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Te Araroa – The Long Pathway

History

1975 – The New Zealand Walkways Commission is formed. One of its goals is a New Zealand-long “scenic” trail.

1987 – The New Zealand Walkways Commission is folded into the Department of Conservation without having achieved a long trail.

1994 – Te Araroa Trust is formed after a newspaper article by Geoff Chapple advocating a New Zealand-long trail.

1995 – First trail Kerikeri-Waitangi opened by then Prime Minister Jim Bolger.

1997 – Te Araroa Trust maps a North Island route in consultation with local and regional councils en route, and DoC Conservancies.

1998 – Geoff Chapple walks the North Island route to prove viability, to test land-owner response, to raise funds, and heighten the project’s profile. He writes one of the first web-logs which becomes popular, and the trail idea begins to take hold.

1999 – Te Araroa Trust gets a Millennium grant, and hires a construction manager and work teams for its first linking track down the Waikato River.

2002 – Te Araroa Trust maps the South Island trail, again with extensive consultation, and Geoff Chapple walks the trail, and tests land-owner responses en route.

Te Araroa Trust signs an MoU with the Department of Conservation under which DoC agrees to assist Te Araroa Trust with a continuous tramping corridor east of the Southern Alps.
The Mayors Taskforce, led by Christchurch mayor Garry Moore adopts Te Araroa as a “priority project.” Over 20 councils en route begin to co-operate.

2003 – Te Araroa - the New Zealand Trail a book published on the trail, wins ‘Environment category’ Montana book award.

Regional Te Araroa Trusts established to co-ordinate volunteer effort. Eight regional trusts in total, including Southland, Otago, Canterbury/WestCoast.
Te Araroa is not open, but walkers begin to do it anyway – up to 10 a year, using roads as by-passes where necessary.

2006 – New Te Araroa tracks now total over 400 km. The links through to legal thoroughfares on the coast and river margins, make over 80% of the route walkable, including a 15% back-road component. Local authorities begin to put Te Araroa into district plans and regional authorities include it in regional walking strategies. Crown Tenure Review results extend the SI trail.

2007 – DoC is voted $3.8 million to put in Te Araroa across public estate – previously Te Araroa had financed such tracks. Te Araroa Trust, its eight regional trusts, with co-operation from territorial local authorities and regional authorities continue to develop all sections outside the public estate – two thirds of the distance.

2008 – New track openings and access to previously inaccessible legal thoroughfare makes over 90% of the trail walkable, including the road component which has now been shrunk to 13.5%. Not all of that 90% is signed - just another job to be done. Te Araroa Trust plans for an opening at the end of 2011.

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