Couple's big walk carries a message

SUPPORT: Ros (right) and Hugh Cole-Baker (second from right) met many people on their epic 3000km walk to raise awareness of organ donation, including Wanaka man Rob Johnston (second from left) who received a live kidney donation from his son Richie (left).

At the end of a 10-hour day walking in some of the most remote parts of the country, all Ros Cole-Baker wanted to see was her husband Hugh.

The Northland grandparents have spent more than four months walking and cycling the length of New Zealand for a cause close to their hearts.

After Hugh's kidney slowly failed from kidney disease over the period of a decade, it was Ros that donated one of her kidneys to her husband in October 2013.

When the Northern Advocate caught up with the couple at their home in Whangarei Heads this week after completing the epic walk they were just happy to put their feet up.

After meticulously planning each day of the trip the couple said it felt "weird" to be back to reality.

While the decision to donate an organ was deeply personal, the purpose of the walk was to encourage people to think about becoming organ donors, 70-year-old Hugh said.

"We want to encourage people that life goes on after transplant," he said. "The whole idea is to return you to as normal life as possible."

The messages comes ahead of Kidney Health Awareness Week which starts on Monday.

Ros did most of the gruelling walking on the 3000km hike, often more than 10 hours a day and sometimes staying out overnight.

"My great grandfather was an explorer and I think I got some genes passed down," 66-year-old Ros said.

Though Hugh was not up to walking the entire day, he drove the couple's campervan, walked in to meet his wife most days and biked with her whenever he could.

"It was so good to see the campervan at the end of the day," Ros said. "I couldn't have done it without him."

Throughout the long - often lonely - days Ros started looking forward to seeing the little orange triangle markers which meant she was following the right track.

"I started really loving seeing footprints too," Ros said. "It meant someone has been here."

Only once did Ros get lost though the combination of the trail notes, a printed map, the orange markers and the couple's GPS meant she eventually found her way to her husband.

Throughout the walk the couple met up with others who had donated kidneys, were waiting for transplants, or were just simply inspired by what they were doing.

At one point a German tourist told Ros she was "famous" because he had heard about the walk.

He was not the only one.

Publicity around the time the couple set off last year saw Northland District Health Board's renal team receive 13 potential local donor enquiries. Usually they only had about one or two a month.

While the number of organ donations last year in New Zealand was the highest ever, the Government wants to still increase the number.

The number New Zealanders receiving an organ transplant rose from 175 in 2013 to 214 in 2014, a 22 per cent increase. Seventy two of those were live kidney donations, a large increase on previous years.