgasmic at achieving something so adventurous, or completely defeated.

What I think is funny, is the fact that all good experiences are measured on a sliding scale against sex. Chocolate? Mountains? Stilettos? If they're really gonna do it for you - they must be "better than sex".

Perhaps I can borrow one of the comments posted in response to the story (please don't sue me!) which sums things up nicely:

"I've had some great orgasms, and I've ascended some awesome peaks... Both are very different highs and both great. Each a little different though. Next up: sex on the mountain... now that would be a rush."

Hey, I know a great book that can help you achieve that next goal...

Sex in Antartctica

The title for my next book? Perhaps, if I can get myself selected for the "Artists to Antarctica" program.

In the mean time, I came across this story about a shipment of almost 16,500 condoms to McMurdo Base - the US research centre in Antarctica. With a winter population of just 125, and a summer population of 1,100 - that's quite a high nookie ratio (especially for scientists!)

I guess there's not much else to entertain yourself with during those long, dark winters. And at least they're playing safe! The condoms are made available for free, to make sure that people don't avoid getting them out of embarrassment. So for those of you in the US, that stack of condoms represents your tax dollars at work.

I'm on a mission to find out whether anyone has ever give birth in Antarctica. Any of you know?

I originally saw this story posted on the Environmental Graffiti blog.

Addendum - I actually did find some information about the first person born in Antarctica. Emilio Palma, born in 1978 to Argentinian parents. I guess their shipment of condoms didn't get through.

Canadians Love Sex in a Tent!

It seems that in my homeland - the Great White North - there are lots of people who are with me on the whole 'outdoors is sexy' theme.

A recent report in the Edmonton Sun quoted a study done by Trojan condoms about Canadians and sex. Here's a snippet:

"Women in particular say the Great Outdoors gets them frisky with 75 per cent saying they've had sex in a tent, compared to 65 per cent of men.

The national survey of adults ages 18 to 34 found that those living in Atlantic Canada have had the highest rates of tent sex at 80 per cent, closely followed by Quebecers at 78 per cent. Ontario, Saskatchewan and Manitoba residents lag behind at 67 per cent while Albertans had the lowest rate at 65 per cent."

That's a whole lot of Canadians getting it on inside their tents! And this in a country where, let's face it, the summer camping season is pretty short. So basically, if the tent is rockin', don't come knockin'!

Hey, anyone need a book on the subject for some fresh ideas? Anyone???

Well, it's for sale via Chapters/Indigo anyway.

Meeting Your Outdoorsy Other

Today I saw a post on the Get Outdoors blog where they quote a climber who complained about how indoor climbing gyms can be a bit of a meat market. I'm going to assume she has a boyfriend or husband.

Let's face it, if you're single and your school days are behind you, it's tough to meet someone new. And if you're an active person, you probably want to meet someone who shares those interests with you. So why not look in the places those people gather?

Sure, sometimes you just want to climb at the climbing gym. But wouldn't it also be nice to find a new partner to climb with? (And do other fun things with!)

When I lived in Toronto, I joined a hiking club. This was partly because I didn't own a car and needed to find other hikers to carpool me out to the trails. But it was also a great way to meet people who shared my interest in the outdoors.

Eventually I set up my own club, which I called "Take a Hike". Many of the people who came on the hikes were single. There were a couple of instances where women got unwelcome attention, but overall it was a nice, casual way to meet new people and get to know them before deciding if you wanted to see them alone.

There were a couple of times when I dated someone I met through these group hikes. While neither of them worked out in the end, I stand by it as a great way to meet singles who share the same hobby. And when I immigrated to New Zealand, the first thing I did (or close to it) was check out a local tramping club.

Whether you are a hiker, climber, paddler, mountain biker or enjoy any other outdoor activity, getting to meet other singles who like the same stuff is hard, unless you actually meet doing that stuff! It sure beats walking around a nightclub asking everyone, "So, do you do any mountaineering?"

The idea is so logical, it's gone commercial. Companies like Meet Market Adventures arrange all kinds of activities where singles can have a bit of no-pressure fun and maybe meet someone worth seeing again. Me, I'm all for it!

Walking the Appalachian Trail

Last night I went to Club Night at our local tramping club, where a couple named Susan Guscott and David Castle gave a presentation about their recent 2,156 mile thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail, or AT. This was a Kiwi couple, so they had certain limits, such as a 6-month tourist visa, and having to do all of their prep before flying in.

