Kiwi Tracks

by Andrew Stevenson

Many of us dream of escaping from everyday life, tossing a few possessions in a backpack and travelling light in far-off lands. Andrew Stevenson did more than he packed his rucksack and went.Andrew's destination was New Zealand, the island nation famous for its pristine wilderness, from sandy beaches and fast-flowing rivers to glacial mountains and primeval forests. In a hiker's heaven, he treks along the Milford Track, the Kepler Track, the Abel Tasman Track and other famous walking routes. Along the way he gets caught in a blizzard on a mountain path, spends time in a Maori settlement and tries hugging a tree.With insight and a gentle humor, he explores the spirit of this spectacular land at the southern end of the Pacific, its indigenous and non-indegenous peoples, and provides an illuminating view of his fellow backpackers and the twilight world they inhabit, forever between destinations. He also reveals that, however much or little you may have in your rucksack, the heaviest baggage is what you carry inside.

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction, Adventure, Memoir

222 pages, Paperback

First published September 29, 1999

Reviews

[Scott Bischke · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fine companion travel log while doing my own extended period of tramping in New Zealand. Ostensible the author sets out to walk all NZ's Great Walks but the joy is more the characters met, the landscape, and some personal soul searching that Stevenson shares with us.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought it was a pretty good book. The people sounded so strange, not just the Kiwis but the tourists and everyone. It sounded amazing there despite the strangeness of the beliefs and people. I kinda want to visit New Zealand when I'm older.

[Michele Reynolds · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was an interesting read about hiking in New Zealand. There was nothing fancy about it but it was entertaining.

[Clare · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a book that has no pictures or drawings it still puts the reader into the rainforests of New Zealand with wonderful descriptions of the flora and fauna to be found there. A good writer will do that. Mr. Stevenson not only immerses the reader into the natural world of his treks but also gives one a view of the native Maori culture and perspective of the treaties signed in the past which robbed them of much of their heritage and land. He also runs into some people which hold a contrary view of those treaties. The reader gets to meet some of the interesting fellow track walkers too. This was a nice pleasant read.

[Cat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Would have enjoyed to read more about the author to get a better mindset on him for this trip. I've daydreamed about hitchhiking NZ for years so I really enjoyed reading his experience of all the things I would love to do. Little bit of Maori history mentioned but otherwise it seemed more of book on places to see than a story with a beginning or end.

[Cathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable book but it could have been so much more. I felt like I got to know the people Andrew met on his journey better than I got to know him. He never really opened up about himself on his journey through NZ.
His descriptions of NZ were also lacking. I wanted to feel,like I was traveling through NZ with him but really it fell short.

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading about my homeland from the perspective of a visitor. I learned things I didn't know and now have a even greater urge to go and see the beauty of this little country we can take for granted when we live here.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Travel prep. Sounds like pretty much anywhere you go in NZ will be amazing. Wish he wrote more about the land and less about himself, though.

[Anne Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining and interesting. More anecdotes of Andrew's trip than real details of the tracks.

[KT · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not particularly humorous or moving, and no photos. Didn't quite finish it before the library book had to be returned, and I'm not that worried about it.

[Polly-Alida · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this chronicle of the author's 4 month journey hiking through New Zealand. A challenging personal journey as well as a hiking journey.

[Maggie Cats · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book in anticipation of my trip to New Zealand next year. It chronicles one man's six month backpacking journey through New Zealand and his walking of various "tracks," i.e., hikes and walks. The author was attempting to recover from the break-up of his marriage and basically comes to terms with being along during the course of the trip. He meets many interesting people, and presents several perspectives on New Zealand's historical and current treatment of her native peoples, the Mauri. This is probably not going to be interesting to you unless you have been or plan to go to New Zealand but it gave me some nice ideas for my trip and some historical perspective.

[Reena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kiwi Tracks caught my eye because I have wanted to travel to New Zealand ever since Peter Jackson took me to Middle Earth. This was a fun look at tramping the tracks and covered some of the lands and weather systems from The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film trilogies. Stevenson does not leave behind his mental baggage and expresses his emotional and physical journey in this book.

[Cass · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this before we headed off to tramp around New Zealand. We did the Routeburn, Hollyford, and Kepler tracks.

It was interesting reading, and reading it again makes me want to go make to NZ to visit more tracks.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read if you're a Kiwi or someone visiting/living in New Zealand. I liked that he presented both Maori and pakeha perspectives. I also liked his respect for the country's natural beauty (rather than, say, its bungee jumping opportunities).