We had stopped at the Visitor Information Centre in Foster to get some information on hiking in Wilson’s Promontory (click here to see the post). We began chatting with the husband and wife volunteer team…
We caught up to the couple from Melbourne at the end of the track, while they stretched their muscles and pondered the trail map. We had just walked for three hours through bushland and forest…
About four hours drive from Hobart, the very civilized capital of Tasmania on the east coast, or a couple of hours from bustling Launceston at the midpoint of the north coast, you can delve into…
One of the great pleasures of hiking in the woods (or bush, as they say in Oz) is coming upon elusive wildlife. Anyone who has visited Yellowstone or seen deer grazing in Colorado knows this…
Somehow you always end up talking about fire in Australia, especially if you spend a lot of time outdoors like we do. Locals refer to certain years as familiar, but horrific signposts from the past.…
Maui, half-man and half-god, is credited in Maori legends with many great feats. He lengthened the day by subduing the sun and slowing its progress through the sky. And he created the land of New…
Since before the Europeans started to explore New Zealand, the vast southwest area of the South Island called Fjordland proved quite inhospitable. Captain Cook passed it by; the Spanish lit out for Australia after seeing…
Maori legends tell that the Whanganui River formed as a result of a love triangle among volcanoes. Mount Taranaki once lived next to three kinsman in the center of the North Island, his fellow volcanoes…
We were just one hour into our hike along the famed Abel Tasman Coastal Track, one of the nine great walks of New Zealand. And it was tea time. We were familiar with many of…
Hiking in New Zealand is often made possible by the cooperative effort between landowners and the hikers. This is a similar relationship to the one we found in Europe. Without this cooperation we would be…