Nowadays, I feel like everywhere I look, I see mushrooms. From decorating cushions to foraging with friends to microdosing, mushrooms have been in fashion for a while now. Trendy and cool fungi are having a real renaissance, and I’m here for it. 

So, what has inspired the world to wake up to how cool mushrooms can be? I think the popularity of books like Merlin Sheldrake’s Entangled Life, which gives us plebs a glimpse into their complex world combined with the “discovery” of their superpowers, has rocketed mushrooms into a bit of a cultural zeitgeist. A friend of mine here in New Zealand even wrote about it: Fungi of Aotearoa.

I mean, I get it. Mushrooms are amazing. From their positive health benefits to interest in psychedelics again, mushrooms are just pretty cool to look at, not to mention how tasty some can be. Some can even glow in the dark. Others will kill you. Talk about enigmatic. Mushrooms are a real vibe in 2024.

And none more so than New Zealand’s endemic neon blue mushroom – werewere-kōkako or Entoloma hochstetteri.

When autumn rolls around, it’s usually exciting to see large red and white toadstools pop up along our favorite walks. If you’re a food forager, head out to your secret spots for porcini mushrooms. But there’s a new celebrity in town: the werewere-kōkako.

Well, this guy has been around forever, but only recently has he been blowing up online. In fact, New Zealand’s blue mushroom adorns our $50 bill; we also hold the honor of being the only country with a mushroom on a banknote. Now that we live in a visual world obsessed with sharable content online, there’s nothing quote so cool as a mushroom so blue it looks like it was drawn with a crayon. It’s so Instagrammable.

Also, we’re not used to seeing neon blue as a natural color. It’s weird. It definitely screams, “Do not eat me!” Though I did meet someone recently who said they had tried the werewere-kōkako and was ok; I’m skeptical.

Current studies show that these guys aren’t magic mushrooms; they don’t contain any psilocybin.

New Zealand’s blue mushroom gets its Māori name, werewere-kōkako, from the color of the blue waddle on the endangered North Island kōkako, a native wattlebird. In one tradition, the kōkako brushed its cheek against the mushroom, giving its wattle the iconic blue color.

The kind of blue your mouth turns after you’ve wolfed down a 7-Eleven slurpee, the werewere-kōkako really does need to be seen to be believed. I’ve found the best time to spot them is in the autumn, in damp areas like the West Coast or Rakiura/Stewart Island. Remember, autumn down under is April through June-ish. I’ve only seen them in the temperate rainforests, popping up amongst moss or leaf litter beneath native trees. 

One thing I love about mushroom hunting is that you have to slow down and be present. You’ll probably miss them if you tramp really quickly in New Zealand. They’re not that big, maybe up to four centimeters. Often, we saw them somewhat clustered together in pairs, with quite a few in the same area. Once you know what to look for, they become much easier to spot. 

There is something really engaging about seeing a pop of neon blue in a forest full of deep greens and browns. 

While I’ve seen New Zealand’s blue mushroom here and there over the years from my time spent in the bush, I never really stopped to consider it until last autumn when I hiked the Rakiura Track with friends over Easter. They were everywhere, along with many other types of mushrooms. It was an unexpected but super fun game of mushroom spotting while tramping through the bush.

The werewere-kōkako are striking. A pinkgill mushroom (Entoloma genus), so far, no one has figured out what pigment makes these guys so blue. And this is actually a big deal because most blues we see in food, drinks, and even makeup come from synthetic blue dye. Most blues that appear in nature oxidize quickly, turning brown. 

Scientists here have been trying to isolate the genes that make the werewere-kōkako so blue but have not had much luck. They’ve also tried growing the mushrooms in labs and failed. But some believe that if we could figure it out, we could produce the world’s first all-natural blue food dye. 

And this is where it gets interesting. Werewere-kōkako are taonga (treasured) species in New Zealand. Māori retain authority around genetics, and commercial work related to it must involve careful collaboration and partnership with iwi and hapū. 

So now is the time to search for New Zealand’s blue mushroom. They’re found all over the country (for the most part); you just have to start looking down. Don’t be afraid to get your knees muddy, kneel on the ground, and look beneath ferns and amongst the mosses. 

The reward of a glimpse of a bright blue werewere-kōkako is so worth it. 

The post New Zealand’s blue mushroom the world is obsessed with appeared first on Young Adventuress.

We all know that Milford Sound generally gets all of the attention in Fiordland, with Doubtful Sound coming up second, but there are so many other places you can access here. For those of you looking to get off the beaten tourist track and step somewhere extraordinary, boy, have I found the place for you!

Allow me to introduce the Borland Valley! Buckle up if you’re like me and haven’t heard much about this area. If you’re eye-rolling me right now, pipe down. Let a girl get excited!

Epic views, incredible nature, no tourists, easy tracks, the Borland area of Fiordland is remarkable for so many reasons.

25 photos that will inspire you to visit Fiordland

The local Department of Conservation office in Te Anau is probably my favorite DOC office. They are constantly working with the community. From offering fantastic nature-based adventures to doing great things for Fiordland, they rock. They also put on so many incredible events (usually in summer) that share some of the best stories from the region you might not have known much about.

Last January, I tagged along on one of their day trips to the Borland Valley to discover the incredible alpine world of plants.

Spoiler alert – it’s so cool! You guys know I’m a massive plant nerd, but I know little of native alpine plants beyond pretty buttercups and daisies and, of course, all the tussock. With renowned botanist Brian Rance, we explored all along the Borland Saddle and Mt Burns area, peering down at the ground and marveling at this beautiful, tiny jungle beneath our feet.

