Letter of the month:

AI unreliable for trip planning

I’m sure I am just one of many readers who read Terry Beech’s letter (‘AI for trip planning’, May 2025) and cringed – not because Terry is doing anything wrong, but because ChatGPT and its ilk just aren’t reliable. 

Think of AI as a well-meaning but inexperienced assistant: if you ask it a question and it doesn’t have the facts at its fingertips, it will make something up rather than disappoint you by saying it doesn’t know. AI tools are prone to hallucinations and will provide completely fake ‘facts’ and plausible references to things that don’t exist. This problem is becoming worse as the AI tools refer to online sources that were fabricated by AI tools to start with. Garbage in, garbage out!

I asked ChatGPT for walking directions from central Christchurch to Packhorse Hut on nearby Banks Peninsula. It gave a thorough response that started by telling me to drive to Arthur’s Pass (150km away) and then giving details for how to walk to Banks Peninsula from there. It even advised me to take care while walking along the edge of the SH73.

Please don’t rely on these tools, especially in any situation where your safety might be at risk. At best, they will give you a starting point so you can do your own research from there. At worst? Who knows. I’d ask ChatGPT but it would probably just make something up.

– Genesis Buckley

– Genesis receives a Tūī Balms Outdoor Pack Premium worth $103 from www.tuibalms.co.nz. The prize pack includes bug spray, foot balm, lip balm, bug balm and arnica cool balm. Readers, send your letter to the editor for a chance to win.

Yes, they can

Where are all the older women, asks Annie Simmons. The glib answer is stuck at home looking after older men. Many are looking after elderly parents or grandchildren. Another bitter truth is limited finances, given the disparity in lifetime incomes. Those with fatter bank balances are on their e-bikes, tramping guided walks and walking the Camino.

But huge numbers are involved in day-walking groups close to home, with cheap travel and flexible plans that allow for weather. I live in Dunedin, where the hills are alive with older women.

Ageing brings many unexpected challenges, and I’d warn younger women that tramping in your sixties and seventies is more than a matter of willpower and youthful fitness.

Some of my fittest, fastest friends have fallen suddenly by the wayside with issues relating to breathing, joints and tendons. I’d add to Annie’s advice: find professionals who are up with the latest in menopause research. My cohort were frightened off HRT therapy, but much has been learned since then. Who knew that hip pain can be related to oestrogen leaving the party, and can be mitigated?

Plus, I’d warn all young women to do as much as they can, while they can, and to keep trip diaries and take photos to ensure the pleasure of armchair adventures.

And team up with a younger life partner who can carry the load when you can’t.

– Rosemarie Smith

Large servings a bonus

My 10-year-old son and I did the Lagoon Saddle camping trip featured in ‘Perfect pitch’ (Jan/Feb 2025). 

We found it a reasonably challenging climb through the tussock and weren’t entirely sure about the ‘easy’ part of the easy–moderate description; in the words of another tramper we met, “It looked a lot more chill on the topo map.” 

We descended via a ridge a little further east, which wasn’t as steep as the one we came up, then stayed off track for a bit longer to make our way to Lagoon Saddle Hut.

We shared an Outdoor Gourmet Beef Bourguignon (as reviewed in March 2025), which went down a treat. Maybe it was the big climb, but it certainly tasted better than the 5.5/10 score it was given in the review. Nathan even ate the mushrooms. That it served two was a bonus for me.

– Ben Dodgshun

Older women can do it

Congratulations to Annie Simmons for completing Te Araroa (‘Wild people’, April 2025). Anyone who thru-walks that 3000km trail, let alone with dodgy knees, deserves huge respect. But where are all the older women, Annie asked, before suggesting that we are held back because we think adventure is a male thing.

Be assured, older women do have adventures. Extreme examples are the mountaineers still scaling high peaks in their sixties, like Julie Wagner (Ama Dablam, Malte Brun), Pat Deavoll (Balfour Face) and Jo Morgan (22 of NZ’s 3000m peaks). Six-times Everest summiteer Lydia Brady (aged 63) tackled some challenging ice routes in North America last year. Another Everest summiteer, Penny Webster, now 66, has taken up thru-hiking. She completed the 4265km Pacific Crest Trail when she was 60 and is currently planning a winter climb of Mt Tasman, followed by a 660km Australian Alps thru-hike in November.

Call these the super women, the exceptions perhaps, but there are many other older women out there tackling staunch transalpine trips, multi-day tramps and remote trapline work. I know of several who have completed Te Araroa in their 60s. It’s a shame Annie didn’t come across one or two of them. 

Quite frankly, and I’m sure Annie is with me on this, it’s time to toss that ‘older women can’t do adventures’ idea into the hut long drop. For sure, having an intact body is a blessing.

Annie’s ‘TA tips for older women’ is an excellent guide (equally applicable for older men).

For myself, I exercise regularly to build muscle support for my aged, wonky knees, try to tramp often to keep things working, and generally remain in denial that I’m on the upper side of 70.  In recent years in the hills I’ve met several women older than myself, tackling longer, gruntier walks. 

Age is not about gender, but it’s definitely about mindset, even if a stubborn one. See you in the hills, Annie!

– Kathy Ombler