Trail Running from Bethells to Te Henga

Another fantastic trail run for me when some friends took me to the Waitakeres for a so-called 'gentle run'. I shall never believe his version of gentle ever again. But he did promise me that there's going to the gorgeous views. I got that. He did not exaggerate at all. I took all these photos with my iphone and they have not been photo-shopped. It was stunning and I had to stop so many times during the course just to take in the views. 

This track is part of the Hillary Trail (named after the great Sir Edmund Hillary) and my friend Josh is training to do a 75km  ultra marathon this autumn on this legendary trail. It is a very rugged and at times challenging route to run. There were some narrow paths that could be a little hazardous if you are not careful and lots of flax that you can trip on and fall on your face. I have tripped a couple of times because there were patches of hollow grounds covered with grass. Thankfully I got away with only a few scrapes. I was wearing my calf guards and when I fell it prevented me from getting a luxurious scrape on my lower leg.

We started our journey at 8amThe total distance we ran/ walk was 16km and took me about 3 hours 15. My friend Josh ran a little further and it took him only 3 hours.

The view of Bethells beach from the track is simply stunning. It beggars believe that nature can be so beautiful in its purest form, harsh and untamed and the same time vulnerable to human actions. I am so darn grateful to live in such a beautiful country that has become my home for the last 12 years. New Zealand Tourism Board might consider me to be a spokesperson to promote the country soon??

Trail running on such a rugged terrain is very new to me, I have only ran on suburban roads.Trail running takes a lot of energy and attention so not to twist my ankles and roll over because I am suck a klutz.

 We finished around 11 a.m and it was scorching because the trails is rather bare with very little shade to hide from the sun. We hopped into the car and drove for a few minutes to Bethells beach and jumped into the cold water. It was an absolute bliss! I am looking forward to a few more trips like this. I feel so energised being out in nature and suck in all the beauty nature has to offer.

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Summer Eats :Mexico Britomart

If you have been eating out a bit in Auckland, you'd notice the trend of Mexican food sweeping in everywhere. Pretty good times for me because I love diversity in the eating scene. The more the merrier. One spot that I have been wanting to check since it has opened its door is Mexico in Britomart. It has been opened for almost a year now and I haven't had a chance to check it out because it is always packed and I have tried twice to get a seat after yoga on Wednesday but I gave up. I decided to give it a go again this time since it's holiday period and most people are away. Hopefully it'll be easier this time around. The day was scorching and I am just craving for cold margaritas and The Depot was closed so we somehow ended up in Britomart area. Got in and there was a table available in 10 minutes. Score!

The three of us ordered fish and pork tacos, beetroot salads, fried chicken and a carafe of margarita.

 I was starving and food a little while to arrive but it all arrived at the same time. Our favorites were the prawn quesadillas and beetroot salads. Both the pork and fish tacos were rather bland. I prefer the tacos from Jalapeno Grill but would definitely come back for the quesadillas.

 The fried chicken was pretty good but not phenomenal and I could give it a miss and save the calories for another drink or snack.

Food prices are quite affordable but would definitely become expensive for big eaters because you will need at least 3 tacos to fill a raging appetite. The service was not as patchy as I'd expected after reading about the complaints online. The hostesses are a bit pointless but the waiting staff are pretty helpful.

The drinks are reasonable priced for this part of town so it'd be a good place to come to on a hot summer's day to have some drinks and small bites.

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My first trail run - Okura Bush to Stillwater Beach

Happy New Year everyone. This is going to be my very first post for the new year. I have been doing lots of cool new things over the holidays hence the blog is a little neglected. Sorry for the MIA. 

I went for my first ever trail run on Sunday and it was terrific. A little scary for me because I really didn't know what to expect. Maybe it was blessing in disguise anyway because I wasn't anticipating such a long run, most of the time alone. I went with 3 other friends but we were running at our own pace. We started out together and they lose me somewhere in the track. It allowed me plenty of personal time to ogle at the beautiful track and listen to the sounds of nature. We ran from the carpark and back, a total of 14km in 2 hour 15 minutes. Most part of the track is covered in gravel and clearly marked so it is very pedestrian friendly.

This track takes you through Okura River estuary and edge of the Long Bay – Okura Marine Reserve to Karepiro Bay and on to Stillwater Beach. It's a really beautiful track to run with plenty to see and I was lucky to be running on perfect weather day. Runs like this truly allows me to just lose myself and let my mind wander, not having to watch for traffic and pedestrians. All I do is just running and spending time in nature and listening to my own breath and sounds of the streams. It is  worth the effort and pain. 

It's so easy to lose track of time when you run in such a beautiful environment. It totally beats the mundaneness of running through the suburbs but you can't run an even pace because of the uneven terrain. This track is fairly easy if you are wearing trail shoes. I was wearing my good-old road running shoes and it got quite wet when I slipped into a swamp. I have to start wearing my new trail shoes although it is quite a bit heavier.

The bridge was one of the highlight of the run, plus my legs were fatigue after the run so it was such a joy to see it. I can't remember if this was before or after the 100 step super steep stairs. Unless you are superfit, it's surreal to run up all the way.

DOC (Dept of Conservation) has done an excellent job with the track,making it very inviting for leisure walkers and young children. I am looking forward to running a few more trail runs this summer before the bad kicks in. If I keep running lots of hills on these weekly trail runs, I hope to sport a pair of strong gluteus to power up all the hills on my road running sessions.

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