It was one of those perfect summer days where it felt like you could reach up and touch the sky. Hot and sunny, it’s not what you might expect when you picture the foggy cliffs of Milford Sound. It’s about an hour and a half drive south from Te Anau to the Borland Saddle on Borland Road. Here is where you can begin to climb up towards Mt Burns. 

Fiordland is enormous, and most of it is inaccessible by roads. But the Borland Valley is one of the few areas with road access, though it’s not always for the faint of heart. Unsealed, narrow, and steep, it’s definitely not recommended for campervans. 4WD is usually the best. DOC mentions that there is no fuel, communication (including cell phone coverage), or emergency services along its length; therefore, only those properly equipped should attempt to negotiate the road.

For anyone living in New Zealand long enough, that sounds about standard. For visitors, make sure you plan.

As you climb up the Borland area, you can catch glimpses of Lake Monowai in the distance. A popular spot for fishing, kayaking, and boating, it’s a great part of Fiordland.

Lake Monowai also powers one of the South Island’s oldest hydroelectric stations, which opened in 1925. Back in 1963, a workers’ camp was set up, the Pig Creek Hostel, and the construction of a road and electricity line began through the remote mountains to the West Arm Power Station in Manapōuri. Nowadays, the workers’ camp has been extensively redeveloped into the Borland Lodge, an education and accommodation complex, a trust where school groups and people come to learn outdoor education or to base themselves in a beautiful place. 

The Borland Road is still used to maintain the power line, which you can see as you climb up Mt Burns.

The biodiversity of this part of Fiordland is magnificent! Road access up almost to 1,000 meters makes this unique alpine environment more accessible, not that it’s busy.

It’s a short, steep climb towards the Mt Burns tarns through the tussocks. Here is where things get really beautiful. In early summertime, you might also be able to see the beautiful Mount Cook Buttercup.

In the distance, you can see the Borland Road, with the iconic powerlines, and down towards Green Lake, another unique tramping area. It’s hard not to stop every few minutes to take in the powerful landscapes. With some luck, you’ll probably have the place all to yourselves.

The incredible droseras (sundews) are some of New Zealand’s only carnivorous plants. They were plentiful along the climb to the saddle. As well as cushionbogs and unusual orchids, nine species of snow grass, this makes the Borland the most diverse area in New Zealand when it comes to alpine plants.

Many other alpine plants like hebes, aciphyllas, celmisias, and dracophyllums cover the open landscape. You don’t want to squash any of them as you pick your way through the grasses.

Once you get to the tarns, you must follow your nose as you climb higher along the creek towards Mt Burns. 

As someone inherently drawn toward the beauty of the peaks, I really enjoyed slowing down. It’s easy to get caught up with the idea of arriving at a destination instead of looking down beneath my feet. I would have walked right on by so many of these plants in the past. Knowing what I was looking at and what to look for made this trip all the more special.

I already know I’ll be back again to this part of Fiordland for a more extended visit. 

Have you heard of the Borland Valley and this corner of Fiordland? 

Many thanks to Great South for hosting me in Fiordland; like always, I’m keeping it real – as if you could expect less from me!

The post Botanizing in the Borland Valley: Fiordland’s best hidden gem appeared first on Young Adventuress.

How many of us dream of working in a museum as a kid? Or even running one? Hands up for my fellow nerds! For as long as I can remember, I thought I would end up working in a museum. Or a library. Or better yet, a museum library (I’m looking at you, the Morgan). But what if you dreamed of making up your very own museum? Why not?!

When I learned that Bruce Mahalski’s dream was always to create a curiosity museum, I knew I had to visit. And of course, it would be in Dunedin, New Zealand’s unofficial capital of the curious. Just another reason to say how much I love Dunedin! 

The Dunedin Museum of Natural Mystery is a living, breathing work of art, a private museum of bones, bone art, ethnographic artifacts, and assorted trinkets in Bruce’s home on Royal Terrace.

After a lifetime of collecting and observing the natural world, he manifested his dream of running a museum into a reality. For example, here, you will find unique treasures, paranormal moments, and even rare glimpses into moments in Kiwiana history and many bones.

Artifacts like a Gloriavale uniform (a religious cult here in NZ), a piece of wood from the most haunted house in England, a shit ton of fossils, and lots of butterflies decorate the walls.

25 photos that will inspire you to visit Dunedin

The Dunedin Museum of Natural Mystery is a collection of curiosities that amplify the beauty of the natural world. Here you will find a museum unlike any other, a place that is constantly changing and evolving. You can tell that everything here is handpicked for a reason with a big fat, juicy story behind it. 

You’ll find plenty of skulls, bones, biological curiosities, and ethnological art from New Zealand and worldwide. 

Don’t be intimidated – Bruce even has a little sign on his desk mentioning that he is, in fact, friendly. As an insanely curious person, this is my kind of place. You won’t be surprised to learn that I spent hours here. Passing through the rooms first as a tourist, reading every one of the descriptions, and then again as a photographer. 

Truthfully, I wanted to stay even longer. Then Bruce mentioned I didn’t have to – the museum is also home to an Airbnb – yes, you can ACTUALLY spend a night in a museum; how cool is that?

Described as “David Lynch meets David Attenborough,” Bruce is a mural artist and sculptor who fights to save the planet during his free time. I was stoked to see him rocking the Extinction Rebellion cause on Instagram a few days after my visit. So I’m not surprised he imagined such an incredible place for others to enjoy.

