Recent Posts
For over 1,300 kilometers, from Ship Cove to Bluff, Te Araroa travels across the rugged wilderness of New Zealand’s South Island. Continue reading for a glimpse at what New Zealand — and Te Araroa — have to offer.
read more (4574 words, 120 photos)
Over nearly 1,750 kilometers, from Cape Reinga to Wellington, Te Araroa travels across towns, cities, and the diverse landscape of New Zealand’s North Island. Continue reading for a glimpse at what New Zealand — and Te Araroa — have to offer.
read more (3566 words, 91 photos)
Now two years after completing New Zealand’s Te Araroa, I find I still have quite mixed feelings about the trail.
read more (2332 words, 7 photos)
On the north-eastern slopes of Mount Taranaki, one of New Zealand’s most iconic volcanoes, lies the Veronica Loop Track. An easy-to-moderate tramp 4.5 kilometer loop through lush rainforest, this trail provides excellent views of the lowlands surrounding Taranaki, with occasional views to the mountain’s summit.
read more (1388 words, 10 photos)
Most of my hiking has been on wilderness trails. And while I’m quite happy to keep doing that, I wanted to add some variety, and do a hike that was a bit more cultural. This led me to the Tasmanian Trail, which is very much not a wilderness trail. Rather, it’s a walk (or cycle, or horseback ride) through the center of Tasmania, along backcountry roads and through a dozen or two towns and communities of various sizes.
Given that a substantial portion of the Tasmanian Trail is on backcountry roads, I wasn’t expecting a lot from it, and I initially set my expectations low. Rather, I was viewing the trail as a convenient way to go somewhere relatively few other hikers do. (Especially considering some of the trail is on private land that can only be accessed with permission.) But, the trail turned out to be more interesting than I expected, and I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would. Read on to learn more about why that was.
read more (1572 words, 7 photos)