It’s not often that I directly recommend visiting a specific blog, but in the the case of “Tramping and climbing in Aotearoa”, I’m making an exception. You can find this blog at http://southernalps.wordpress.com. In case “southernalps”, and “Tramping” hadn’t already given it away, this is a blog that concerns itself with outdoor adventure in New Zealand. (Aotearoa is the Māori name for the country, meaning “land of the long white cloud”.)
The Silver Fern (Cyathea dealbata, or “ponga” in the Māori language) is widely recognised as a symbol of New Zealand. This specimen on the slopes of Pirongia, an extinct volcano in the Waikato region of North Island, made for an interesting back-lit subject, as well as providing a welcome diversion from a long and tiring descent of the mountain.
Climbing Mount Titiroa from Manapouri gave me an inkling of what New Zealand has to offer beyond the Great Walks, or indeed anything off the extensive network of marked tracks. Increased difficulty and seriousness is attended by more intense solitude, “purer” wilderness, and a tangible sense of exploration and discovery. That such ventures are possible in a First World country with a such a small landmass, still astounds me.
I’m rather fond of this image. To me it sums up the best part of 6 months’ travelling around New Zealand, trekking for extended periods, getting to know the wild side of the country intimately. All it takes is a map, and a thirst for adventure. What follows is completely down to you…
Thinking of doing the Kepler Track, but overwhelmed by conflicting information? Check out this set of links to both official advice, and personal tales of Kepler Track shenanigans. Now get your boots on!
Mount Egmont, or Taranaki, rises in the west of New Zealand’s North Island, a singular volcanic cone exhibiting a powerful symmetry. So symmetrical is Taranaki in fact (provided one isn’t viewing the mountain perpendicular to the parasitic cone of Fantham’s Peak), that it was used as a stand-in for Japan’s Mount Fuji in the film The Last Samurai. So, what better way to get to know Mount Egmont than to circumnavigate it, and then celebrate with an ascent?
Among the great joys of trekking in the backcountry of New Zealand, is that one can, through some effort (and what the man in the street would consider totally uncalled for privations), become intimately acquainted with a primeval and at times breathtakingly beautiful landscape.
Despite the best of intentions, I’ve yet to spend any meaningful time working on the visual design and layout of this blog. The default ‘Kubrick’ theme that comes with WordPress is of course clean, subtle, and eminently suitable for a fledgling blog. Without considerable care and restraint, I could quite easily wreck things as they stand (though of course, I do have backups — more on that some other time).
Eight days solid in the remote, primeval, temperate rainforest of South West Fiordland. Meet the Dusky Track. Find out what you’re letting yourself in for, and you shouldn’t need choppering out.
In early 2005, I registered the wildvista.com and wildvista.co.uk domain names. This was not long after I’d spent the best part of a year in New Zealand, latterly working, but having spent the first five months trekking (or tramping as the Kiwis have it) throughout this stunning country.
During that period, I explored landscapes as diverse as the 2500m ice-encrusted volcanic cone of Taranaki and the pristine temperate rainforests of remote Fiordland. With the best part of half-a-year unfettered by a full-time job and the associated frustrations and minutiae of the daily nine-to-five, I really got under the skin of New Zealand. And New Zealand got under my skin.
A chance set of circumstances lead to a magnificent (but very long!) day’s trekking on the Kepler Track — one of New Zealand’s best “Great Walks”. This illustrated article reveals the delights of this splendid (if over-engineered) track.
I was coming to the end of my fifth day of trekking in Kahurangi National Park, New Zealand, with another three days to go. As with most of the trekking here, shelter is provided by conveniently spaced, unmanned backcountry huts, but you need to carry all the food you’ll need for the entire trip, as well as everything else necessary to look after yourself while travelling through the bush.