After all, seeing the history of many of the creatures on our planet, especially ones that are gone, can you really feel encouraged to work to save it.

Here at the museum, you’ll also see his iconic bone sculptures and paintings. You might even spot some of his street art in Dunedin too.

Visiting Bruce’s creation, the Dunedin Museum of Natural Mystery reminds me how much culture and art there is in Dunedin, even in New Zealand. People often think of New Zealand as not having a history. A “young” and “small” nation, in terms of human colonization (a can of worms I’m not going near), lacks the history of places like Europe.

But that’s so far from the truth. The history, especially the ecological history, of New Zealand is profound and vast once you open your eyes to it. Above all, to be able to see it through the lens of a great artist and collector like Bruce is an extraordinary experience worth taking. 

Now, when can I go back and stay the night?

Have you been to a museum like this? What do you think? Share!

Many thanks to Dunedin Enterprise for hosting me in my favorite city. Like always, I’m keeping it real. Like you could expect less from me.

The post New Zealand’s quirkiest museum is full of mystery (and bones) appeared first on Young Adventuress.

“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.”

If you’re like me, those words are truly iconic and perhaps have changed your life.

I can still remember picking up a well-worn used copy of the Hobbit when I was a pre-teen, and it wasn’t long before I was truly engrossed in Middle Earth. Without realizing it, Oxford Professor J.R.R. Tolkien ignited a passion around the world for his writing. Generations of readers like me hungered for his stories, his adventurous sagas of hobbits and elves, tales of good versus evil that have shaped many of us, and turned us all into great readers too.

Fanatics or superfans, us Tolkien nerds recognize each other and understand how much this writer meant to us. It’s no surprise his work has been sold over 150 million times. People love Middle Earth.

Before the age of iPhones and social media, I was thumbing through my copy of the Lord of the Rings every summer break, eagerly devouring Tolkien’s iconic tales of Middle Earth and immersing myself into his worlds.

Why is his work so enduring?

I think it’s because The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings carry themes that anyone can relate to. They are powerful stories of friendship, adventure, triumph over evil, of forgoing what’s comfortable and easy and doing what is right, that even the smallest person can change the future.

And Tolkien backs it up with decades worth of histories and legends he created, using his extensive knowledge of early history and linguistics to create a Middle Earth so real, it feels like our own past. A professor of Anglo-Saxon and British literature at Oxford, Tolkien often lamented that English history was so “Frenchified” and he longed for an English mythology.

He spent decades creating the histories and languages of Middle Earth, of which the Lord of the Rings is only a small glimpse. His canon is immense and so detailed, that it confuses even the most ardent of fans.

The depth of his writings is so real and profound that you can so easily get lost into his worlds and stories. It’s easy to read and accept the histories and narratives as facts. Tolkien doesn’t ask us to believe in these worlds, he tells us.

There and Back Again: How the Hobbit Inspired Me to Travel

Being the massive Lord of the Rings fan that I am, I don’t often share that that’s the very reason I moved to New Zealand in the first place. In high school the films came out and I binged all of the making of previews and behind the scenes extras and learned that it was filmed in this mountainous tiny nation at the bottom of the world so magical and ethereal it didn’t seem real: one day I would go there.

Here I am six years later, a kiwi resident and living in the real Middle Earth, home of places like Edoras and Hobbiton.

But another little known fact about me is that I also studied medieval history in university, even spending a summer researching at the Bodleian Library in Oxford on a grant, once again familiar with Tolkien’s work as a scholar, and frequenting his favorite haunts and pubs around town.

So I was incredibly excited to learn that my favorite museum in New York, The Morgan Library and Museum, would be home to a once in a lifetime exhibit about Tolkien’s life and work this year, celebrating the man and his creations.

Tolkien: Maker of Middle-earth

The exhibit was originally in Oxford before being switched up and moving to the Morgan, an incredibly unique and once in a lifetime opportunity to see the most extensive public display of Tolkien materials for several generations.

It runs until May 12th, 2019.

The Tolkien exhibit at the Morgan includes family photos, his original drawings and writings, draft manuscripts and maps, and all manner of personal memorabilia loaned to the Morgan from Tolkien collections around the world.

It’s an incredibly rare opportunity to see all of his work together in one space. We’ll likely never see it compiled together in one place again anytime soon, and the exhibit isn’t traveling anywhere else.

Organized by the Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford in collaboration with the Morgan Library & Museum, New York with the support of The Tolkien Trust, if you are a fan of this work, get yourself on the next plane, bus or car to NYC before May.

My best friend from university, Marika, who studied medieval history with me and a fellow Tolkien fan, now lives in Portland, Oregon with her one year old baby. Knowing that I would be in the States during the Tolkien exhibit, we decided to meet in New York for a few days, a place she had never been.

Her first trip away from her son, it was a great reunion in the Big Apple, made all the more wonderful by our morning spent at the Morgan Library.

The admission to the exhibit is first come first serve and is included in the museum entrance cost. So we got a little sneak peek early before it opened to the general public and where I was allowed to take a few photos and videos (normally no photos are allowed in the exhibit).

It’s difficult for me to articulate how special it was to see Tolkien’s work first hand, to lean in close and see his scribblings over old exam notebooks and how he drafted out his Elvish scripts.

It’s certainly one thing to read about this in a biography but it’s another matter entirely to see it firsthand.

The exhibit it beautifully curated, taking your through his life’s work, and you really leave with a fuller and deeper understanding of the man behind Middle Earth, the father who just loved a good story. For someone like me who is a creative and dreams of being a published author, it was outstanding.

