BootsnAll Travel Network



Tramping around Mordor

February 17th, 2007

Sorry for the Lord of the Rings names, but believe me they are easier to remember than the real ones! Based in the imaginatively named National Park village, I spent three days doing the Tongariro Northern Circuit in New Zealands first national park.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags:

Finally made it to North Island…

February 12th, 2007

I’m a little behind my rough schedule this morning. I spent about 6 weeks on the South Island, and now have less than two to do the entire north. It’s a grey overcast day as the Interislander ferry leaves Picton, three hours later to arrive in Wellington, the capital city on the north island.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags:

A stroll by the sea: Queen Charlotte Track

February 11th, 2007

I’ve done a fair bit of trekking this year, with a good number of overnight trips, but this must be the most civilised. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags:

Kayaking in Abel Tasman

February 7th, 2007

Nelson’s a pretty town, with lots of open space, hanging baskets in the street and art galleries and cafes. It’s also on the doorstep to Abel Tasman National Park, where I spent a couple of days kayaking around the bays and islands. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags:

A scenic train ride and some big pancakes on the way north

February 4th, 2007

There’s not much I want to see on the west coast. To break the journey and take a few days rest, and away from spending loads of money I head up to a place called Greymouth and then take the Tranzscenic train a few hours up into the Southern Alps. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags:

A glacier by the sea

January 31st, 2007

An early start this morning, and for some reason the 5 hour journey to the Franz Josef Glacier on the west coast takes nearly all day! It’s a cloudless on the day I arrive and leave, but the day I want to go on the glacier…. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags:

Crazytown

January 29th, 2007

p>Back to civilisation, and a major tourist spot. Queenstown is yet another lakeside town, named as it was deemed fit for Queen Vic herself. Though I’m unsure as to whether she would have been “amused” by the things you can do here…. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags:

A “Great Walk”

January 26th, 2007

Tramping, as hiking is commonly known here, is an extremely popular Kiwi passtime. Tracks criss cross the entire country, with many backcountry huts. The most popular tracks are called the Great Walks, and the Dept. of Conservation manage these by instituting a permit system to control numbers on the tracks at anyone time to limit damage caused by us humans. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags:

Rain and shine, 2 fiords

January 21st, 2007

The early ferry back to Bluff is almost empty, and so is the bus up to Te Anau, a nice little town in the heart of Fiordland. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags:

The Catlins and the scenic road to Stewart Island

January 19th, 2007

The Catlins is the stretch of land between Balclutha and Invercargil. It’s all forests and wildlife filled bays. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: