Napier 11-4-09 - Wednesday we arrived late afternoon in Napier on the East Coast of New Zealand’s North Island. Without a doubt, Napier is one of the loveliest cities we’ve been to since landing in New Zealand. We had Jeannie’s address and since she lived atop Lighthouse Road …. well we figured to find our way to the highest point in the city, close to the edge of the of the bluff and we should find her house. Sure enough we worked our way to the highest point and we finally found Lighthouse Road where she lives. Her daughter Emma greeted us as she returned from piano practice. We got settled in our room with all our stuff and awaited Jeannie and Magnus to return from Wellington. Not too long after we got in, Jeannie arrived, ... read more

10-25-09 - Sunday afternoon we departed Auckland heading south and then east to the very popular and beautiful Coromandel Peninsula. The Peninsula is due east of Auckland separated only by the Hauraki Gulf. The peninsula starts southeast of Auckland but juts out into the Pacific well north of Auckland. We’re hoping to see Auckland at night from the peninsula. This area we have been told has some of the finest and whitest sand beaches on the North Island. So we’re off to find out the truth and fiction of this well promoted vacation area. Hey we also got our first phone call on our cell phone. It was my friend Jeannie from Napier on the North Island where we’ll be staying for a few days. Jeannie’s warned us that they have some construction going on at ... read more

Kia Ora (Greetings) from Auckland, New Zealand - We arrived in Auckland - City of Sails, on Thursday (10-15-09) at 12:10pm. The last two times I was here it was sunny and beautiful. We arrived in overcast skis and light rain but it was a great view as we dropped below the clouds to see this city that is surrounded by water, sailboats and volcanos. Auckland is situated among 49 volcanos - all at this time dormant - hope it stays that way for awhile. It took us 1 ½ hours to get out of the airport because of customs, and the fact we had declared camping equipment such as hiking boots and tents. The Kiwi’s (New Zealanders) check all this to make sure you’re not bringing in foreign critters and soils on camping gear that ... read more

These are the tents we'll be taking with us to New Zealand in October. The North Face Tadpole is a 2-person backpacking tent we'll be using on the numerous backpacking trips in New Zealand. The tent weighs 5 pounds and is a great backpacking tent. This is a 16 year old tent with a brand new fly (thanks North Face!). The Sierra Designs Tiros 2 is a 2-person 4 season tent. We'll use the Tiros the majority of the time in New Zealand while car camping. The tent weighs 10 pounds, sets up fairly easy and is absolutely bomb proof. It has front and back door and two vestibules for storage of gear outside the sleeping area.... read more