Considering the challenges, they seem to have done well, and had a pretty good time. They chose an unusual approach to the trail, starting at the north end (Maine) in July, and finishing up at the south end (Georgia) in January. So not only were they going the opposite direction to most of the other hikers, they were also going somewhat off-season.

This meant that they got some snow in the Great Smoky Mountains towards the end of their adventure, but generally the weather was kind and they had the chance to enjoy some amazing fall colours, which we don't really see in New Zealand.

Another thing we don't see in New Zealand is snakes, so they were snapping pictures of those whenever they spotted one. I had to giggle at the idea of stopping to take a picture of a garter snake, having grown up around them in Toronto.

Like many long-distance hikers, they struggled to keep their body weight up throughout the journey. But it seems after the first month, they came up with a very effective way to get their fat and calories in. They made hot chocolate a couple of times per day and added baby formula to it. The formula has a higher fat content, and more added nutrients, than milk powder. Once they added it to their routine, they didn't lose any more weight. (But just to be sure, they ate LOTS of french fries whenever they were re-supplying in a town.)

Susan and David kept an online trail journal during their trip, using the trail names Kea and Weka. You can read about their experiences here. And yes, after spending six months on the trail together they are still a couple!

Cuddle in a Cabin?

The folks over at the Camping Coop blog recently wrote a post about renting a Mountain Cabin. These cabins afford you some privacy which campgrounds often make difficult, while giving you a base in some of the most spectacular wilderness areas.

These are a good idea if you're trying to ease your partner into more wilderness activities, since you can have a comfortable base to return to after day hikes, and not miss out on too many creature comforts.

For others, a cabin rental might be a great way to get you close to the start of a longer trek, so you can head off early in the morning without a long drive from home. Plus, wouldn't it be great to have a lovely cabin to arrive at after your multiple days in the wild, and not have to get in the car and drive home right away?

There's information on their post about how to find the right cabin for you. While it may lack the "great outdoors" feel of spending the night in a tent, I think a cabin can be a great romantic getaway for the less outdoorsy, and hopefully lead to more adventurous vacations in the future!

Book Review: A Blistered Kind of Love

I first heard about this book written by Angela and Duffy Ballard while I was doing research for Sex in a Tent, and thought it would be great to interview the authors to get their stories and advice for other couples. Sadly, I never quite got around to doing that - or reading their book, since it was not available anywhere in New Zealand. So when G asked me if there was anything I'd like to add to an order he was placing through Amazon.com, I jumped on the chance to finally check out A Blistered Kind of Love.

The book is written in alternating "he said, she said" chapters by the two authors, about their attempt to thru-hike the 2,655-mile Pacific Crest Trail. At the time neither of them was an experienced backpacker, and they were not yet married or even engaged. This trip would put their skills, endurance, and relationship to the test in a big way. Throughout their journey they deal with knee pain, giardia, panic attacks, running out of water, and of course getting lost. It's enough to test even the most experienced of us!

What I loved about the book was how it addressed the way a long-distance hike affects your mind and your way of relating to other people. This is not a trip report, or a day-by-day account of the trail. Instead it's almost a sociological book. What made them fight? How did they get over those tough times? What prevented them from giving up when they were sick or hurt? How did they define success or failure on the trail?

After returning home, they seem to have done some homework about the differences between male and female attitudes and how their struggles might have been due to some of these Men are From Mars, Women are From Venus differences. When you spend all of your time with one other person in such extreme conditions, all of those little differences can seem awfully big and difficult to overcome.

If I have anything negative to say about the book, it's that it seems heavily edited and I would have liked to hear more about the trail itself. We get glimpses of the landscape and conditions, but not quite enough to really form a mental picture, or get a sense of its enormity.

Overall, I think this is a good read for anyone who hikes or backpacks with their partner. You'll almost certainly see yourselves somewhere in the book, and it's nice to know that you're not alone.

Blogging in Oz

Frank and Sue of Our Hiking Blog in Australia have been running a series of guest posts, giving advice for newbies on what kinds of camping gear to buy.

Today's post is by yours truly, and focuses on gear shopping as a couple. You can read my sage advice here.

And if you're planning a wilderness adventure in Oz, be sure to check out some of their other posts, featuring trip reports and recommendations.

Happy Belated Valentine's Day

The Seattle Times gave me a wonderful gift on Valentine's Day by publishing this article about "Sex in a Tent" by Terry Woods.

