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 …
I had the opportunity to go skydiving in Glenorchy, New Zealand, recently, and for some strange reason, I went. Before jumping out of the plane, a wave of calm ran over me and it felt like I was mindlessly grocery shopping or driving a route I know really well. Nothing was going through my mind. …
This weekend, I headed out to Aspiring National Park for a much-anticipated backpacking trip. I have been wanting to go camping in the backcountry since arriving in New Zealand, which was unfortunately in winter. Due to my strange hospitality job schedule and the excessive amounts of winter rain, I never got around to it. But …
After one of my first days in Queenstown, after work, my friend/co-worker, Maz and I headed up to Moke Lake to take a walk. We drove alongside Lake Wakatipu and crept higher in elevation. It was so stunning. The views of the lake and the mountains behind it in every direction are stunning. Once we …
When traveling, if you’re someone that’s more interested in doing your own thing, rather than heading with the throngs of other tourists to the most bustling destinations, New Plymouth is the place for you. Do you love good coffee, awesome surf, contemporary art, and sick mountain trails? I have spent time in the more popular …