Leg 1 Taupo Domain to Wairakei Block

Distance 17km
Height Gained 190m, Height Lost -80m

We had all gone to bed early in the hopes of a good nights sleep. But it seems that we all had butterflies and by 3am we were all awake waiting for the dawn. I had set the alarm clock for 5.15am but I was up before it had a chance to ring. The first order was to have a breakfast of porridge, banana & yoghurt. Then it was time to pack the truck that was going to be our support vehicle with chairs, food, drink (all 28 litres of it) and our kit bags of extra clothes, shoes, wet-weather gear, gloves & headlamps.

Our support crew drove us to the start line at the Taupo Domain, getting there at 6.30am. As we had done well with our sponsorship Oxfam had a light breakfast of a some fruit or a muffin and a cup of coffee. However by the time we had partaked the starting race was full, and we ended up at the rear of the field.

Finally the timer counted down to 7.00am and we were off. 187 teams & 748 walkers & runners, men & women, young & old. Early on there was much jostling for position, as once we hit the DOC walkway from Spa to Huka Falls there was effectively no passing. At Huka Falls up the hill to Helistar (we will see this again tonight as Checkpoint 5), down into the gully and through the underpass. Onto the Horse trails up to Craters of the Moon. At the kiosk there, the girls called time as we had been going 1½ hours and into the toilets they went. I took the chance to have some scroggin and then it was off onto the Boardwalks and steam.

Then off the the Boardwalks and into a logging track, which led us into the Fast Eddie Mountain Bike trail, before emerging out on the side of SH1. We walked alongside SH1 back towards Taupo and overtook a number of teams in the process. Then over the first of many fences towards Scoria Road, over another fence and up Scoria Road to the first checkpoint at Wairakei Block. This leg had taken us 3:15 - exactly as we had planned

All throughout the training I had not gotten any blisters despite walking nearly 9+ Hours / 50km on some days. To my great annoyance I had the beginnings of a blister between 2 toes on the left food after only 17km. But I quickly put a blister plaster on it, which did the trick as it no longer got any worse or annoyed me for the rest of the Trailwalk.

We were all greatly relieved to see our support crew, who refilled our camelpacks with drink, dealt with the first of many blisters to come, & yummy hot food in the form of sausage & bacon sandwichs was thrust at us. We all wanted to go toilet but the queue for the Port-a-loos were too long - the girls were glad they had gone at Craters of the Moon.