I could (and did) spend hours pouring over the exhibit, and it was packed as soon as the doors opened. We weren’t the only Tolkien fans in Manhattan, it seems.

After finally emerging back into the sunlight of the atrium and immediately gorging on a massive lunch at the museum cafe, including the Tolkien-themed menu, we obviously jumped in-depth about how special that experience was for us.

And of course we couldn’t leave without picking up hefty copies of the exhibit catalogue (which you can also order here).

Fat and happy, us little hobbitses were ready to venture back out into the big city again, full of joy and euphoria for finally getting to see something so close to our hearts up close and personal.

Are you a fan of Tolkien and his work? Did you see his exhibit at Oxford or will you journey to the Morgan to see it in NYC? Spill!

Tolkien: the Maker of Middle Earth exhibition runs at the Morgan Library in NYC until May 12th, 2019 more info here

The post Tolkien: the maker of Middle Earth at the Morgan Library appeared first on Young Adventuress.

Just like Frodo returning from an awfully big adventure, I couldn’t help but feel like a different person this time around. I’ve been on many journeys, had great and profound experiences, challenged myself and did things I didn’t think were possible in my time away from Hobbiton.

Did I mention I’m fairly sure that I am a hobbit?

Just so we’re clear, I’m basically a hobbit. Minus the hairy toes, of course.

Channeling Your Inner Hobbit in New Zealand

For those of you just like me, my fellow hobbitses and homebodies, people who love comfort and being cozy, who delight in a hearty feed and a good ale, if you haven’t made your way from wherever you are in the world back to Hobbiton by now, I don’t know what to say to you. Home is calling. What are you waiting for?

But can I be honest here and tell you what was really calling me back to Hobbiton this time around? The food.

A golden retriever at heart with a nose on the lookout for a good meal, more often than not these days my trips tailor themselves around unique and delicious dining experiences. And Hobbiton had something new on offer from my visit years ago: the famous Evening Banquet Feast.

Count me in!

I’ve heard backpackers and travelers alike rave about this experience for a while now and knew the next time I found myself up on the North Island I needed to check it out for myself.

After a dusk tour of Hobbiton, once the crowds have dispersed, you’ll be sat down at the Green Dragon for an enormous and incredible banquet feast. Doesn’t that sound truly delightful?

And who doesn’t want to experience Hobbiton after dark?

Only occurring four times a week, from Sunday to Wednesday, the evening banquet tours at Hobbiton quickly become a top of the list must-do for an New Zealand adventure, and they quickly sell out, so it’s important to book far ahead.

And come hungry. Like really hungry, there is so much food.

I would expect nothing less from a feast in Middle Earth where hobbits are known for having six meals a day.

“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.” J.R.R. Tolkien

Beginning with an evening tour around Hobbiton, visiting the movie set and playing around in the hobbit holes, you’ll work up a decent appetite in the lead up to the feast. Just to be on the safe side, skip lunch.

Eventually recessing the local watering hole, the Green Dragon Inn, you’ll sample some of the locally brewed beer (if you’re me) before the banquet.

I can’t speak for everyone but I still dream about the roast chicken, salmon and buttery mushrooms, though the best part was definitely desert. I definitely didn’t leave with my pockets bulging with bakewell tarts. That would be wrong, guys.

After a few hours of feasting, making new friends and waiting for night to descend, you’ll pick yourself up and make your way back outside under the stars and walk through Hobbiton at night.

An unforgettable moment, to see Hobbiton illuminated is something quite spectacular. As smoke puffs from the chimneys dotted along the rolling hills, the golden glow makes you feel cozy and at home, a truly hobbit vibe. A full stomach helps too.

Feeling like you might stumble upon Bilbo’s birthday party, it was a truly special way to cap off an epic evening. I can’t wait til I can come back again!

Is visiting Hobbiton on your bucketlist? Do you dream of a hobbit feast too? Spill!

Many thanks to Hobbiton for hosting me at their evening banquet tour. Like always I’m keeping it real, all opinions are my own, like you could expect less from me!

The post An evening feast fit for a queen at Hobbiton appeared first on Young Adventuress.

New Zealand has a lot of amazing birds. In fact, New Zealand was a land of only birds before humans came along. Most of it is reminiscent of a bygone age, and in more than a few places here give you the feeling like you’ve stepped back in time. After people came, they brought along animals like stoats, cats and possums, which has caused many of the native birds to go extinct or close to it.

All over New Zealand, there is a very unique species of duck called the whio (remember “wh” in Māori is pronounced as an “f”, so “fee-oh”). The blue duck used to be found everywhere in New Zealand, and now they are almost gone. I’m working this month with the Department of Conservation to help share the story of these amazing birds and try and encourage all of you guys to care too! Happy Whio Awareness Month!

Here’s their story and why you should love whio as much as me. Enjoy!

1. Whio are almost gone, but not quite!

Whio are some of the rarest ducks in the world, and they are only found in New Zealand. There are less than 3000 of them left, and they are 20 times more endangered than kiwi, New Zealand’s most iconic bird. They are mostly threatened from introduced animals, like weasels and cats, which can easily hunt and kill them, and they do. Whio require a scale of management like no other birds  to ensure their survival because of their large habitats and ability to fly so they can’t be placed on offshore islands, like many of our other birds.

Without our help, 90% of whio nests fail in the wild, which is so sad, and when the lady whio are nesting, they are literally sitting ducks to be hunted. But all is not lost, guys! With our help, they can slowly come back.

