Jess is a Wanderer headed out to Aoraki/Mount Cook and what a place! Perfect, clear views of the mountain and a very manageable, very well-maintained track to Hooker Lake. Despite being busy with tourists hiking the famou route, this was a fantastic way to spend a day. 10km return, it's suitable for all fitness levels and, if the weather is good, you'll thoroughly enjoy yourself. We did try to get around Hooker Lake and to the base of the mountain. A tricky endeavour that end

Jess is a Wanderer has tried twice to get the infamous picture of Taranaki reflected in a mountain-top tarn... ! As the alarm was going off at 4am I was genuinely confused. Until I realised that today was the day I was hiking the Mangorei Track to Pouakai Hut. This 2hr one-way hike leads to spectacular views of Mount Taranaki. Unless you do it in the rain (like I did before). The stars were out, there wasn't a cloud in the sky. As I got to the start of the track I was hopeful

Jess is a Wanderer set sail down the Whanganui River on a five-day, unguided adventure. We hired the kayaks from Whanganui River Canoes and can't recommend them enough. Here’s what happened... If you’re short on time and don’t want to read the whole post, scroll down for the video! It’s a cracker! *WARNING* this is rather a long post but I really have to set the scene for you to get an insight into our five day adventure on the great Whanganui River!! For those who know me, y

Tongariro National Park is famous for the ever-popular Tongariro Alpine Crossing that sees thousands of visitors complete each year. With the infamous Devil's Staircase (a trillion, billion steps that are able to give you a heart attack), views of Mount Doom from Lord of the Rings and beautiful emerald lakes, it's easy to see why it's so popular. But what else does this National Park have to offer? Much more, that's for sure! As well as being home to Mount Ngauruhoe (Mount Do

Jess is a Wanderer ventured around Mount Taranaki in search of good views, good hikes and good weather. Sadly, there were intermittent views, slippy hikes and the worst weather you could imagine! We made it out for a couple of sunrises without getting washed away - but without seeing too much either. We did, however, enjoy some very soggy walks through the bush. Mount Taranaki peaking through the clouds on an almost perfectly clear morning. It was just a shame we woke up at 4

Jess is a Wanderer explored New Plymouth and climbed to the top of Paritutu Rock, ventured around Pukekura Park and visited Te Rewa Rewa bridge. All in all, combined with the magnificent Mount Taranaki, New Plymouth is a fab place to be based. Te Rewa Rewa bridge is on the coastal walkway which spans the entire town of New Plymouth. It's an easy stroll that it suitable for all abilities with great views of Mount Taranaki - on a clear day. Sadly, that wasn't the case when we w

Days 62-65: Jess is a Wanderer travelled to Chitwan in South West Nepal in order to do some wildlife spotting - rhinos, crocodiles and insects galore! We took a bus from Kathmandu city centre - on a road called Kanti Path (outside the Yellow Pagoda Hotel) - easily booked from any travel agent in the city centre and costing 600-800RS for a one-way ticket. The buses leave each day at 06:45-7:00 and the journey is supposed to take around five hours but be prepared for more like

Days 29-30: Jess is a Wanderer spends the last few days in the wilderness before returning back to Tirana, Albania's bustling capital city. Wolvo has sustained some sort of knee injury during the shenanigans of the last couple of days so our final full day was spent walking from our house - 4km from Theth to Nderlysa - a small village with mostly flat terrain, suitable for one with a knee injury! After completing a 10km jaunt and reaching 'the end of the line', we decided to

Day 28: We'll just go for a short walk today. Nothing too strenuous... 6km later we're on top of a super steep mountain! The Germans left after breakfast and Maria pointed us in the direction that we should spend the day walking. There was a giant mountain which looked totally impossible to climb so we imagined we'd be a couple of hours and then head back to relax. Due to budget constraints... story of my life... we opted to pass on lunch. At €6 a day each, Maria packed a hea

Days 25-26: Jess is a Wanderer was hiking mountains, chasing waterfalls and sampling homemade rakia in Albania's wilderness and it couldn't have been more perfect! Arriving into the village was perfect timing as - per usual - Wolvo and I desperately needed to pee. We pulled up to Sadri Lukes 'Hotel' and realised very quickly that it wasn't a hotel and in fact, a lady's house. You could' really get two more awkward people so put us together in a homestay situation and, well, i

Day 25: Jess is a Wanderer went to Albania in search of mountains. Thethi National Park came up with the goods but the journey there was quite the adventure in itself... We knew that we had to take the bus from Tirana to Shkodër, pronounced Shkodra, from somewhere near the capital's Central Bus Station. That's about all we knew! It was raining so we were going to call for a taxi until we realised that we didn't know where our apartment was so that would be a pointless endeavo

Days 10-12: Jess is a Wanderer spent three days hiking in Slovakia's Tatrus mountain range. Here's why you should too! 48 hours before arriving in High Tatrus, I'd never heard of the place. To be honest, I'm not entirely sure how I did hear about it but once I had, I was adamant about visiting. With a range of peaks to conquer, there's something for every ability of hiker. There are lakes to walk around, trails to waterfalls and forests galore. We stayed in the most wonderful

Days 3-4: Jess is a Wanderer heads out into Estonia's wilderness... We had only been in Tallinn (Estonia's capital) for a matter of hours before we heard about Projekt Kodu and just knew we had to visit. We'd already heard about Lahemaa National Park and decided that going there was high on our priority list during our time in Estonia. Why Projekt Kodu? An eco-lodge set in the heart of Estonia's largest national park, it has a sauna, free bicycle hire, funky yurts, campfire,