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Worldwalker showcases Northland
Walking Ninety Mile Beach
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World walker showcases Northland
BYJODI BRYANT
Being recognised in Croatia Tom is renowned for his engaging smile Leaving Cape Reinga
Back in May 2021, Tom Boerman set off from a small Netherlands town for a bit of a stroll. Fast-forward 18 months, and that same walk has brought the 35-year-old Dutch man into Whangārei this week as part of his 40,000km mission to walk around the world.
Tom is aimingtobe the firstperson towalk across all seven continents, including Antarctica. His journey, interspersed with anecdotes, inspirational quotes andstunning photography and videography on his social media platforms, isfollowed and supportedbytens of thousands, many of whom live-track his progress, offering hima bed and meal whilepassing through.
Andover recentweeks, it’s been Northland’s scenery on theworldstageas he and his followersmarvel at itsuntouched beauty.
“Thiscountry is an ease on myeye.I simply can’t describe the beauty in landscape. It’s fifty shades of green and blue,” he enthused from the Northlandstretch of Te Araroa Trail.
But this is not Tom’sfirsttime undertaking the 3,000km trail which runs the length of New Zealand. Infact, he credits memories of his successfulcompletion in 2018for triggering his desire for more.
Tom explains: “I had been thinking about doing something big, something life-changing, for along time…I loved walking alone in New Zealand andI thinktalking about those memories triggered something because, all of a sudden, my journey kind of picked me.I vividly rememberwaking up in the morning, leaping up in bed andwas like, ‘I know what I’m gonna do! I’m goingtowalk around theworld.”
It’s aboutfar more than just walkingfor Tom. In 2016, addicted, suicidal and depressed, he spentover ayear inrehab where, after watchinga video about elderlies’ regretsin life, he wrote abucketlist.
“Istarted my own business andworked my ass offtosave money for all of my plans.I sold my house,car and most of my belongings,tostart travelling. WhenI came back after more than six months, the list wasstill there. Infact, it had grown considerably.”
And so, last year,he began ticking it offbyputting onefootin front of theother.
“I’m definitely not Bear Grylls, butI know howtotramp and navigate. I’m goodatknocking on doors (toasktopitch histent on the lawn) and connecting with people, which isa largepart ofa journey like this. I’m not afraid of being alone. Whilewalking in New Zealand,I figured out an interesting thing that happenstoyour brain after being alonefor several days. Whenyou can’tescapeyourself andyour thoughts, andyou’re depending onyourselffor everything,you developa unique self-loveand appreciation… Besides, most of the thingsweare thinking about during the day are about thepastor the future and have nothingtodo with living in the moment. Walking alone isa goodway to slow that voice in your head down andconnect withyourself.”
He says he chosewalkingover driving orcyclingfor theexperiences and the opportunity it offers to connect with people.
“We’reall living ina fast-paced world andwalking helps us slow downtosee what is truly going on around us so why not walk for five years?Walking and living in nature with almost nothing brings the soul back home. It’s sucha natural movementandway of living. And,tobe honest,I like doing crazy things. It’s insanetowalkaroundthe world,” he says,adding that more peoplehave stood on themoon than walked around theworld.
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Walking the highways in Australia
And he’scertainly had some crazy experiences along theway,such as being chasedbya pack of teens tryingtorob him in a dodgy neighbourhood in Southern Europe.
Tom recalls: “I wasn’t in the moment. I was just thinking about my leaky mattress and didn’t domyroute research. All of a sudden, my navigation sent me through a poor neighbourhood. Iwas still with my head somewhere andtookmyphonetocapture the moment, whichwasn’ta smart idea. Seven youngstersof an age around 16-17 showed up andstartedfollowing me. When oneofthem startedtoyell,I knew Iwas in trouble. Istartedto run;even with mybackpackI wasstillfaster than all of them (thankstomy track and field history). WhenI hit theroad,a carpulledover,I instantly jump in and hestartedtodrive. He didn’t speak any English but he understoodthe situation.”
He shares the highs and the lows; unafraid of showingraw emotion,Tom has videoed himself walking intears. One such timewas on day 51 afterwalking 43 days in therain.
“All accommodationswereclosed due tosome virus.I wascarryinga wettent, wet clothes,wet shoes andwet socks.I hadsold everything and there was no wayback. Iwas knocked down and shed sometears. But this is what travelling is all about.”
But he is mostly knownfor his dazzling smile.
“You know whyyou often see me smiling? Because there's most of the timea reasonfor it.
Andyes, sometimes there's alsoa reason for complaining, being tired,feeling alone, crying, laughing out loud and allother emotions. Theway I travel is simply brutal. The decisionto get myself out of mycomfortzone is the most wonderful decision in my life.
“Myworldwalk will lead me throughevery emotion. That's what Ireallywant, that's what I'm livingfor.Why shouldI only show the smiles? Why shouldI onlytalk about the good things that happened?Realmencan be vulnerable, they have to.”
However,there’s beenmany laughs, with onefollower admitting he doesn’ttune in for the walk, butfor thehilariousstoriesTom shares alongtheway,such aswhen he wasstoppedby police crossinga border because they thought hewas an immigrant.
“Ittook so much time before we could understandeachother. And itwas really confusing.I finally know why. Nodding your head means‘no’, and shaking means ‘yes’.That’s the oppositefrom most countries.Theyasked me questionswithGoogle translateand itwas like:‘Areyou an immigrant?’Me: ‘No’,followed by shaking my head!”
Tom once crossed five borders in 20 days on footand has been sentphotosandvideosby followersof himdoingso. Upon arriving in one town,hewas metwith applause by people lining thefootpath.Followerspull up alongside him on the highwayfor achat. In Australia,a mother and her children drovehalf an hourtotrack him downtodeliver home-bakedcupcakes.