Image by Andrew Glasser

2. They are the original whitewater rafters

I spotted my first whio back in December in Milford by complete accident walking along Marian Falls. I about crapped my pants from excitement, and made everyone walking by stop and watch it frolicking in the rapids. Seeing a whio in the wild in New Zealand is an incredible and special experience.

Whio thrive in the whitewater and rapids of the cleanest rivers in New Zealand. If you spot a whio, you know that river is healthy. They use the fast water as a natural defense and are great paddlers. It’s so much fun to watch them bop around in the rapids.

My first whio at Marian Falls

3. Whio are feisty

Whio aren’t actually really afraid of people, which means you can observe them quite closely. They also can’t be kept with other ducks because they fight too much and are territorial, and they sometimes have fights with other whio, chasing each other up and down the rivers pulling out their tail feathers.

They all have their own personalities and can be quite curious.

4. They make the best noises

Forget quacks, whio are too cool for that.

Male whios whistle, which you often hear more, while the ladies growl. Yes, you read that right. They growl.

5. Whio chicks are adorable little fluffballs

The pictures speak for themselves.

Pics by Dave Buckton – Wangapeka River, Kahurangi National Park

6. Whio dogs are actually a thing

Whio need all the help they can get to ensure their continual survival. One tool in DOC’s arsenal to help them out is training up DOC dogs that help track and find whio.

There are dogs that are trained to find many of New Zealand’s native and endangered birds. Whio dogs can smell them from pretty far away, depending on the wind, sometimes even kilometers. It’s incredible how disciplined and trained they are. When they catch the scent, they go still and point, which is incredible to witness.

Whio dogs are a great asset to helping bring back these ducks!

Image by Andrew Glasser

7. They’re legit famous

Whio are so cool you can find them on the $10 note in New Zealand. What up!

8. Sometimes they mate for life

Unless you’re Hugh, in which you swap our mates annually for one younger.

Most whio have the same mate for a couple of years before swapping partners.

9. They still really need our help

Luckily with a lot of help whio are starting to come back. Thanks to the incredible work by DOC, whio rangers and whio dogs, blue duck might be on their way to becoming more stable. Genesis Energy has also been the main sponsor for whio in New Zealand with the Whio Forever Project, and have been critical in protecting them and bringing them back.

Let’s help!

Image by Andrew Glasser

10. Pucker up for Whio Awareness Month

March is Whio Awareness Month in New Zealand, so help spread the word of these awesome birds if you can.

You can chat with your local DOC office to see how you can get involved and if they’re whio in your area, and be sure to report any sightings of them.

And in the meantime, you can enter to win the chance to be a whio ranger for the day. Just upload your best duck face selfie here (never thought I’d writ that on the blog), and share why you want to help save the whio!

Have you heard of whio before? Are you interested in animals and local wildlife when traveling? Are you a bird nerd like me? Spill!

Image by Andrew Glasser

The post 10 reasons to love whio – the world’s coolest duck appeared first on Young Adventuress.

Halfway between Norway and the North Pole, you’ll find a mysterious icy land called Svalbard. There isn’t much wilderness left in Europe I reckon, but Svalbard definitely takes the cake. Tucked away at 77° N in the Arctic, it’s a beautifully desolate and inhospitable land with no night in summer and no sun the rest of the year. With a population smaller than my university, and a very real danger of getting eaten by a polar bear, Svalbard is the stuff of literature and legends.

Which, incidentally, is how I first found out about it.

Curious about traveling to the Arctic?
Check out my trips and learn more here

I am unashamedly one of the biggest book nerds you will ever meet. I live in my head – I always have. And I live in books. I’m a homebody, an introvert, and a borderline scaredy cat. I’ve got a lot of fears too.

It’s almost scary how easy it is for me to imagine never having left my home or following a more traditional career path. But I did leave, and I’ve traveled far and wide, and I think books had a huge role to play in that.

From a very early age, books have inspired me to travel. I loved (well, I still love) the comfort of home, the familiarity of routine, the stability and peacefulness of your own space. But I loved stories and getting lost in other worlds while reading. And above all I loved reading about adventure, about people going on a journey, those cliche faraway lands and places you could only imagine in your head. I read so much my parents took my books away to punish me sometimes.

But reading about adventure wasn’t enough. I wanted my own.

And we all have to write our own stories after all.

You’ll hear my story of Svalbard if you watch my new video, but I’ll recap here too in case you miss it or don’t have patience to listen to my voice – I know I sure don’t. Is that really how I sound? Geez.

I first heard about Svalbard when I read the incredible Golden Compass books by Philip Pullman. Hands up if you’ve read them too! And if you haven’t go pick them up now.

An epic fantasy trilogy not too different from Harry Potter, I first got my hands on these books over a decade ago, and haven’t put it down since. I regularly reread the trilogy, and even reread the books while on the expedition ship around Svalbard. Two weeks at sea with no internet means you have a lot of time for reading.

An epic retelling of John Milton’s Paradise Lost, set in a world similar to ours, the books follow the incredible adventure of Lyra and Pan as they travel to the far north to a land, you guessed it, Svalbard. The kingdom of the ice bears.

When I found out that Svalbard existed in real life and there were polar bears there, though they didn’t wear armor, I knew I had to go one day.

It was a dream that I held onto for so long, that I had to pinch myself every day I was there because I couldn’t believe it had finally come true.

Nothing feels as good as making one of your dreams come true. I relished very single minute of my time in Svalbard, and I would go back in a heartbeat.

