Blogs from Stewart Island, South Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 2

Stewart Island day! Early start today, had to check in at the ferry building at 9am for our 9.30am ride across to Stewart Island. The ferry ride was quite relaxing, well, for those of us with good sea legs. The swell through the Foveaux Strait was like a smooth rollercoaster. Luckily the trip across was only an hour. Upon landing we set off on foot to book in to a boat tour around Patterson Inlet. Included in this was a 1-hour guided walk around Ulva Island. After many recommendations, we decided we had to visit Ulva Island. Ulva is a bird sanctuary and from the moment you set foot on the island you are greeted by birds sounds from all directions. While you can be dropped at the island and follow the tracks, we luckily took ... read more

Hey Everybody! It's been a little while since my last post, this mostly due to the latest amazing tramp we completed! Below the southern island of New Zealand is an even smaller and more remote island called, Steward Island. This is a unique destination because of the natural wild birds and plant-life which is much closer to how the main islands use to be. Also exciting about this track is the shear scale of it; in all it took us 10 days and nearly 100 kilometers to finish! Fortunately for us, the entire track featured back-country huts, saving us the need of carrying tents, but the weight was more then made up for in food alone. It's also quite mentally pleasing to know that at the end of a long day was a warm and dry ... read more

Hello all, this is the first blog now that I am away! Well I survived the 3 day and 4 change flight! Although I very nearly didn't get to begin my adventures. My flight from Heathrow, was delayed and then the ciaos of LA airport resulted in my name being called and me running for the plane with everyone sat on the plane waiting for me oops! I am staying with my friend in Ashburton for 10 days in New Zealand before flying onto LA. It should be summer here, but unfortunately its been a little overcast with only one day of glorious sun so far! New Zealand is like the UK 50 years ago with quaint villages and restaurants that close at 9pm! I have joined a 5 day tour around the south of the ... read more

The Catlins Coast is an untamed corner of New Zealand off the beaten track and not visited by many tourist but for nature at its best, the Catlins has a lot to offer so we intend to spend some time in this area. The region’s namesake was a ship’s captain who regularly traded with Australia. Edward Cattlin purchased a huge tract of land from local Maori in 1840. However authorities later reduced his claim and did not formally transfer title until 1873. This was a bit late for Captain Cattlin as he had died in Sydney 17 years earlier. Still his name has survived although with a slight modification to the spelling. We set off early with every intention of stopping along the rugged Otago coastline at Nugget Point but found that the road was in ... read more

It started out as a crisp clear early morning in Te Anau as I headed to Invercargill by bus with plans to go directly to Stewart Island (the third island, if you will, of New Zealand), off the bottom of the south island. I hadn't made up my mind yet how I was getting there. It's an hour by ferry on often-rough seas; it's 20 minutes by flight, often with no hassles at all. Invercargill is 30 minutes or so from Bluff, a small town teetering on the very edge of the bottom of the south island. In fact, it's the southern-most town in New Zealand, or at least out of the two main islands. Cost always plays a big part in the way I travel, and this Easter Monday was no exception. How to get ... read more