Wairarapa Walking Festival

22/07/2026

Keep this in mind when you are out walking in Masterton:

30/06/2026

Do you prefer to walk clockwise or anti-clockwise on a circular walk? This research raises lots of interesting questions.

Should we plan for this in November's schedule of Wairarapa Walking Festival walks?

What's the local evidence round Henley Lake?

Is it different in the Antipodes?

Do left-handed people choose differently?

Let us know what you think in the comments.

Two researchers in two countries found we all have one thing in common.

29/05/2026

So you can put this into your diary !

23/04/2026

Here's a chance for a gentle stroll in the Wairarapa!

Global Book Crawl, Eight Featherston Bookstores will be open until 8 pm, taking ..., Chicken and Frog Bookshop, Featherston, Wellington Region, 24 April 20

30/03/2026

Daylight savings may be drawing to a close but walking is still a theme for April!

This Saturday we have the the Wairarapa Word hosting
Jennifer Andrewes - The Only Way is Up: On foot to Rome.
Sure to be an inspirational event!

And on 11th April the Martinborough Skyline Challenge is back! A unique opportunity to take a 10km walk on private farmland that takes in the most stunning views of Martinborough.

05/03/2026

The Only Way is Up


The Only Way is Up: on Foot to Rome is a new memoir of long-distance walking, and a meditation on how we move forward when life asks us to begin again.



Dunedin-born author Jennifer Andrewes set out from Canterbury and walked some 2,500 km over 110 days along the Via Francigena, across England, France, Switzerland and Italy. Her book offers an honest, grounded portrait of life on the trail.

While written through the lens of walking to Rome, The Only Way is Up speaks to anyone at a crossroads. It offers pilgrimage not as an escape from real life, but as a practical framework for living well: shedding excess weight – physical and metaphorical – building resilience and cultivating presence.

Jennifer’s experience of living with Parkinson’s is part of the landscape, but it does not dominate the narrative. Instead, it quietly sharpens the book’s central insight: that while we cannot always change our circumstances, we can change how we meet them. We can choose movement over stagnation, curiosity over fear. Sometimes the only way forward – in walking and in life – is onwards and upwards.

Wairarapa Word welcomes you to hear Jennifer Andrewes speak about her life and her books on Saturday April 4th at 3pm in the Community Courthouse, beside Carterton Library and Events Centre.

Jennifer will be in conversation with Carterton writer and editor Philippa Tucker.

Koha entry. No booking necessary. Just come along.