Rakiura Roamers

What an amazing, challenging and eye-opening experience that our year 10 students have had over the past week. The goal of our year 10 camp program is to create an opportunity for personal growth, community building, challenge, and personal achievement. Creating a memory for life that will serve our young people well in the future.

Prior to camp there was the important task of ensuring we all had the correct gear to manage our Rakiura adventure. We learnt how to use gas cookers and prepare our packs and plan our food so we can all be safe and successful in the remote wilderness of Rakiura—Stewart Island.

Monday

We arrived at school and headed off to Rakiura in our 22 seater BIG BUS via Balclutha for a short stop and Invercargill for lunch and our last food pickup. We then took a detour to the top of Bluff hill to look out over Bluff and Invercargill (Murihiku).

The ferry across to Rakiura was for many of our students their first time on a boat. This was a lifetime memory on its own. We also discovered who suffered from motion sickness on the ocean! We arrived in Oban and made our way to the backpackers hostel dropped our gear off and headed down to the Kai Cart for our dinner. The rest of the evening was spent wandering by the ocean, playing in the local playground and doing our final gear and food checks.

Tuesday

After an early wake-up we all were all given our final food parcels to pack and 1 final gear check. Lots of excess gear was removed from packs and we were able to store this at our accommodation to lessen the weight of our packs.

At 9am we headed off on the first leg of our hikoi around the Rakiura track heading to Port William Hut. The first leg followed the coastline before some climbing through the headlands of Rakiura and finishing off at Port William Hut. Our first day was 6.5 hours, 16km and almost 500m of climbing. Once we arrived, we set up our bunks and relaxed. Some went swimming or walking on the beach and others played games inside the hut. We all then prepared our own dinner and enjoyed the rest of the evening together. We then went our for our first kiwi spotting expedition at dusk. Due to being so far south, dusk is around 10pm! We heard some Kiwi but none were spotted. Im assuming 15 teenagers and 3 adults trying to be quiet in the bush does not entice Kiwi to be seen. Straight to bed and rest for day 2.

Wednesday

Today was always going to be our toughest day. We knew we had some big hills to climb and some serious mud to navigate. We all woke and prepared our breakfast and packed our packs ready for day 2. Many of us already had tired and sore legs and shoulders from day 1. The thought of what was ahead of us was for many, a very daunting prospect. The entire group set off full of positivity and determination. It was at this point we knew that all the students were going to be learning a lot about what is physically possible for them to achieve.

The going was slow with the tough terrain. Amazing scenery, views, isolation, and MUD were our constant companions. The frequent rest breaks were not just welcomed but needed to recharge and reset for the next push. 7 hours and 20 minutes later we arrived at North Arm Hut, having climbed nearly 700m! Many shoes were lost in the mud and needed rescuing, and in some parts a km took almost an hour! 

Once we arrived the first thing almost everyone was doing was preparing their dinner, as they were in need of some extra energy supplies. I am pretty sure everyone had eaten dinner before 5pm and some had eaten 2 dinners!

The evening involved lying in bunks and chatting, sitting on the rocks with our feet in the ocean, playing card games or wandering along the small bay in front of the hut. We also needed to boil enough drinking water for the next day which was a long process. We also had the extra task of packing everything for the next day and having our gear packed in the main area ready for a 5.30am wake up and 6.45am departure to get back to Oban in plenty of time for our afternoon ferry crossing or so we thought.

We spoke to the Hut Warden about the best places to spot Kiwi and again at dusk (10pm), we headed out. A couple who were also in the hut, had seen a glimpse of a kiwi just prior to our arrival. Even though they were smiling, Im pretty sure once seeing our group of teenagers, they didn't expect to see any Kiwi. Again our kiwi finding expedition was unsuccessful. However, we knew we had one more opportunity early the next morning prior to departure. We were still confident. Back to the hut for much needed rest.

Thursday (final day)

Today we woke knowing that the hardest day was behind us but we still needed to find our resilience and determination to get back to Oban in time for our ferry crossing. Rain had been heavy during the night and was persistently falling.

We were all woken at 5.30am and prepared our breakfast, brushed our teeth and filled our last water bottles. We tidied the hut, as we were now all experts in hut etiquette. Nothing is more humbling than putting on walking clothes that you have already been hiking in for 2 days.