Being on the road, I didn't get around to linking to the article at the time. So here is the long overdue link!

Great Walk - Routeburn & Greenstone Tracks

OK, only the Routeburn Track part of our tramp is officially one of New Zealand's "Great Walks", but that's probably a good thing because the cost a fortune! For this one we paid $40 each per night, for 2 nights. (Stay tuned for the REALLY expensive one, the Milford Track.) Then we continued onto the Greenstone track which we can use our Annual Hut Passes for.

In all, we spent 5 days and 4 nights on the trails. The tracks cross between Mt. Aspiring National Park, Fiordland National Park, and the Greenstone Conservation Area. This part of New Zealand is normally very rainy, so we counted ourselves lucky to be dry 4 days of the 5.
The Routeburn is considered by many to be the most scenic walk in the country. While I haven't done all of the others for comparison, I would agree that the scenery is exceptional. The walk is also very well maintained, so that people with little experience in the back country can still accomplish it. A bit of fitness and skill is necessary, but very little compared to the average New Zealand tramp. All significant streams are bridged, so there's no need to cross through water. It's nearly impossible to lose the track. The huts have gas cookers and flush toilets. It's pretty luxurious as tramping goes. (For the ultimate luxury, however, you can do it as a guided walk, stay in huts with real beds and hot showers, not have to carry your own food, and have someone making sure you're OK - but that costs over $1000.)

The first day is 3-4 hours, mostly in the bush, walking through beech forest following the river. The river is one of those remarkable turquoise mountain streams, crystal clear and stunning. It only came into view now and then, but I made sure to break out the camera and try to capture it. The last hour or so is an uphill climb to the Routeburn Falls Hut. It sleeps 48, and was probably full that night. The warden gave G and I instructions to a side track, since we were there around 1:30pm. It's now an unmarked track, since I guess the Dept. of Conservation was worried about too many inexperienced trampers getting into trouble. It's a steep and rocky climb up to a peak with a muddy-looking lake. Around the other side of the peak you can look almost straight down onto the hut. It was a tiring climb, but a very nice view. And after all, there's only so long you can spend sitting around a hut! (Even a very nice hut.)

The hut had one great feature - it was built on stilts above the forest floor which not only provided great views from the balcony, but also seemed to keep the sand flies away so we could sit outside and enjoy the view!

We chatted with the warden that night about "Sex in a Tent" (he offered to put up one of my promotional postcards on the notice board in the hut) and he told me a great story about some comments he found in the hut's visitor book. A group of people had spent the night and the next morning one wrote "Hut sex was great." The next line down another wrote "Hut sex was amazing!" And on the third line someone else wrote "Lighting conditions in the hut were poor for filming." Hilarious! Anyway, I can't imagine there's much sex going on during the summer season, with the bunkrooms packed every night. If you want to have some privacy, you pretty much have to bring a tent and stay at the campgrounds instead of the huts.
Day two was the saddle day. So we began with a rocky climb, which was hard on the feet and knees. Some lovely views back down the valley made it worthwhile. After about 1 1/2 hours we reached Harris Saddle, where a large shelter is provided. There's a side trail up a peak called Conical Hill, which gives a view all the way out to the Tasman Sea on a clear day. Despite patchy cloud, we made the steep climb up. (At least we could leave our packs at the shelter!) The view was pretty good, but had I known that I'd get an almost identical view from the track itself later on, I don't know if I would have bothered.
From the saddle, the track sidles along the hillsides for a long time. This made it tricky to find a place to pop off the trail and have lunch. Eventually a stream provided a small spot for us to sit a while. The views were eventually of the Hollyford face, where down below runs the road up the Hollyford Valley. In time we rounded the edge of the ridge, and got our first view down to Lake McKenzie, and the hut of the same name.

The lake is gorgeous blue-green, and there were many photos taken. The view is a bit of a tease though, because the descent to the hut took almost another hour. By this time (about 6 hours of walking including the side trail) my feet and knees were most unhappy with me. The hut was another deluxe one, but this time the sand flies had access to us! The warden gave a talk that evening about the history of the track, and told some funny stories about the situations they come across from time to time. (Basically, you'd be amazed at how stupid/ignorant some people are on this track.)
The final day on the Routeburn featured some glorious waterfalls. The star of the show is Earland Falls, which tower above the track and provide a great rest stop. Other falls also feature, some tall and misty, others powerfully gushing over rocks.