It’s a wild and magical place that calls to you. It’s haunting in its isolation and captivating in everything you can see there. Svalbard is a place for romantics like me, and place filled with old stories waiting to be heard and new stories begging to be told.

Keep reading and keep dreaming guys!

What did you think of my video of Svalbard? Has a book ever inspired you to travel? Have you read the Golden Compass books too? Spill!

Curious about traveling to the Arctic?
Check out my trips and learn more here

Many thanks to Eclipse Travel for hosting me in Svalbard – like always I’m keeping it real – all opinions are my own, like you could expect less from me! And many thanks to Eric Supertramp for helping me photograph and film this magical land!

The post VIDEO: Svalbard – when a book inspires a journey appeared first on Young Adventuress.

Voting has a lot of pressure, I don’t want to screw it up!

Some of you nosy humans have been harassing me on social media about who I’m voting for this year. But come on, isn’t obvious? I mean I drop hints and talk about it all the time.

Surprise! I’m voting for the kākāpō for Pres….I mean New Zealand Bird of the Year.

Meeting Sirocco in Wellington

To be fair, if you’ve been following me for a while, it shouldn’t come as such a surprise. I mean, I pretty much ramble on about these quirky birds as often as I can! Kākāpō have an amazing story that deserves to be shared with the world, and I want to do my part as best as I possibly can! Current goal – I want everyone to know what a kākāpō is. If anyone is interested in joining my team in charge of kākāpō brand awareness – hit me up.

So before humans arrived in New Zealand, the islands were home only to birds. Imagine that! But we brought pests, like ferrets, stoats, possums, rats and cats which almost decimated them.

Kākāpō, like so many of New Zealand’s native birds, need our help. Going from the 3rd most common bird in New Zealand to fewer than 150 left today, they are the prime example of an amazing creature facing extinction – it’s our fault they’ve almost disappeared so it’s up to us to help bring them back! Collective historical and social responsibility people!

Some of this years chicks in Invercargill

Kākāpō footprint on Codfish Island

Ever year Forest and Bird holds a “Bird of the Year” competition in New Zealand, and this year I volunteered to be the campaign manager for my beloved kākāpō. What a surprise, I know. DIBS!

I mean it was a tough call because I love all of New Zealand’s native birds, listening for their calls on hikes and following the amazing conservation projects around helping them. After all, they are almost all facing the same issues.

Besides kākāpō, Fantails are probably my favorite bird, especially as I have them living in my garden, though the cheeky kea (alpine parrot) and the chubby kererū woodpigeon (that gets drunk on fermented berries and falls out of trees – a bird after my own heart), are a close second.

But at the end of the day, kākāpō are in the number one spot for me. I’ve held the famous Sirocco at Zealandia last year (best moment of my life; I just about died) and visited Whenua Hou, one of the three offshore islands where kākāpō live, and I am determined to use all of my blogging powers to help them as much as I can!

Codfish Island/Whenua Hou

Sirocco

Here are five reasons why I am voting for kākāpō for Bird of the Year and why you should too!

1. Kākāpō are the misfits of the parrot kingdom. They can’t fly, are nocturnal and are seriously endangered. So many of New Zealand’s birds face this but kākāpō have it bad. There are less than 150 left, and their breeding cycles are frankly bizarre and involve a subsonic mating boom call that travels for miles. Say what?

2. I’m pretty sure kākāpō are dinosaur birds, a relic of a bygone age. I mean look at them! How cute are they? Apart from being huge, rotund and shaped like a giant avocado (kākāpō are the heaviest parrot in the world), they kinda look like an owl and a parrot had a baby. But what surprised me the most was their smell which is strong and musty, like the inside of an old violin case. Yes, you read that right. A prehistoric bird that actually smells old.

Lisa 2 – all kākāpō have names

Kākāpō feathers are collected from the ground on Whenua Hou and give to the local Māori iwi

3. Kākāpō live for a long time. Like, a really long time. I’m talking an average of 90 years give or take. Respect.

4. The most famous of kākāpō is Sirocco, who rose to fame with a viral video of him getting frisky on the BBC. Sirocco was sick as a baby and was hand-reared by people and accidentally imprinted on them – he thinks he’s human. Like one time he jumped off a jetty and tried to swim, and he used to build his bowls to boom into (to attract the lady kākāpō) on the path to the toilet. Then he would surprise “boom” at an unlucky lady ranger headed to the bathroom in the middle of the night and try to climb up her leg and mate with her. Sigh. Men.

Sirocco selfie – gives you an idea of how big these birds are

Some very young chicks this year

5. I believe kākāpō deserve to be Bird of the Year because 2016 was an epic year for them, with one of the best breeding seasons ever with 34 chicks being born. This is a big deal guys! It was also the year that Kākāpō Recovery got enough funding to sequence the genomes of the entire species to help save them. Though finally, I also think kākāpō can become the case we need to show the world that extinction can be stopped, and yes, we can actually make a difference, setting an example for the rest of the endangered birds in New Zealand.

Don’t forget to vote for kākāpō for Bird of the Year – pretty please! You also will get the chance to win an expedition trip to the Subantarctic Islands!

Oh, and I’m also voting for Hillary for president of the US because OBVIOUSLY. Don’t know how you can be a sensible, sane, moderately-educated human being and not vote for her. Over and out.

The post Who I’m voting for…. appeared first on Young Adventuress.

Delightful, fluffy creatures that just ooze sass and charm, I would go as far as to say that alpacas are my spirit animal.