Each day, he has no idea whereheisgoing tosleep that night butrandom places have included ina limo on someone’sdriveway, a bathtub, aroof, aglacier in France,a Bulgarian forestsurroundedby wolves,and the Jordan desert betweengoats, where he was served a goathead, intact with eyes, thefollowing day.
Once aself-confessed materialisticperson, nowadays, heowns just awalkingstick and backpack of functional items such asa tent, sleeping bag,water purifier,a pot, food essentials, clothes anda sparepair of shoes.
“Iamgetting rich incollectingmoments instead of things.”
While many hoursare passed lugginghis belongings ina hikingcart onthe openroad, Tom was happy to ditch thecartfor abackpack when he arrived in New Zealand– which he described as like ‘coming home’ -toundertake thewilderness of Te Araroa Trail last month.
“Why onearth shouldyou walka trailof 3,000km twice?”he asked hisfollowersina post before setting off. “Well, why shouldI base my choices on thinking while mygutistelling me to go? I feelthat Ihave to go backtowhereit allbegun in 2018 on themighty 3,000km long TeAraroatrail, Māorifor ‘the longPathway’. It’s gonnabe wild,pure andbeautiful. With oftenno connectionfor days!”
Itwas an emotional night spent in the Kaitaia hostel before setting offonthe trail surrounded bynervousfellow hikers abouttoembark on the journey for the firsttime.
“Like them, itwas once my dreamtowalk this trail namedTeAraroa,”he posted. “I succeeded and now I’m gonna do it allover again. Nerves are replacedbyexcitement. I am lying in bed and myeyes are tearing up. I’ll never remember the days I’ve spentatthe goddam office, but I’ll definitelyremember adventures like this.I realise that his isgonna bea trip down memory lane.”
The pictures thatfollowed were breath-taking withTom stating that he andhisfellow travellers were“blown awaybythis peaceofparadise”.
However,Ninety-Mile Beach is renownedfor beinga relentlesspart of the trail.
“Day 535..the beachseemsendless.For four days ina rowthere’s nothing than just sand, cracking wavesand myown thoughts. It’s a brutalstart of this mightytrail. There’s no wayto escape..tears, bandageandeven more tears.”
But he admitted he needed this trail after more than 10,000km on theroad.
Hedescribed the hours of completesilence withfellow walkers, “only interruptedbythe mighty PacificOcean,who’swaves aresmashing theshore as an orchestraofnature”.
“Andthere’rehours with deep conversations about life, love, traumas and whatsoever.Each year, hundreds of nerved-shakenover-civilised people are setting offtowalk this mighty trail through New Zealand… Ifyou ever wanna find yourself, walk untilyou can’t no longer.”
Tom says hewas once sharing quotes instead of living them and one of his pearls of wisdom istonever sacrifice happinessfor achievement.
“Mywalk is a lifestyle, not agoal.I had days where I said no to a ride whilewalking inthe pouringrain. Days where I said notoa unique opportunity to gettoknow apossible host for the nightbyacceptinga small ride. Days where I thought that achievement is what it’s allabout in life. Understanding life is difficultwhen yougrow up in thewesternworld. But I’ve learned my lessons.. life is abouttheexperiences, notabout achievement.I walk almost everyday andyes I acceptrides when needed. Finally… Savour the journey and live each day asyour last.”
And he’shadtobeflexible along the journey; For example, hiswalk throughNorth American prairieswas cut short duetoa combination of scorching hot weatherconditions and visa expiration. Planningtoreturn nextyearto complete, he divertedtoAustralia.
Since setting out last year,Tom has undergone physical changes, such as losing 10kg to his upper body butgaining impressive calf muscles. Also, his hair has greyed. But he’s not complaining.
Postinga video fromKerikeri’s cascading Rainbow Falls, he wrote: “On days like this, I don’tfeel my body, simplytoo much beauty.”
Tom continues:“Beingback in this little paradise is an absolute pleasure. Itfeels unreal towalk sucha trail twice.I hopetosee it with differenteyes,tofocusa bit more on the culturalpart andexperience aconnection I haven’tfelt before.”
When asked how NewZealandcompares totherestof theworld he has seen sofar,Tom replies: “Besides thevariety in landscape, this is probably the onlycountry witha British background where they successfully live and worktogether with the natives. It is about embracingeachother and that’s what’s definitely happeningoverhere.”
While theweathertooka turn last weekend, forcinga day off, Tomwasn’t perturbed, complimenting thecountry’s abilitytoturn on four seasons in one day and being“one of those few areas in theworld which is also beautiful in the pouringrain”.
Infact, he’s still smiling.
“I smile in the mirror… everyday. Isn’t that weird?I don’tcare, it works. Once I read a quotefromYokoOno:‘Smile in the mirror. Do that everymorning andyou’llstart toseea big difference in your life’. Nowadays I’m having loads of fun on myown. And guess what:the worldstartedtosmileback!”
Tom shares the highs and the lows
Accordingtothe Guinness BookofWorldRecords, a pedestrian circumnavigation oftheearth encompasses 18,000 miles, crossingfourcontinents byeither running or walking. It listsonly 14 people,tohave either officially or unofficially achieved this.
Tom hopestobe the firstpersontowalk across all sevencontinents byfoot, which is more than 25,000 miles.
Tom’s walk is alsotoraise moneytohelpre-buildfour schools devastated in the 2015 Nepalearthquake after seeing the poverty first-hand whilewalking the lengthofthe HimalayastoNepal.Tofind out more,go towww.iwalkaroundtheworld.com or follow his iwalkaroundtheworld journey onFacebook or Instagram.
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