I wrote this in winter August 2020. The restrictions for Covid had just been lifted in New Zealand. Queenstown to Mount Cook Three friends and I shot off to Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park bright and early on Friday morning to spend a winter weekend in Mount Cook. We drove from Queenstown to Mount Cook in …
Welcome to Mars For some reason, I never had any huge desire to explore the Omarama Clay Cliffs. Over the past few months, I had seen photos and heard about them. I couldn’t really picture the alien-looking Mars-like cliffs and surrounding area in my head. Yet I’m glad I waited to go, because I feel …
Spend the day in Queenstown! Luckily, there is no shortage of both free and commercial activities to choose from. After living here for six months, I’ve tried to perfect the delicate balance of enjoying the free activities the region has to offer and treating myself to more pricey options without breaking the bank. Above all, …
I woke up in a rainstorm, in my sweaty car, with sandflies buzzing inside my ears wondering how the queens of #vanlife Instagram pages sell the image and the lifestyle. The #vanlife babes and bros are a free-spirited ideology. On one hand, the hippy campers seem like a distant dream. On the other, they’re quite …
What’s the Kepler Track? The Kepler Track is one of New Zealand’s Great Walks. The country’s Department of Conservation (DOC) maintains 10 hiking tracks across New Zealand throughout unique and stunning landscapes. The Kepler is one of the most famous for its diverse environments from alpine mountains to beech tree forests to sandy lake shores. …
For the past year, I had wanted to visit Milford Sound. Finally, after Covid-19 lockdown ended, I entered a giveaway for a free cruise with Jucy Cruise. The cruise was going out the first weekend of out of lockdown from Covid-19. I couldn’t think of a better way to enjoy myself after being indoors for …
Longing for the Routeburn Conquering the Routeburn, one of NZ’s Great Walks, has been high on my list since arriving to the South Island. With its crystal clear river and beautiful valleys, there’s nothing not to love! The Routeburn is on one side of Mount Aspiring National Park, which we visited from the northern end …
One of the best parts of Queenstown is its proximity to such interesting locales for weekend trips! Queenstown has plenty of stellar weekend trips and things to do. Unfortunately, all of the well-known backpacking huts are booked well in advance for the summer season. Therefore, we looked elsewhere for outdoors adventures. Ultimately, my friends and …
When two of my friends were each leaving for trips to Vietnam, I thought it would be fun to look back on my trip and choose a couple of my favorite activities and restaurants to recommend for them! When I go somewhere new, my favorite way to get to know a place is through recommendations, …
Published December 2019. Backpacking in Abel Tasman is my favorite thing I have done in my 8 months in New Zealand, hands down! After hiking 13km with blisters on our feet, Nick and I arrived at the most incredible beach; it happened to be the wrong beach. We then swam 30 meters to the south …