If you follow me on social media over the years, you would have probably seen me freak out at one point or another when I spot an alpaca while traveling. In fact, sometimes I go out of my way to visit alpaca farms. Because why not.

And sure, llamas certainly make me happy and smile too, but alpacas are the more lovable little cousins.

Their colorful, hypoallergenic fleece is softer than any wool you could bury your face in, and let’s be honest, sometimes their hair styles and cuts can make even the grumpiest person laugh.

And don’t even get me started on the funny sounds they make!

It’s a Monday here and I thought I’d go ahead and share some of my favorite alpaca photos from a recent trip to make you smile. Enjoy!

I often stop and say hello to alpacas in New Zealand when I pass by a paddock and I think no one it watching. How can you not?

But before I run away with myself and start to sound even weirder than I already do, let me just share with you a secret amazing spot in New Zealand where you can visit alpacas yourself.

Shamarra Alpacas is a farm tucked away on the beautiful Banks Peninsula near Akaroa south of Christchurch. Canterbury is one of my favorite regions in New Zealand because it has just so much to do here, and Banks Peninsula I’ve found to be one of the most underrated but best spots around.

In fact, this is one of my secret getaways in New Zealand, so be cool about it, ok?

I first heard about this place from my friend Jodi from Legal Nomads, who also shares my bizarre fondness for alpacas.

Shamarra Alpacas is a beautiful farm only 20 minutes from the little French town of Akaroa with the most amazing views of the surrounding harbors and volcanic crater. Rolling hills meet turquoise water here making it a stunning little spot to getaway from it all.

And to hang out with alpacas.

You can join in on a farm tour and wander around the fields and say hello to the alpacas all without potentially pissing off the farmers. Though to be fair, I’ve found most people who raise alpacas are super friendly. Or just a little bit weird.

Frank and Anya who run Shamarra are really nice and lovely and have been farming alpaca for over a decade.

I had a great afternoon running around the paddocks and trying to make friends with the herd, especially the babies. Though they weren’t having any of it, except when I fed them.

And now I’ve got a new dream of moving to Banks Peninsula, buying a farm and raising baby alpacas. Who’s with me?

If you have always dreamed of frolicking through a herd of alpacas, here’s your chance.

You’re welcome.

Do you love alpacas as much as me? Please say yes. 

Many thanks to Canterbury Tourism for hosting me in Akaroa – like always I’m keeping it real – all opinions are my own, like you could expect less from me. 

The post An Alpaca Photo Essay appeared first on Young Adventuress.

I’ve been trying to finish this post for a month. I don’t think I’ve ever struggled so much trying to put in my words how I feel about fear. But I’m going to try, let’s do this…

Does anyone else have an annoying voice in the back of their head that only appears when it wants to cause you doubt, discomfort, or most importantly, fear?

Nope, just me then? Fabulous. Hearing voices (just one voice guys, I’ve not completely lost my marbles) at the ripe old age of 27 and admitting it publicly? Even better.

You want to climb that mountain? Voice in my head – you definitely can’t. You’re not strong enough and you’ll probably fall off it. Want to go to Iran? Voice in my head – who do you think you are? You’re not a brave journalist. Dream of publishing a book? Voice in my head – you know that no one is going to read it, right? You’re a terrible writer. Why bother trying? GAH.

Thanks so much, I really appreciate the support. Not.

I don’t really know how this happened, but somehow over the past few years, fear and doubt have crept into my life in a way that I have never experienced before. And you know what? It fucking sucks.

I used to jump into everything life offered me with complete abandon. Now? not so much.

I’ve jumped off huge bridges, skydived, climbed really sketchy trails and eaten anything anyone put in front of me. And it wasn’t just physical stuff too; it didn’t even occur to me not to try and make it with my blog or move to Spain after graduation or quit my job to travel. I still traveled even when I had literally no money to my name, knowing deep down that things always sorted themselves out in the end. For the most part. Ah to be young and reckless again.

And while I had plenty of terrible travel fuck ups over the years, things always worked out. I have always believed that fate smiles on those who take chances.

But what happens when you start to worry more and take less chances? Oh crap.

Please tell me I am not the only one who is going through this. I need community.

But somewhere down the line, I started to become more afraid of things that never scared me before. Whether it was something physical that I now considered dangerous or going after a dream that seemed too impossible, fear has carved itself its own little goddamn studio apartment in the back of my head and made itself at home.

While I can’t pinpoint exactly when this transformation happened, I think was around when I turned 25 and quit my job. Also, for those of you who have put up with me on this blog for years, you might also remember that was the time I fell off a camel in Jordan and almost broke my back.

I’m going to go out on a limb here and say I *think* that might have something to do with it. At least with being afraid of physical adventures. I am certainly now terrified of camels as well as falling off things, that’s for sure. But also I am becoming more cautious with trying new things (especially physical things) and also going after my dreams.

For example I have been approached about writing a book a few times, and what have I done? ZIP. I’m terrified. TERRIFIED.

Age, I imagine, is also a key player. Isn’t that what people are always saying? You grow more cautious as you grow older? Well, I reckon the journey to becoming fearful doesn’t matter as much as what the fuck am I supposed to do now?

Seriously guys, WHAT NOW? Do I just warmly embrace my newfound caution and fear, or try and get over it? Or attempt to strike a healthy balance between the two.

Tangent: Now, I’ve just finished the most amazing book that talks about living with fear and how to still live a creative life – it’s called Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert (who wrote Eat, Pray, Love) – and oh my giddy god is it phenomenal.

