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Return to the USA

I am officially back in the USA after some 30 hours of traveling from New Zealand. Now it is time to work and enjoy the summer weather.

Posted on July 7th, 2008 by Evan and filed under Travel | 1 Comment »

NZ Slideshow

Some photos of my semester abroad in New Zealand.

Posted on June 13th, 2008 by Evan and filed under New Zealand | 4 Comments »

New Zealand Travel Pics

Posted on June 12th, 2008 by Evan and filed under New Zealand | No Comments »

This past week I had some time off, so I took the opportunity to visit Sydney, Australia. Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate very well, but it was still nice to visit. It is a decent city with some nice harbors. I will get back on here soon to post some more details on the last few weeks here. New Zealand is beginning to cool down. Temperatures are reaching about a high a 60 degrees in the daytime. Time is beginning to wind down here. I am looking forward to returning to the summer season back home.

Flickr Photos

Posted on June 5th, 2008 by Evan and filed under Australia | No Comments »

Spread the Truth…

Barefoot Truth, an upcoming band, just released its first music video. This song is called “Reeln’” and comes off of their 3rd album (Walk Softly). For more information on their music and upcoming shows, visit their website: www.barefoottruth.com

Posted on May 11th, 2008 by Evan and filed under Music | No Comments »

Rangitoto Island

This volcanic island is located near Auckland, New Zealand in the Hauraki Gulf. It was formed about 600 years ago after a series of several eruptions. It is no longer active and is mainly a tourist spot. Ferry trips leave the Auckland Harbor on a daily basis. This past weekend I decided to take a trip out there with my friend to explore around a bit. The weather forecast was calling for rain, but we figured that we would give it a go. After the boat ride there, we begin our assent to the summit. It only took about 45 minutes and the sun was actually beginning to come out some at the top. The views were decent and it was quite warm out.

From there, we moved on to go check out the Lava Caves, which were formed from the passage of lava following eruptions. Those were neat, but it was very dark and unfortunately we didn’t have a light source. To finish off the rest of the day, we took the coastal walk on the eastern side of the island, back to the wharf for the ferry pick up. The coastal walk was nice, but difficult to walk on all the jagged lava rocks.

Posted on April 29th, 2008 by Evan and filed under New Zealand | No Comments »

Fiordland National Park

This National Park has to be one of the most beautiful in the world. It is located on the southwest part of the South Island in New Zealand. It is made of of several fiords that were craved out by glaciers several years ago. I got the opportunity to visit the Milford Sound, which is displayed in the pictures. Mitre Peak (located on the left of both images) rises out of the sound, reaching a height of 1692 meters (5076 ft). It is an amazing site in real life, pictures do absolutely no justice.

The drive to Milford Sound was my favorite part. From the town of Te Anau, it takes at least 2 hours because of all the stops for pictures. This drive is filled with open fields, rivers, lakes, waterfalls, and huge snow capped mountains. At one point, you have to drive in a tunnel that runs through one of the mountains. It is only one lane, so the traffic light switches every 15 minutes.

Once I arrived at Milford Sound, I stayed at the Milford Lodge. The next morning I took a boat tour through the sound, which I highly recommend. If you have the extra cash, there are scenic flights that take off from a small airport next to the sound. These flights give you a bird’s eye view of the fiordland and the rest of the southern alps. It’s well worth the trip if the opportunity arrives…

Posted on April 27th, 2008 by Evan and filed under New Zealand | No Comments »

Jumping Around the World

Posted on April 20th, 2008 by Evan and filed under Photography | No Comments »

Live Coverage from Mt. Doom

A report from the summit.

Web streaming video

Posted on April 15th, 2008 by Evan and filed under New Zealand | No Comments »

Tongariro Crossing Exploration

On Thursday evening, I picked up my rental car, then my fellow travelers, Hilary and Janneke. We made our way down to our accommodation at Howard’s Lodge in National Park. We arrived around 10:30PM and were off to bed once we located our dorm room. Friday morning began with some breakfast and a shuttle ride to the beginning of the hike, where I met up with Mike and some of his friends. The weather was perfect. We began the hike, then decided to stray from the Crossing to go hike up Mt. Ngauruhoe (AKA Mt. Doom for those Lord of the Rings fans). It was very difficult because of the steepness and the loose terrain, which made it hard to get good footing. The weather also changed drastically when we reached the summit (7500ft). It was a lot colder and some clouds started to roll in, but we still had some nice views, which made it well worth it. The fun part was going back down to the bottom because I got to slide down and do some “dune” skiing as I call it along the way.

Group shot at the summit

Mt. Doom

Posted on April 13th, 2008 by Evan and filed under New Zealand | No Comments »

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