Following on from the Herekino forest we decided to take it fairly easy today and wait until tomorrow to tackle the Raetea forest. We enjoyed a nice lazy morning and resorted and repacked our gear after leaving out to dry overnight and in the morning. We had some great views of the farmland in the morning looking out from the Tramp Inn. By the time we were all packed up it was around 11:30 and with about 15km planned for the day we got on our way. The track started out along the edge of farmland and we had several interactions with cows along the way. We even tested out mooing at one group of cows and managed to cause a mini stampede, we’ll have to be more careful in the future with what we say to them! We eventually hit the end of the farm track and the official end of the Herekino forest track. After this the remainder of the day was walking on gravel roads and through a very very small town. As warned in the notes we did also pass a number of bee hives however never had any trouble walking slowly past these. As we passed through the town we gave a local TA guide a call to check conditions and get info on any good camping spots (we’re freedom camping tonight which in NZ means you can camp anywhere that isn’t personal property for free). He told us a good spot and said he wouldn’t recommend hiking much more today as it was bloody hot. Advice well received we walked another 3km past the town and set up camp in a grassy spot next to a small stream and right next to the start of tomorrow’s hike. We also passed a small group of baby cows that gave is a brief moo (and didn’t stampede off).