Mo brings a sharp wit, a love for wild places, and decades of experience to the Hiking New Zealand crew. A former Hutt Valley local turned North Island operations guru, he’s as comfortable crafting epic journeys as he is restoring his villa. Mo’s passion for the outdoors is infectious - whether he’s sea kayaking remote coastlines, hiking volcanic ridgelines, or waxing lyrical about coffee in obscure corners of the globe. With a talent for making do with less, Mo embodies both the practical and poetic side of adventure.
Ha, I say I come from the ‘mid’ Hutt Valley which is the Bronx of New Zealand (and not to be confused with Upper or Lower Hutt), a veritable cultural wilderness immersed in the land of the real wilderness’ (aside from the Dowse Art Gallery – a very fine Lower Hutt institution). As unfashionable as the Hutt is, it’s important to realise that if someone readily admits to coming from the Hutt, there is a good chance that they are in fact from somewhere entirely worse. In my case that would be Stokes Valley - right next door.
I own a 120-year-old wooden villa... so what spare time? I used to love traveling to far-off places. Some of my most interesting trips have been to Oman, Nepal, Tibet, and the mountainous regions of South America—lots of masonry buildings, I’ve noticed. When I’m up north, sea kayaking is a wonderful activity. The east coast has hundreds of kilometers of warm, sheltered waters and intricate volcanic coastlines, thousands of small beaches and beautiful coastal forests that often meet the water’s edge.
Some coffee houses are on a whole different level.
Millers. Auckland’s little uptown secret near Karangahape Road and Queen St, (31 Cross St), it’s actually a roaster with a few chairs skating around the old, tired floor, 30+ years of roasting that started way back with a Faema E61 3 group (which is still in use somewhere apparently). They roast but don’t expect them to be open after high noon. They gotta make deliveries.
Dubai Creek, yes in Dubai. I suspect the next good flat white is thousands of kilometers away. See this old blog of mine. The Coffee Museum, I only had one coffee there and it was excellent. And the place was fascinating.
Ultimate North Island. Is it immodest to choose a trip I created? It is NZ in a nutshell. Remote, lush, vibrant and so wildly different from one moment to the next. Pinch yourself that you are now being dehydrated on the dusty summit of a shimmering volcano. Ochre reds and high sky, arid valleys and big views. Yesterday you wiped past giant fern fronds and dripping moss, saw rainforests from the Jurassic, and that little voice in your head was screaming “BORNEO, we are in Borneo you idiot”. I love surprising people that all this incredible wilderness is in the island they nearly skipped altogether.
Pillow: I can sleep just about anywhere—on hard surfaces, couches, vehicle roofs, or even train luggage racks—but I need a pillow. Sorry to disappoint, but I’m not like our guide, Justin. I used to use one of those inflatable Nemo ultralight pillows, less than 100g, but it never quite met my absurdly high standards. My fat head just rolls and lolls. So, I went back to my 20-year-old foam Therm-a-Rest compressible pillow. It’s a bit chunkier to pack down, but not by much, and still remarkably light at under 200g (after washing!). For the sake of 100g, I now get a great night's sleep. It has to be a painfully lightweight trip if my pillow does not come with (I do try and hide it when I’m guiding as its a poor image for a tough guy, I know).
Leatherman: I have a really old orange ‘Juice’ Leatherman multitool, little bit bigger than a Swiss Army knife, but way more robust, with solid pliers and scissors. It’s always in my pocket, and I just need it multiple times a day. The pliers are great for gripping hot pots and the wire handles. Plus, the medium blade screwdriver perfectly fits a #2 square drive. That feature alone makes it invaluable—why don’t more knives include a square drive? I lost it a couple years back and a lovely customer (thanks Kern!) let me get a replacement delivered to him in the USA and he brought it over (it's hard getting stuff delivered to NZ from eBay here at the end of the earth). Thanks mate - I haven’t lost this one yet!
There’s a ton of advice out there, and while it’s easy to list what to take, it’s harder to suggest what not to bring. There’s a certain joy in suffering a little for the reward of not carrying unnecessary items! Light packs make trips fun. We live with so much clutter, and here’s a chance to realise you don’t need it all. Choosing to go without is an intellectual decision I believe.
Check the weather forecast and pack the appropriate safety gear. Bring enough windproof, waterproof, and sun-protective clothing for hiking, and don’t stress about the rest—you’ll always find something useful in your pack to wear in the evening. Or just hop in your sleeping bag for modesty, unzipping the feet and waddling like a penguin! I often wear my Gore-Tex rain pants as hut gear. I loosen my boot laces and pretend they’re slippers. Fleeces make good towels. If it’s raining, just throw on your (heavy) wet clothes the next day, and keep your dry (light) ones safely stowed. Hey, Sorted!
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