The science behind the impact a heavy pack has on your lower back. Last summer while walking the South Island section of Te Araroa, I hit some hurdles. I have lower back issues sustained from an injury as a teenager. Apparently, I’m not alone ‒ more than 80 per cent of us experience lower back […]
The 2026 Wilderness Outdoor Photographer of the Year competition
A tale of adventure and tragedy
Mt Peel, Kahurangi National Park
A lofty location for Brass Monkey
25 huts to visit in 2025
Subscribe!
Each issue of Wilderness celebrates Aotearoa’s great outdoors — written and photographed with care, not algorithms.Subscribe and help keep our wild stories alive.
Home / Articles / Wild Comment
When not to put your back into it
Read more from
April 2026
About the author
Harriet Lamb
More From April 2026
Walk 1200km
April 2026 #microchallenges
Natural history
Spectacular Celmisia
More From Wild Comment
My gear through the decades
When not to put your back into it
The last plateau
From farm boy to global trail runner
Learning the tough stuff
Sexual harm in the backcountry
A brighter future?
Off the beaten track: It’s for everybody
Tramping lessons learned after an injury
Why big-group tramping is great
Adventures don’t have to be big
Oh, the people you meet
Why we walk with women
Learning limits
How to make your tramping goal a reality
More From Wild Comment
Related Topics
Similar Articles
My gear through the decades
The last plateau
From farm boy to global trail runner
Trending Now
The 2026 Wilderness Outdoor Photographer of the Year competition
A tale of adventure and tragedy
Mt Peel, Kahurangi National Park
A lofty location for Brass Monkey
25 huts to visit in 2025
Subscribe!
Each issue of Wilderness celebrates Aotearoa’s great outdoors — written and photographed with care, not algorithms.Subscribe and help keep our wild stories alive.