This is Part 2 of our Tasmania Roadtrip. Part 1 covers our time on the East Coast. After the lovely east coast we turned to the more remote and rugged western part of the island. Here unsealed roads stretched into a series of large national parks and the few cars we did pass all had their exhaust pipes wound up to the roof so that they could traverse muddy...
Before we landed we knew very little about Tasmania other than it was far, wild, and home of the Tasmanian devil. But we’d read enough accounts describing the island as the “love child of Australia and New Zealand” for us to devote 12 days to exploring the island (almost as much time as our whirlwind tour of Vietnam). We’re glad we did...
Following an intense 10 day stretch of hiking New Zealand (Ben Lomond, Routeburn, Avalanche Peak, and Nelson Lakes) we took a quick Christmas break in Nelson before heading to Abel Tasman National Park. Abel Tasman National Park is New Zealand’s smallest. It is a coastal park situated at the top of the South Island and features golden sand, granite cliffs, and...
Following our exquisite but quick day hike of Avalanche Peak in Arthur’s Pass National Park we turned further north and headed towards Nelson Lakes National Park. Our goal was a final high-country Alpine hike and a nice campsite to spend the day before Christmas Eve. We found both on our hike/tramp of a modified Angelus Hut circuit, involving a long day on...
The Routeburn Track is the 2nd most trafficked New Zealand Great Walk (after Able Tasman, which has the benefit of year-round access). After our two-day, one night hike of the route, it’s easy to see why. Routeburn has gentle climbs, a beautiful 5 hour section of Alpine ridge, several worthy waterfalls, and a couple of worthy side trips to small peaks with big...
I have to admit, that in reading about New Zealand’s tramping and in staring at the map of the South Island Arthur’s Pass National Park remained a bit of an anomaly. Truthfully it appears awkwardly wedged between Nelson Lakes to the North, Aorokai/Mount Cook National Park to the South, and the Franz Josef Glacier region to the Southwest. Car campsites...
Queenstown was our first stop in New Zealand and we absolutely loved it (as you can tell in our post our various recs of what to do in town). And nothing was better than our introductory hike in the Remarkables range to the top of Ben Lomond mountain. It’s a perfect introduction to New Zealand’s Southern Alps. On a good day the 360 views stretch out over...
I’m watching people come and go on the dusty streets of Kuta, Lombok, an island in Indonesia. The foreigners I see through the coffee shop window come from dozens of countries, yet as they walk through the streets and hop on their motorbikes it’s clear that about 80% of them are all cut from the same cloth. I sip my coffee and wonder about the deep similarities that...
The road from Lake Toba and/or Medan to the jungle preserve of the orangutans in North Sumatra begins a complex juxtaposition of the wild, semi-wild, and actively destroyed ecosystems of the region. It takes over 3-4 hours to snake the barely 50 miles separating the sleepy Jungle town of Bukit Luwang from the 5 million inhabitants of the city of Medan. In that time...
We spent a lovely five nights in Ubud with very little agenda except to wander around. Here are some of the spots we found and really enjoyed (as well as some we recommend you avoid). Where to Eat in Ubud, Bali Dumbo Restaurant – Makes you feel like you’re back in Brooklyn but not necessarily in a bad way. The cocktails are truly a highlight. Amsa Warung...