There is another hut 3 hours along, called Howden Hut, which some people stay in the first night if they are walking the track in the opposite direction. It's only an hour from the road end, so there's not much point staying there if you are walking out, unless you want to coordinate with an early transportation pick-up. (The trail is one-way, and the two ends are very far apart by road, so you need some kind of shuttle service to take you back to your car or to the next town if you don't have your own car.)

But we weren't going to the road end, so we had a bite of lunch at the hut, and then continued onto the Greenstone Track. It was almost immediately apparent that we were no longer on a "Great Walks" track. Streams had to be crossed without bridges, and the gravel that had covered most of the Routeburn track was gone (for which my feet were actually quite thankful.)

The Greenstone is one of a few tracks you can take that loop around almost back to the beginning of the Routeburn. It follows the Greenstone River all of the way along, so it's a pretty flat route and can be done in any weather. After two more hours of walking we arrived at McKellar Hut. It was back to basics, using our own stove an a regular outhouse. But it's quite a large (16 bunk) hut, so it must get a lot of use. The forecast was for heavy rain and strong winds the next day, so we were not looking forward to that, especially since we had around 15-16 km to cover! Of course I probably shouldn't grumble about that. One guy at the hut was in the process of walking down the entire South Island. He'd done the entire Routeburn Track, the 6 km to McKellar Hut, and 12km more, all that day! His pack was very heavy too - something like 20kg. (I think most of that is food.) Sounds a bit crazy to me, but he seemed to be doing well.

The rain started overnight, but in the morning it was only drizzle. We set out to cover as much ground as possible before things got any worse, and for the first couple of hours the light drizzle was not a problem. We followed the valley enjoying the mossy beech forest (with lichens literally dripping from some of the trees) and occasionally sharing the valley floor with grazing cows. Just before noon the rain started getting more persistent, and things got muddier. I managed to slip on a muddy rock (as G says, it's not a proper tramp until I fall over, soak my feet in a stream, or step in deep mud) and fall over. I caught myself before going right down, but after I got up I realised that when I put my hand down to balance myself I put it in a pile of cow shit! This did nothing to improve my mood. It was lunch time and I was walking around with e-coli bacteria all over my hands! I grumbled for the next 45 minutes to a swing bridge across a large stream. Being a conscientious person, I tried to cross without holding onto the cables, so that I wouldn't spread shit all over them for other people to touch. But in the process, I snagged the back of my hand on a bit of wire, and scraped it. So now I had an open wound on my shit-covered hands!

We stopped for lunch on the veranda of a guided walks hut. (They keep their huts locked.) I washed my hands as well as I could at an outside tap, and let G do all of the food handling just in case. It was now raining steadily, and getting windy. We carried on for another 2 hours to Greenstone Hut, which was very new and well set up. Flush toilets, even! Someone had left a sliver of soap by one of the sinks, so I had a good scrub to get anything remaining off my hands.

There was a hut warden there who told us that a deer hung out just behind the hut and let him pet it sometimes. Hunting on the South Island is seasonal, so the deer are left alone during the summer. But this one is clearly way too trusting and will probably be the first one to go once the season opens! Both hunting and fishing are popular in the Greenstone area, with lots of trout in the rivers and deer in the woods. (Neither of which are native to New Zealand, by the way.)
In the morning I actually saw the deer grazing outside the hut and snuck outside to grab a few pictures. It had rained heavily overnight, but it seemed to be over for the time being. We had just a 4 hour walk to the road end, and our shuttle wasn't coming until 2pm so it was quite a leisurely walk. I took yet more waterfall pictures, and tried to get a picture of G communicating with a little bird on the track. We kept coming across these little birds (South Island Robins) that are very curious and unafraid of people. They'll pretty much hop right up to you, staying about arm's length away.
In all it was a very enjoyable tramp, although by the end I was happy to see a hot shower and some clean clothes! And so ends a long post about a long tramp. Next week it's the legendary Milford Track. Crossing my fingers for decent weather on the "wettest walk in the world."

Four Heels are Better Than Two

Tom Mangan, who writes the hiking blog Two Heel Drive, put up this great post about hiking with a date. While "Sex in a Tent" focuses mainly on overnight trips, day hikes are a fabulous way to introduce a new mate (or a potential new mate) to your love of the outdoors.

