Emma has done more big missions than most and her latest "Psycho Crossing" had her challenging herself in new and increasingly exciting ways. Emma has done us the favour of capturing the experience, don't worry if it doesn't inspire you to try it yourself!
"When Jacob first mentioned his idea for the Psycho Crossing to me, I wanted in immediately. Riding to, carrying bikes across the Tararua Southern Crossing, and riding home. It sounded right up my alley.
As the week drew closer, I started worrying about being able to keep up, there was going to be a lot of time on foot, especially going downhill, which my uncoordinated feet aren't great at. I wished I'd done some recent practice walking with a heavy pack, but it was too late for it now.
Our team lost a few members in the final week and by the time Friday rolled around it was just the three of us: Jacob, Karsten, and I meeting at 6pm, excited and nervous. We rolled out and Jacob set a good pace up and over to Porirua where we stopped for dinner, agreeing that maybe we'd slow down a tad. We made our way up the coast as darkness fell, enjoying the smooth cycleways before turning up towards Otaki Forks. The moreporks were out in force, Jacob chatted back, and I unsuccessfully tried.
We reached the trail around midnight and set about dismantling and attaching our bikes to our bags. At the time we (I) teased Karsten for taking longer to pack everything up, but it quickly became apparent that his setup was pretty bombproof and ours required tinkering with well into the next day. We set off up the hill and my calves were instantly sore, walking with a weight was harder than I remembered, and I realised how much slower than the others I was on foot. I made sure I ate heaps of snacks, knowing that my endurance would keep me going, it just wouldn't be fast. Jacob stopped a few times to change how his bike was strapped on, so I took the opportunity to get ahead. Unfortunately, this meant clearing all the cobwebs across the trail with my face. On the few downhill sections of trail, I was tripping on the bottom of my bike, but with the trail mostly climbing I decided to leave a change in position for the next morning.
We reached Field hut after a couple of hours and stood outside talking quietly as we unpacked, as to not wake anyone up. After what seemed like ages, we thought to actually check to see if it was occupied. Upon finding it empty, we moved our gear inside and brought our voices back up to normal level. We pulled out sleeping gear and set up for a few hours of sleep. Karsten and I had opted for the comfort of sleeping bags but, to save on space, Jacob had committed to just an emergency bivvy bag, more akin to a crisp packet than a piece of sleeping gear. We'd been joking about waking everyone up with the crinkle of the bag, but now it was time to experience it. Good thing there wasn't anyone else in the hut. I was warm enough, but the sound of Jacob moving was enough to keep me from a proper sleep.
The alarms went off after nowhere near enough time rested, and I sat in my sleeping bag feeling cold and tired while the guys got up and started packing. Eventually I made my way out of bed and getting moving made me feel better. We set off up towards bushline and were treated with the rising sun once we got out into the open. It wasn't long before the cloud rolled in and we all started getting cold, layering up to get to Kime Hut. We arrived to another empty hut and enjoyed/didn't enjoy a cold dehy breakfast, I don't think it would have been any better heated though. More layers were put on, by now I had everything I'd brought on. And after leaving I very quickly warmed up and regretted having my puffer jacket on. The following hours provided some stunning landscapes as we walked along the ridgeline, over Mt Hector. The cloud was hanging around, but we still managed to get a few views. What I thought was part of the Wellington Harbour was actually Kapiti Island. The ridgeline seemed to go on forever, but eventually we started descending off Alpha, hitting bushline again, and coming across the hut soon after.
Reaching Alpha Hut made it feel like we were nearly done, despite only being about halfway through. We made the most of the hut, having a reset before the final section. We were grateful for Jacob’s decision to bring a cooker and enjoyed a hot meal while he had a nap, his lack of sleeping bag had made it too cold to sleep during the night. I’d walked the remaining section of trail a few years ago and remembered the trail down from the hut and up to Marchant Ridge being far quicker. My legs were protesting with the steep downhills but after a while along the ridge I started finding a groove that I hadn’t felt yet. I started feeling more confident and although it required heaps of concentration, I felt like I was keeping up better. I’d also given up caring about trying to skirt around the many boggy bits and went full savage mode boosting through the middle, with varying success. There were plenty of giggles when I’d hit a deep one and end up in mud to my knees.
We knew that our friend Sam was coming out to meet us and when we bumped into him with 9ks to go it was a massive boost. We started the downhill off the ridge, and it wasn’t long before I had a meltdown after a certain song started playing through my headphones. That downhill dragged, darkness fell, and my knees screamed in pain. Once I started recognising the terrain leading to the next turn off, I became focused again, forgetting the pain and keeping a better pace up. After a while I slowed back down and had to stop for another cry and to eat, then resumed my focus. Both Jacob and I were pretty broken by this point, Karsten seemed to be absolutely fine. We split into two groups somewhere along here, with Sam keeping my spirits up for the final few k’s along and down the final downhill. The slick clay surface slowed things down and there were some savage steps in there too. I managed to stay upright and was ecstatic to emerge out into the Kaitoke carpark before midnight. I’d thought there’d be some tears of relief but had obviously used them all up already. Jacob and Karsten soon joined us, and we got our bikes built back up as the rain set in.
It was decided that being midnight would work in our favour for empty roads, so we rolled along the main road to the Z in Upper Hutt. It was great to take weight off and use the legs in a more familiar way, but I was very aware that I hadn’t eaten much for a while, a pie from the Z sounded ideal. They were out of hot food, so water bottles were filled, and I made do with a stroopwafel to get me home. After a funny interaction with a local we got back rolling, taking the most direct way home. Thankfully the rain had eased off and with Sam sitting on the front it was a speedy trip back into town. I got home at 2am, had a shower and was asleep immediately.
All in all, 150k cycling, 40k tramping while carrying a bike, and around 4000m of elevation. Just under 29 hours for the full loop, only a third of which was mildly unpleasant -- I’d call that a win. We all agreed that we wouldn’t do it again, but I’ve since learnt that there is also a Northern Crossing of the Tararuas. Might have put in some more time on foot first."
- Emma Bateup