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Alex TandeExplorer

Just a bearded guy with a camera. Trying to explore this world one step, pedal crank, or paddle stroke at a time. Always need to find time for the hammock and the 12oz beer curl. You know, the important parts of life

Off the beaten path from the major names of the parks. This was fantastic, pretty steep start and finish, but the rest is a mellow hike with a few stream crossings, rock hopping, and technical parts, but so worth it. Great spot to explore!

Did this in combination with Duthie Hill, and it was sweet. Went on a Tuesday which helped, but hardly saw anybody on the trail and it was a well groomed trail. The initial downhill to the boardwalk and then a climb gets a good workout in. Overall pretty fast and flowy, fun trail!

Great little hike to the falls. Pretty sweet falls when the sun is coming through at the right angle (towards sunset) as the rainbow spans the entire falls!

While the beach itself is cool, the entire area is a great spot to check out. the first step in that section of the peninsula is this beach which is awesome. Continue on past the beach to check out even more spots that are well worth it. The peninsula on a whole is great, this beach is no exception

We didn't have time to walk the full 2.5k trail, but just stopping and hanging out at the top of the cliff for awhile was awesome. Great scenery and awesome location. I wish we had time to do the full 2.5k walk! If you are out on the peninsula, definitely worth a stop.

Cool spot! Didn't really know what to expect in terms of hiking or getting to the crater. Once you park the car, you are already at the rim. Worth checking out and walking around the rim. Please do be careful with where you walk. There are roped off areas that you shouldn't cross. The land is delicate and the least we can do is protect it. Get some great expansive views for very little effort.

For anybody on this site we are generally looking for some sort of adventure right? This entails about 100 feet of walking and then jostling for a position to see the falls. AND I was there in the shoulder season. If you have limited time in Iceland, go for it, easy drive from Reykjavik, but if you have some time, spend it elsewhere

Explorer

06/20/16

We went outside the "Great Walk Season" so the huts were a fraction of the cost. The weather wasn't great but the views were still incredible! Loved the days that we had on the track. The second day had spectacular ridgeline views. Most likely will go back and try and get some better days.

It was a bit of a climb heading up. Quite honestly no reprieve from the straight up hill climb until you get to the top. It isn't long, but it sure gains elevation. Having said that being able to look around from the top of the Ridgeline is pretty fantastic. Worth doing for a half-day hike for sure

Explorer

05/22/16

The photos say it all. The description is quite accurate. The stars (as seen) were just phenomenal. DO IT!

The weather was pretty crap so we decided not to tackle Roys Peak, the Waterfall Creek was a great alternative. Cruising right along the shoreline was awesome to see the lake. At night it cleared up and the stars were simply phenomenal to see over Lake Wanaka and the town.

The hike up to Sealy Tarns certainly offered incredible views! Lots of steps which my body didn't enjoy all that much, but well worth it. We continued up past the Sealy Tarns to Mueller hut, the views were epic. For sure would recommend heading up this way.

Great little side trip to an impressive waterfall. Easy track to follow, only 30 minutes, not a bad way to fill a morning. I was able to do this and another trek in the area in the same day.

Just a magnificent spot. The day before it had snowed and the second half of the trek was done under bright blue skies and pure white snow underneath. Everybody in my crew couldn't stop saying how excellent the entire thing was. Spectacular views, easy enough hike, and just a brilliant day all around. One of my best days in NZ

Decided to go here last minute to add onto our trip. So glad we did. Easily accessible from a few different trail systems, we stopped here for a night and was treated to the Milky Way rising up behind the peaks and then in the morning a perfectly still lake reflecting all the peaks lighting up in the morning sun. Great spot and the camping spots were awesome.

I'll be honest, for those who have seen glaciers in the past, these can be a little underwhelming. I was only able to get as close as about 700 meters, which is still quite far. The path was very well maintained as you can imagine, but it was very crowded. It is one of the crown jewels for NZ, and people know about it. It is some cool scenery and glaciers are always fun to see, but there are better spots to explore in NZ.

Did this hike many years ago as my first ever backpacking trip, knew I had to go back. Got back there recently and it doesn't disappoint. The hike in can be long, but it goes through a variety of different scenery, always keeping you in awe. The camping locations at Marmot Lake are brilliant with the lake and sun warmed rocks. Jade Lake is another hike up, requiring a pretty good rock scramble, but worth every step. Highly recommend this track as a 3 day minimum. You won't regret it

Excellent sweeping views of the surrounding waters. Short hike, but steep. Great place on top to sit and relax for a bit. Sunset was brilliant!

Consider yourself very lucky to get such an encounter with whales. People paddle the islands for years without getting as lucky as you! Doing the loop is awesome as you get to paddle different shorelines and each island is distinctly different offering a different feel for each one. Excellent place to kayak and enjoy the views. One of my favorite places ever for sunsets!

The drive from Friday to Roche is gorgeous, and it only gets better form there! Paddling out of Roche and crossing over to Stuart is an awesome crossing. Stuart Island is a little spot that has an amazing amount to offer between the school, lighthouse, and the campgrounds. Would highly recommend making your way along this trip

Timing is very important! Based on how my trip wound up, didn't make it until about 11:30am or so, and it was already crowded. The boulders themselves were cool, but can imagine the difference between sunrise and midday. Certainly worth a stop! Right off Hwy 1 between Dunedin and Christchurch it is a perfect spot to stretch the legs and check out some incredibly unique boulders