Here are some of Tom's tips:

1. 
   Stay on trails you know by heart (wow, a pun!) and don’t do anything stupid. Nothing says “loser” like having to call in a search and rescue team.
2. 
   Ask about allergies ahead of time and be prepared to change all your plans on a dime if an allergic reaction happens (if she has pine-related allergies, stay out of the redwoods, for instance). Put some Benadryl in your first aid kit.
3. 
   Single-track trails are terrible for conversation — avoid till you get to know each other (there’ll be plenty for single-tracks to tune out annoying chit-chat about her best friend’s outlaw biker boyfriend after you’ve been dating a few months).
4. 
   Walk at your companion’s pace (good advice for any hike but especially when you’re trying to prove you might be worth hanging out with on future hike).
5. 
   Five miles is a long walk for a rookie — as long as you’re demonstrating your capacity for compassion and empathy by asking about allergies, ask probing questions about fitness (think of the payoff if you have a leg fetish!).
6. 
   Unabridged version of “no means no”: “I don’t like to hike” means “I don’t like to hike.”

Good advice all. I'd like to add a extra bit of advice for the girls out there. If you're a seasoned hiker taking a guy out on the trails for the first time, be careful with his ego. Guys have a hard time shaking off the stereotype that says they should be in control of all "wilderness" situations - navigating, helping you over river crossings etc. Keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't do something stupidly macho to impress you.

Go Camping in Nude Zealand

Somehow nudity and camping seem to go hand-in-hand. I guess it makes sense to be getting back to nature, au naturel.

Anyway, I've just learned of a campground here in New Zealand with a clothing-optional policy. It's called Wai-natur, and is located near Blenheim, in the beautiful Marlborough district. They offer bed and breakfast, caravans or camping. They claim that several of their tent sites are secluded, in case you're feeling a bit shy.

The campground is run by Kay and Brian Hannam, naturists who are heading off to a big tourism trade show in the Netherlands in a few days to promote New Zealand as a great place to get 'yer kit off.

If you want to find out more about going nude in New Zealand, or about Wai-natur, check out their website.

Will Love Save You - Or Just Make You Stupid?

I've been seeing and hearing a lot of stories lately about wilderness survival. Most experts agree that the most lethal part of the equation in a life or death situation is panic. Most people can survive with very little, if they keep their minds clear and make the right decisions. But panic is all too easy when you're lost in the woods, or drifting out to sea in a kayak.

This all got me wondering whether your odds of survival are better or worse if you're with your life partner at the time. I think there are arguments both ways. On the one hand, as I say in my book, nobody is just going to stand around and watch while the person they love is being swept down a river, or falling off a cliff. On the other hand, love does tend to get in the way of logic. We've all done stupid things because we were in love. But if you're reading this, none of those stupid things has yet cost you your life!

Here are the positives as I see them:

• You will give each other more support and encouragement than friends or acquaintances, so there's a better chance of keeping a positive attitude.


• You are likely to know about each other's health problems, and also realize more quickly if your partner is not behaving "normally".


• You won't have any issues about sharing body heat, or helping each other physically. And if there is any blood involved, you're not going to be concerned about HIV infection (unless you have a positive partner.)


• You know your partners limitations in terms of fitness and skills, so you can make plans that are achievable.

Here are the negatives as I see them:

• Partners are likely to over-sacrifice, so that one will give up too much of their dry and warm gear to the other, and end up hypothermic themselves.


• You are unlikely to be willing to leave a sick or injured partner by themselves, even if going for help alone is the most logical thing to do.


• Many survivors stay alive through their ordeal so that they can return to loved ones back home. If your loved one is there with you, do you lose that driving force to stay alive?


• Some couples will spend so much time arguing over whose fault it is that their lives are in danger, they'll forget to try to get rescued!

What do you think? I'm fairly certain nobody has crunched the numbers from Search and Rescue to see whether couples fare better or worse. Would your partner be a saviour in a disaster, or a dead weight?

Milford Madness!

Come February, G and I are planning a wonderful 6-week trip around New Zealand's South Island, doing short (2-5 day) tramps in as many places as possible.

The most famous track in the country, without a doubt, is the Milford Track. It's known around the world, and as you can see from the picture, the superlatives are right up there. I know it will mean going on an expensive and crowded "Great Walk", but I just have to see "the finest walk in the world" for myself - just this once!

Since we finally decided on the dates for our trip, I went to book us onto the Milford Track straight away. After all, the finest walk in the world fills up fast during the all-too-short summer tramping season in Fiordland. But I figured four months ahead was pretty good planning on our part. Since you must do the track in one direction, and you must stay in the huts (no tent camping), they control the numbers of people allowed on the track at any one time. Basically, 40 independent walkers can start on any given day, because that's the capacity of the huts.