We set off at 6.45am. We left in silence, as we were hoping to spot a Kiwi or 2 on our way up the first part of the track. Our superstar parent helper, Luiz Christofoletti, spotted a Kiwi at the front of the pack. It quickly darted across the track in front of him and was never seen again. We are taking this as a win for our entire group. During the morning Camila and Laura also spotted a Kiwi at the side of the track. Considering for almost the entire time spent on Rakiura these 2 were singing, this was somewhat of a surprise. Maybe Kiwis like either 80's ballads or musical theater?

By 8am we had already covered 4km of the 14km journey and were excited by the prospect of completing our great walk. The hills on our final day were shorter, and the track was firm in most places. Even though this was the easiest section, we had all been walking with heavy packs for 2 full days and our legs and shoulders were constantly telling us they were ready to STOP!

We all stopped for a break at around 11am knowing that we were making great time and we were going to be back with plenty of time to spare. The group had now split into a faster front pack at the front and a slower but just as determined group bringing up the rear.

The lead group arrived at the last sign at about 13km which gave 2 options. A 55 minute option or the longer 2-hour option. They opted for the shorter trail. However, our back group with Mr Sutherland, were determined to show how strong they had become and chose the longer option! The longer option headed around the headland to Oban via Ryans Creek and Golden Bay, adding an extra 4km to their journey!

Once we all arrived at the Oban Visitors Centre we had travelled 20km in 6.5 hours with 630m of climbing. This was the most distance travelled in a day but was a slightly faster pace than on day 1! Wow!

We now cherished a well-earned ice cream and went to collect our extra gear and food from the backpackers. 

In total we have traveled almost 50 km. Climbed and descended almost 2000 m. Spent 20 hours hiking over the 3 days! When writing this down, it makes me so proud of what all of these young people have achieved over the last 3 days. However, things were only starting to get interesting.

We headed down to the ferry terminal to shelter from the rain knowing that we had 1.5 hours till departure. It was then we found out that all ferry crossings had been cancelled for the day. To put this into perspective, the ferry had 6 cancelled crossings in 2024 out of over 300. 

There was no accommodation in Rakiura left for the night. As we were still hiking when the ferry crossings were cancelled we were unable to make last minute arrangements. However, the people at Realnz, who run the ferry, were amazing. Literally within 10 minutes they had arranged for extra flights to be put on from Rakiura to Invercargill. They had booked us on 3 different flights (8 seater planes) and also arranged for a shuttle to take Mr Sutherland back to Bluff to pick up the Bus. We cant say enough how grateful we were for their amazing service and also all of the people involved with Stewart Island Air. They recognized we were a school group and made us their priority.

This meant our adventure wasn't over. Some of our young people had never been on a plane. None of our young people had been on a tiny plane. Within our group we had all the emotions covered and were all so supportive and reassuring. The plane was like flying in a 1979 Ford Cortina complete with sheepskin seat covers. We had experienced 3 days of ups and downs and now we were all about to experience more ups and downs in the space of the 20 minute flight. Our van even drove down the airstrip to get to the plane!I do feel sorry for the 1 or 2 other passengers on each plane with a group who ahd not showered for 3 days and had hiked the Rakiura Track! It was quite RIPE! 

We were all safely touched down in Invercargill with the bus at the airport and ready to hit the road just after 5.30pm. A quick dinner stop in Gore and then onto Dunedin. Considering how much energy all of the students had used over the 4 days, hardly anyone slept and kept chatting talking and of course Laura and Camila led us into Dunedin with the Trinity school song.

Did we love every minute? No.

Did we find it easy? No.

Would we do it again next week? Most likely Not.

Should we be EXTREMELY proud of what we achieved? Yes.

Should we now recognise we are stronger and more able than we could ever imagine? Yes.

Will we remember this challenge for the rest of our lives? Yes.

Are we all determined, resilient, and capable young people? Yes.

Did all of us do something we have never done before? Yes.

Should we all be extremely proud of what was achieved? Yes.



A huge thank you to Luiz Christofoletti (Izabella's Dad), who spent the week with us. He was so positive and supportive and a huge reason this trip was so successful.

To Mrs Savannah de Vos, who did much of the preparation before leaving. Without the huge amount of work in the background this experience would not have been possible for all of our young people. You have gone far beyond in your efforts and you did it all so that the young people would find a joy in the outdoors like you have. You were truly amazing.

To each and every one of the 15 year 10 students. We are so pleased that each of you chose this adventure. You were all amazing and who you were when you began this journey and who you are now will never be the same. You have now accomplished something most people will never do in a lifetime. 

Mr Sutherland and Mrs de Vos