MY TRAIL: TE WAI POUNAMU
Bryan Scott
Self-published
REVIEWED BY DAVID BARNES
Otago Regional Councillor Bryan Scott joins the growing list of Te Araroa Trail walkers turning their experiences into a book.
Scott walked the South Island section, travelling from Queen Charlotte Sound to Lake Hawea in a single push, with the remaining distance done in three sections.
He has written largely in a daily diary format. This makes the tale flow well (although I would have preferred it was not all in present tense), but leaves little opportunity for insight or an understanding of the trail beyond each day's journey.
The one exception is several interesting discourses on how we manage waterways in New Zealand - both appropriate for a regional councillor and timely.
Stories of journeys can be enhanced by good illustrations. Unfortunately, the photos selected here are largely uninspiring and the maps, from the Te Araroa website, are poorly reproduced.
David Barnes lives in Lower Hutt and is an avid tramper and armchair mountaineer