But when I looked at the booking page on our choice of dates, it was already fully booked out! In fact, the first three weeks of February were completely full. I'm sure that December and January are long gone too. In the end, I booked us in for about a week later than we were planning.

To add insult to injury, the huts (mandatory, remember!) on the track are obscenely expensive. It costs $40 per person per night, for a total of $120 to walk the track. But that's not all... You also have to take a boat to the trail head at $59 per person, and a boat from the end of the hike to Milford Sound for another $29 per person. In all, for two of us to complete the Milford Track, we have to spend at least $416.

All I can say is, this had better be the finest damn walk in the world!

We are only doing one other "Great Walk" during our trip - which will be the Routeburn Track. Thankfully there are no boats required to access that one, and only two nights on the track. Also, if you don't mind carrying your tent, you can choose to camp for $10 per person instead of paying $40 for the huts.

For anyone now second-guessing their plans to come to New Zealand - let me just stress that these expensive huts are only on the "Great Walks", and in fact these ones in Fiordland are more expensive than the rest. For a standard hut, you can buy a $5 hut ticket, and for a fancier hut it's $10. Only the "Great Walks" require bookings, and only during peak season.

Chris Townsend Interview - A Solo Legend Talks About Coupledom

For those not familiar with Chris Townsend, he is a UK author/photographer who has written 16 books on the outdoors. Chris is best known as a long-distance through-hiker. His major walks have included the Pacific Crest Trail, the Continental Divide Trail, and first-time continuous walks of the Canadian Rockies end-to-end, and the 517 Scottish Munros and Tops.

With all of these epic solo journies under his belt, it may surprise some people to hear that Chris has lived with his partner Denise for the past 12 years, while they first met over 30 years ago. Chris had a sneak peak at "Sex in a Tent" and agreed to chat with me about the joys and challenges of being an outdoor couple.

Was Denise experienced in the outdoors when you met? Was it part of what brought you together?

No, we met at a political meeting in a pub! We were both living in a big city at the time. Denise had a little experience of the outdoors but hadn't been wild camping or hill walking.

How did you introduce her to 'roughing it' without scaring her off? Were there any bad experiences at first?

Given how we were living 30 years ago going camping wasn't really "roughing it"! There were no bad experiences that I can remember.

On our first trip, which was in the English Lake District, I suggested a day walk from a campground up an easy hill as our first hike together. Denise found this rather tame - she liked scrambling, which she'd done on the coast - so for our second hike we went up a bigger mountain with some scrambling en route and bivvied out on the summit so we could watch the sunrise. That was our first wild camp!

Denise points out that the one bad experience she remembers was with packs, as this was before women's packs existed. None of the proper backpacks available at the time were comfortable and she ended up with a soft pack with added hipbelt, which was the best she could find. Women's packs made a huge difference to her.

What do you bring on your trips together than you don't bring on solo trips? Different gear? Food? Clothing?

All I remember taking that was different was a bigger tent and bigger pots.

Did you have different camping styles to begin with? Who has made compromises and what have they been?

I accepted that I'd walk less far than on my own (which applies to trips with friends as well).

What kinds of places do you like to go together? Is there a certain kind of>setting you consider more romantic for a camping trip with your partner?

We both like high camps in the Scottish Highlands, pitched near a lochan (small lake) in a corrie (bowl) backed by cliffs.

Have you shared any 'dream destinations' together? Or do you have places that you want to experience together?

I guess one dream destination is the Scottish Highlands - where we live!There are places we would like to experience together and which we hope it will be possible to visit.

What do you think couples can gain from exploring the wilderness together? What has it brought to your relationship?

I hope couples can gain an understanding both of themselves and the natural world and an appreciation of their place in it. Our shared appreciation of wild places has, I think, been deepened by wild camping. Being able to share my love of nature and wilderness with Denise is very important.

Do you behave any differently when the two of you are in the wild, compared to how you behave at home?

I don't think so. I do most of the cooking when we're in the wild!

Do you think you could be happy with a partner who wasn't comfortable in the wilderness?

No.

Would you ever consider going on a long-distance walk with Denise?

I would love to share the experience of a long walk with Denise. We are still hoping it will come about. (She currently has shoulder problems that make it impossible.)

Chris maintains a website and blog at http://www.christownsendoutdoors.co.uk/