Four Million Steps

Te Araroa is a 3,000 km walking and paddling path connecting the top of New Zealand’s North Island to the bottom of the South Island.

This was my first long distance hike. I completed most of the trail in the Summer of 2014/15, before breaking my ankle a week before my planned finish. Six months later, in December 2025, after surgery and physical recovery, I returned to successfully complete the remaining walk.

This walk was transformative for me. The journey led me to change my life, way of living, and how I look at the world around me. Four Million Steps documents both the journey and this spiritual shift.

North Island

1,968 km | November 1, 2014 – January 25, 2015 (64 days)

132,546 steps | Cape Reinga to Ahipara (101 km)

290,026 steps | Ahipara to Kerikeri (120 km)

514,436 steps | Kerikeri to Reotani (172 km)

776,235 steps | Reotani to Auckland (200 km)

933,857 steps | Auckland to Mercer (120 km)

1,039,947 steps | Mercer to Hamilton (81 km)

1,118,331 steps | Hamilton to Te Kuiti (111 km)

1,372,626 steps | Te Kuiti to Taumarunui (143 km)

1,516,699 steps | Taumarunui to National Park (110 km)

1,791,749 steps | National Park to Wanganui (210 km)

2,001,310 steps | Wanganui to Paradise on a Hillside (160 km)

2,096,922 steps | Paradise on a Hillside to Waikenau (73 km)

2,208,251 steps | Waikenau to Island Bay (85 km)