Tramper walks NZ for charity
Amy Baker talks to Shelley Butt about her Te Araroa experience.
A Greenhithe resident is fulfilling her dream of walking the length of the country - and raising money for charity while she’s at it.
Shelley Butt has taken the next four months off work to complete the renowned Te Araroa trail, a 3,000 kilometre walking track that runs from Cape Reinga right down to Bluff.
She’s so far raised around $3,000 for Women’s Refuge New Zealand and Sustainable Coastlines, and aims to double that amount by the time she finishes in February next year.
The now 36-year-old massage therapist was taking time out to visit family in Japan in June when the idea to walk Te Araroa started to crystallise.
Finding herself at a turning point in her business, newly single, and with an upcoming birthday, meant space to think about what was next.
‘‘Knowing that I was turning 36, the pull for doing things for myself was greater,’’ she says.
‘‘I wanted to figure out what I wanted to do before I accomplished the next goals, and if there was anything ‘un-done’.’’
And the Te Araroa trail was just it.
By the time she’d got back to New Zealand from the two-week break, she’d already created a blog and decided to donate to charity. Butt started the walk on her birthday in September and has so far kilometres (km).
A normal walking day is about 30km but the upcoming stretch will be the longest she’s walked continuously, as previous parts were done in sections of no more than 12 days at a time.
Butt travels light with a tent, sleeping bag, cooker, and enough food to last until she knows she can restock. For personal safety, she carries a locator beacon.
Inspired by Bill Bryson’s travel writing on the Appalachian trail and having loved hiking herself since she was a teenager, Butt says doing the Te Araroa track to raise money gives it another sense of purpose.
‘‘It’s given a huge other dimension to it. It’s really unexpected how much support I’ve got from friends and family, and the actual charities themselves,’’ she says.
The trip has also given her confidence in other areas of her life and has taught her to have faith in the kindness of others.
‘‘If there’s something that you want to do, there’s never going to be perfect time to do it. I say that ‘now’ or planning for ‘now’ is the best thing you can do. It’s never going to be achieved unless you start.’’
Follow Shelley’s journey at shellsonthetrail.weebly.com and see givealittle.co.nz/cause/ shellsonthetrail to donate. completed 700
‘‘It's never going to be achieved unless you start.’’