Letter of the month

Wasp sting lesson

I recently walked to the Holdsworth Lookout in Tararua Forest Park with my husband Keith. We were nearing the historic signpost when I felt a sharp sting on my ankle. I ignored the irritation, but the sting continued and was quite a piercing annoyance, so I took off my boot. A small wasp dropped off my sock and disappeared. I re-laced my boot and continued to our lunch spot.

About now my upper body started to itch. I was hot and sweaty. I thought maybe I was having a reaction to the sting and took an antihistamine pill. Five minutes later I took another, as the first had made no difference at all. I pulled my T-shirt up and saw a red rash on my stomach; Keith told me my back was also covered in a rash. 

We immediately started our return journey, but I soon began to feel rather strange. I stopped for a moment, my body feeling heavy and ‘woozy’. Shortly after I started feeling pain in my chest. I was beginning to get scared. Keith pulled out his phone and called emergency services. 

I must have fainted and ended up sitting on the track. People began to stop and ask if there was a problem. 

One passerby was training to be a doctor, and she told me to take another two antihistamines. My breathing was becoming laboured and things became really hazy. When the SAR paramedic located me and asked if I could walk, I found I could. I felt a little better, although my chest still ached and I was covered in an itchy red rash. I felt guilty for needing a helicopter, but the paramedic told me that I had all the signs of an anaphylaxis-type reaction and that the four antihistamines  I had taken might have saved my life.

It has been a real life lesson for me and I encourage all trampers to carry antihistamines and a method of communicating with emergency services.

– Chrissie Kershaw

Chrissie receives a pair of Mountain King Trail Blaze hiking poles worth $229 from www.furtherfaster.co.nz. Readers, send your letter to the editor for a chance to win and learn what to do if someone in your group is stung by a wasp.

Old Kiwi gear my favourite 

Regarding artists Niko Leyden and Kemi Whitwell (‘What’s in my pack’, September 2025), I too use old gear. One of my favourite packs was a Bevan Knapper frameless Mountain Mule. With a carry mat as a tube inside, it was versatile and comfortable. An extendable ripstop nylon ‘throat’ enabled sleeping in the pack. 

I’ve still got it, though I currently use a Macpac Torre, like Kemi. I love our Kiwi gear. 

My dearly departed brother-in-law Gottlieb also appreciated and used such brands as Earth Sea Sky, Macpac and Fairydown. Alpine Recreation continue to do so with Anne and Elke at the helm.

– John Sweney

A ticket to the outdoors

The story on using public transport to access the outdoors (‘Trains, buses and automobiles’, October 2025) has prompted me to share the benefit of public transport for a North Islander venturing into the wonderland in our South Island. I live in the Bay of Plenty and had the following adventures using public transport.

Heaphy Track: Plane from Tauranga to Nelson. Bus from the airport to the CBD to connect with public transport to Tākaka. Overnight in Tākaka then shuttle to track start. Afterwards, a highlight was catching the afternoon Trans-Alpine Express to Christchurch.

Old Ghost Road: Plane to Nelson and then an InterCity bus to Westport. From Westport, the coastal courier/passenger van service to Seddonville to walk the track ‘in reverse’. An InterCity bus stops on SH61 opposite the car park at the Lyell end.  

Admittedly, a bit of organising and pre-booking is involved, but the public transport option sure beats driving from the Bay of Plenty to Wellington, catching the ferry, then driving all the way to the track end (and back again).

– Laraine Hughes

A satisfying door-to-door trip

The article about tramping by public transport reminded me of a south–north traverse of the Kaimai Range I did with friends 10 years ago. We each caught the bus or train into Auckland and took an InterCity bus toward Tauranga via SH29. We’d hoped to sweet-talk the bus driver into dropping us off at the Kaimai Summit track entrance, but he insisted on continuing to the  official bus stop in Lower Kaimai. 

The 3km march back along the busy highway was an unpleasant start to our tramp and involved a nerve-wracking dash across a narrow bridge while praying that no trucks would come barrelling around the corner. 

After 71 hours and 107km of rugged bush we emerged at Paeroa to catch the bus home. It was a highly satisfying door-to-door adventure from suburban Auckland.

– Heather Jenke

Train access no longer

It was good to read an article about using public transport to access tramping. The route into the Silverpeaks via the Pineapple Track is an old favourite – I probably did it first in about 1979.

Unfortunately, the access to Wellington’s Mt Reeves from Woodside Station via Waiohine Valley Road (about 5km road walk or bike) was closed by the landowner a few years back, and efforts by DOC and Herenga ā Nuku to reverse that decision were unsuccessful. DOC is going to reopen the route to Mt Reeves from Waiohine Gorge, but that’s 12km from Matarawa Station.

– David Barnes