The Fellowship of the Van

The weather in New Zealand is as unpredictable as the landscapes are stunning—sunshine one minute, rain the next. Our research told us to pack for all four seasons and that was pretty accurate. We all got sun burnt on the beach in the North Island then froze on the overcast and windy days. Sometimes, it even changed over the course of a single day. It poured the entire drive to Hobbiton, but we had nothing but blue skies the whole time we were there. But today was the first day we were concerned about the weather. We were planning to go see Aoraki / Mount Cook, the tallest mountain in New Zealand, and the forecast was showing rain and cloudy skies all day. On a clear day you can see the mountain from 150 miles away, on a cloudy day you may not see it at all. The Hooker Valley Track is one of the most popular hiking trails in New Zealand. It's about a 7 mile roundtrip hike with great views of Mount Cook (on a clear day). It was at the top of our list of hikes we wanted to do and thi...

The South Island is known for its natural beauty and generally more rugged and outdoorsy appeal. It's about 33% bigger than the North Island but only 25% of the population live there. It's where you go when you want an adventure and we wanted adventure. Our drive took us through rolling hills of tall golden grass blowing in the wind and then along the coast with black sand beaches and rocky beaches covered with seals. It was hard not to stop at every turn. And we had heard so much about the sheep but had yet to see many. There are supposedly five sheep to every person in New Zealand. Turns out they're all on the South Island or at least most of them. They were everywhere but apparently we failed to take any pictures of them. Mount Sunday was the filming location of the town of Edoras, where King Theoden lived. The set was built for the movies and torn down after to return the area to its natural state but the location still has the distinct look from the movies. It's i...