This week, many parents around the country will be breathing a sigh of relief as kids begin drifting back to school. A bit of routine will be good for all of us, and a simpler juggle between work and family life will be a relief.

But I love the holidays. No school lunches or after-school activities to scurry between. No set bedtimes or overseeing homework.  Everyone relaxes into their own flow, finding ways to overcome boredom, and joy in simple things, like a beach, a swim, or a good book. Clothes get changed less and less often, hair develops a life of its own, at best interesting but often a mattered mess.

It’s also a time when memories are made. This week, my 13 year old son and I set off to do exactly that by walking part of the Mt Ruapehu Round the Mountain Track. We decided to tackle the track from The Bruce Road under the Whapakpapa ski field around to Ohakune Mountain Road just beneath Turoa ski field. 17km of technical terrain – rocks, sand, trenches, boulders, lahars, steep descents and ascents through valley after valley – this walk has it all. 

While it was cloudy and drizzling below us, we set off early morning above the cloud in the blazing sun – happy to be back on one of our favourite mountains, with no one else in sight. It wasn’t long before we looked at each other, and said “It’s so quiet.” Well he said ‘It’s weird’ but that was teenager for ‘It’s so quiet’. I’m not talking about the normal outdoors quiet where there may be wind, trees, bird song, water noises. It was absolutely silent. Without a breath of wind, in this this barren, rugged volcanic landscape we felt like we were suspended in time. Eerie was how the 13 year-old described it. It was a unique experience, other worldly. Disconcertingly, I could hear my heart beating as I climbed out of one of the steep valleys – nature’s way of telling me to slow down? Slowly noise returned, the sound of shoes on loose rocks, a rushing stream filled with the last of the snow melt, dragonflies, bees, and unusual looking green flying bugs came to life as the morning progressed, as we moved up and around the mountain and the landscape slowly changed. 

As we took all this in, I couldn’t help but think of the many buses you see taking people to the start of the Tongariro Crossing. It’s a magnificent walk, but unless you’re on trail by 6am, you’ll be following a line of people across the landscape like a line of ants. Here we were – in the same National Park, just down the road, and in the whole day we saw a total of 4 other people. I felt the experience I was having was more along the lines of Tourism New Zealand’s brand image of a picturesque landscapes, and a clean and green natural environment. 

Over the summer it was hard to ignore the cries of over-tourism. There was the debate, to pick a few stories, about whether a toilet should be placed on the popular Ben Lomand track in Queenstown, and who would pay for it, and visitors ignoring the rahui placed over the Mermaid Pools at Matapouri Bay in Northland. These two issues represent both a lack of respect for our landscape by tourists - local and international - and a lack of infrastructure to cope with increasing numbers. According to Stats NZ, the total number of overseas visitor arrivals was increased 2.1 percent to 3.9 million for the year ended October 2019. By 2025, it’s expected to pass the five million mark. If that’s the case, I’d probably suggest two, perhaps three, toilets are required on Ben Lomand. But seriously a long term plan that ensures economic, environmental and social sustainability is key – otherwise I’m not sure I want to see what 5 million visitors a year looks like. 

So I sit here in two minds this morning. 

On the one hand, there’s a whole lot more of New Zealand to share, and assuming we do it properly, we’ve got the ability to spread visitors and share the load across a whole lot more of this incredible country. I know we’re slowly commissioning more great walks, but why don’t we aim for 20, as soon as we can, and give them all the money they need so we can avoid talking about tourist ablutions ever again. 

On the other hand, as I read about over-crowding at places like Hot Water Beach or Lake Tekapo’s Church of the Good Shepard, it really is quite wonderful how easy it is in this diverse, beautiful land of ours, to find an extraordinary place where we can be on our own, in total silence. 

We’re told from a young age that it’s good to share, but this part of me doesn’t really want to. 

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