NORSEWEAR

One of these legends is Ernie Schweizer, who recently completed Te Araroa with nothing but a pack on his back—and two pairs of Norsewear Possum Hiker Micro Crew socks on his feet. That’s right: just two pairs for 3,039 km of river crossings, scree climbs, bog-wading, and alpine trekking. Not only is Ernie a legend for completing such a vast distance, he’s also a legend because he achieved this at the age of 82.

“Just two pairs of your famous socks saw me through all these ordeals. I had no problems at all with my feet thanks to your fantastic socks.”

He crossed over 800 rivers, with wet feet day in and day out. And yet, no blisters, breakdown, or discomfort.

“What really stands out was that after over 3,000 km, both pairs showed hardly any wear. The socks were virtually constantly wet, and there was no discomfort having to slip on wet socks in the morning to start another day's hiking.”

Some of the most demanding stretches included the loose scree climb up Waiau Pass, and the narrow, exposed paths of the Richmond Ranges—where a single misstep could have meant disaster. In these moments, focus was critical. But it wasn’t just the physical grind. Mentally, the toughest moment came deep in the South Island, wading more than 10 km through thick black swamp muck—waist deep and unforgiving. It was the only time he felt like calling it quits. But he didn’t.

And we’re grateful he didn’t. Because getting his email was something that made our whole week (and year)!