Five Great Walks in five days... Is he mad?
“I think everyone at some stage in life should get out of their comfort zone and see what the body can do.”
Simon Patton recalls the day well.
It was March 22 this year and he struggled his way through a 5km run.
It was at the weekly Saturday morning Invercargill parkrun event at Queens Park.
“I was that unfit I had to stop twice to complete the parkrun that day.”
The 37-year-old felt it was time to take on a challenge in life. Something for him to work towards. Something to help get himself fitter, but also to test what he could put his body through if he put his mind to it.
At the same time Patton wanted to raise some coin for charity, as well as showcase Southland.
What the 37-year-old has dreamt up is one part madness another part inspirational.
On October 19 he will set off in his quest to complete Southland’s five Great Walks in just five days.
The Rakiura Track, Kepler Track, Milford Track, Routeburn Track, and Humpridge Track.
The Humpridge Track hasn’t technically been signed off as a Great Walk just yet, with that delayed and to now happen next year.
“It’s a bit of an ambitious journey I’ve lined up,” Patton says in an ultimate understatement.
Just getting an explanation as to how he hopes it will play out over five days is a journey in itself.
“I think I’ve pretty much nailed it,” he says about the logistics.
Patton will fly to Stewart Island late on Wednesday October 18. The next morning he plans to run the Rakiura Track before flying back to Invercargill at 1.30pm.
The Southlander will get picked up from the Invercargill Airport and driven straight to the Humpridge Track. The plan is to make his way up to the first hut that night.
On Friday, he’s scheduled to finish the Humpridge by mid-afternoon before heading to Te Anau for a decent night’s sleep.
He then plans to knock off the whole Kepler Track the next day on Saturday before heading to take on the Milford Track on Sunday.
Patton has a water taxi locked in for 5.30pm on Sunday to travel back to Te Anau. He will then get dropped off at the Routeburn Track on Monday morning to take on the fifth and final Great Walk.
He has worked out that he’ll cover about 250km over the five days, and that of course is not all on the flat.
“I did all the elevation gains, it’s just under 10,000m.”
Patton expects he will probably run about 70% of the journey and walk the remaining 30%.
From battling to complete a 5km parkrun run on March 22 to lining up five Great Walks over five days doesn’t simply come with a click of the fingers.
There’s been a lot of early morning starts to get the required training load in. Just last weekend he completed 51km at Forest Hill and on Tuesday night another 21km at Bluff Hill, which was the last of his main elevation training.
“It’s just been about creating a lot of discipline to do all this training. There’s been a lot of 5am starts in the hail.
“Minus two degrees in Invercargill is not the pleasantest thing to get up to but it’s been a hell of a case of self-discipline, and it’s been a good testing time to go through.
“I think everyone at some stage in life should get out of their comfort zone and see what the body can do.”
Patton has a love for the outdoors, and in particular what Southland has to offer.
He worked in the tourism sector for about 10 years leading up to the pandemic. He drove tour buses around New Zealand during summer and worked in Western Australia in the winter months.
Patton also spent a year in Canada doing hiking tours and wildlife tours.
“It’s not just physically [rewarding], I find it mentally amazing to get out in the mountains. I find it more mentally beneficial than physical. Even if it’s a 10km day walk around Lake Hauroko.
“We’ve got so many epic backcountry trails that aren’t even the Great Walks. There is so much great stuff in Fiordland and I’d hate to think of how many Invercargill people haven’t even been to Milford.”
While Patton has been working towards his unique adventure for a while, he only went public about it earlier this week. He has been blown away by the response.
A fundraising page has been set up to help raise funds for Bowel Cancer New Zealand as part of the five Great Walks in five days journey.
Given it is five Great Walks in five days he thought $5000 would be a good figure to set his sights on.
However, after just a couple it had already attracted over $3000 with Patton wondering if he should set the goal a little higher.
“I’m pretty overwhelmed by the support I’ve had already.”
For Patton, it’s personal. He’s had family and friends close to him who have died from bowel cancer.
“This disease affects so many lives, and together we have the power to make a difference.”
Patton will take on the Rakiura and Humpridge tracks solo before he has some support lined up from a couple of friends for the other three of the Great Walks.
He’s happy with where he is at, in terms of preparation, a couple of weeks out.
The hope is injuries don’t arise throughout the journey, or some wild weather for that matter.
If that’s the case Patton says he’s tried to prepare and plan for whatever scenario might play out.