The drive from Lake Tekapo to Mt. Aspiring National Park had views on par with the destination itself, and some of the windiest, windiest (squiggly roads and high winds) roads we experienced until the drive to Milford Sound. The park itself was one of the few places we were actually able to freedom camp in …
Lake Tekapo was the first real town we went to after Mt. Aoraki, and I just want to take a second to recommend the Blue Lake Eatery and Bar. We got a fancy dinner there to celebrate getting engaged up at Sealy Tarns, and they have a platter where they give you a small portion …
Aoraki/Mt Cook has a similar naming situation to Denali/the mountain formerly known as McKinley. Unlike the full switch that was made to Denali in 2015, New Zealand amended the name Mt Cook, along with a number of other names in the South Island in 1998 to include both the Maori and European name. Hence the …
One of the reasons that renting a campervan was definitely worth it is the amazing drives between locations. The South Island definitely has no flyover states. For some of the windy drives with minimal guard rails, driving on the left side of the road, you definitely need a confident driver, and driving at night is …
Flying into Queenstown is a cool experience in itself, the approach is between mountains and when you land you get to take stairs down to the tarmac and walk into the airport which is one of my favorite airplane experiences. It makes me feel very fancy. We spent our first night in a hostel with …
If you've done any research on long hikes in New Zealand, you've probably come across the hut system. One of these huts was our destination on our pinnacles hike, and compared to the "huts" that I've used on the AT and the Vermont Long Trail, it's palatial. It's really more like a hostel with an …
I'm starting to go a little bit stir crazy, as most people are I'm sure. I always get that in the winter but usually the spring is when I can start going camping, especially here in Texas. Now though, I have nowhere to camp but my backyard. So I'm getting into what I usually do …
For those of us that go backpacking frequently, some things are just more comfortable to do and to talk about than for those that are used to more front country amenities. Basically anything that happens in the bathroom is a concern for first time backpackers. After the first few trips though, you'd be amazed how …
One of the hardest things about taking friends new to backpacking on a trip is assembling gear without it costing them a fortune. It doesn't really make sense for them to purchase gear until they've gone on a few trips and understanding what works best for them. There were some things we bought that weren't …
Sharing something you love can be one of the most rewarding experiences, so when two of my friends asked me to take them on a trip to teach them how to backpack I was over the moon, I was so excited. I was going to take them on the most amazing trip of their lives, …