In fact, it’s so good it’s the first book I’ve read since Harry Potter that I’ve intentionally read slowly just to savor its amazing message. I bought it on my Kindle, started it on a flight, then bought a hard copy at the airport after I landed because it was so good I needed to hold it and smell the paper. Then I read it again. It gave me shivers.

I don’t normally read nonfiction, but seriously guys, if you consider yourself to be a creative (or you wish to be), put it on your reading list NOW. You can thank me later.

Jacket by Parajumpers

Anyway, in the book my fellow Liz talks about how to deal with fear. Perfect timing or what guys?

In the beginning she talks about how it’s important to live a life based on curiosity than on fear. Makes sense, right? I like to think I’ve always been a curious person. I always want to see what’s around the corner, want to know why things are the way they are, and am eager to try new things. For the most part.

However, fear has decided to join the party and often now gets in the way of my bigger curiosities. I want to see what’s at the top of that mountain but I’m afraid I can’t get there so I don’t try. Or sometimes I’ll compromise and climb a smaller mountain.

Confession – I’ve become a bit of a wuss. I’m afraid every time I put on my snowboard. I’m afraid every time I try something new. I find that I really have to force myself now to try new things.

I really noticed when I was in Canada in January. I could have had the opportunity to go ice climbing and I didn’t because I was afraid – I didn’t think I could do it, and I thought I was too weak. Upper body strength HA.

What have I become? I would have jumped all over that ice waterfall 3 years ago.

Well, fear is complicated. Obviously.

These physical fears of things I don’t think I can do but are completely within the realm of reason are driving me nuts and holding me back. I’m determined to conquer it this year if I can, and I reckon Liz Gilbert has the right idea.

Fear will always be there. It’s not a question of becoming fearless but learning to accept that fear is there, it’s part of your life and it’s not going anywhere, but it should NEVER be in charge or have a say in making creative decisions.

It’s time to be brave, guys.

At the same, just to make things even more complicated, I’d like to think that travel has helped me deal with fears over the years. For example, there are some things that never occur to me could be scary that I do all the time because I’ve gotten so used to them traveling.

The obvious example to this is the fact that I travel the world alone. As a woman.

In fact, I think that’s something that truly surprises people and when I share that little tidbit to folks I meet on the road, I am often met with skepticism and the usual “wow aren’t you afraid?”

Every time I log on to my computer I am reminded constantly that we live in a screwed up world. Everything is negative, and travel is often discouraged. And don’t even get me started about women traveling alone. I swear I’ll never hear the end of it (MOM).

I haven’t been afraid to travel alone for as long as I can remember. I don’t know if I ever was afraid actually. The first trip I took was by myself to Paris in 2007 for a weekend. And I only did it because no one else in my study abroad program would come with me. Well screw that, I wanted to go to Paris so I was going to take myself to Paris!

Now that I think back, I was only a bit afraid when I ended up missing the last night bus to the airport where I was planning on sleeping, and I ended up walking the streets all night around the bus station because I had no where to go and couldn’t afford a hotel. And even then, thinking back, I reckon I was just tired.

But I digress.

Every trip I took taught me something. Every fuck up I had on the road taught me a lesson. I suppose in a weird way it taught me confidence, not something I have in abundance, that’s for sure. But I am confident with my ability to travel.

I learned to deal with travel fears early on, and now I need to learn to deal with my other fears, mainly the fear that I am not physically capable of doing something I want, like a hard hike or improving at snowboarding. But also how to deal with my fear that I won’t be able to go after my big creative dreams.

I think people who travel are inherently brave at heart. You pretty much have to be to step out into the unknown, right?

Like Liz Gilbert says so eloquently, you need to be brave to live a creative life, fear is the death of creativity.

Well I don’t know about you guys, but I want to live the most imaginative, creative possible so I need to learn to deal with all this fear and negativity and to learn to believe in myself again and believe in my dreams. One step at a time.

So when that ice wall popped up again on my trip to Finland in March, I knew I wasn’t allowed to wuss out twice, so I went for it.

Since then, I’m working on getting fitter by joining a gym in Wanaka (and doing group fitness, something I’ve never done ever) so that I’ll feel stronger and more comfortable doing more physically demanding activities when I’m traveling and being adventurous around New Zealand. I think if I feel stronger I’ll feel more confident trying out these things.

And now I’m working on going after some of my biggest dreams and ambitions with my blog, writing and photography. If I don’t do it now, when will I?

2016 will be my year, what about you guys?

Can you relate to dealing with fear and negativity? How do you cope? Any tips for me? Please share below in the comments!

The post My big issue with fear and travel appeared first on Young Adventuress.

I don’t know why it has taken me so long to write this post, considering “what camera do you use?” is one of the most frequent questions I’m asked.

In fact people ask me this so much I usually ignore it. It kinda annoys me. Why?

Maybe because now that I spend a lot of time around Instagrammers and photographers, I see a lot of people rely more and more on equipment instead of composition or creativity. My friend Stu from Peace in 10,000 hands (which is an amazing art photography project) were talking about this the other day, and he reminded me of a book called The Best Camera Is The One That’s With You – true story, right?

Does having the best camera mean you’ll take the best photos? Definitely not. You can have the most expensive kit in the world and it’ll do you no good if you don’t know how to take a photo and they are people out there taking the most mindblowingly awesome shots with just their phones.

Granted, I am a turtle when it comes to change but it took me almost 10 years to slowly progress through the entire Canon camera range before I decided it was worth investing in the top-end professional DSLR.

I’ve always been a loyal Canon girl since I was 18, fiddling around with my dad’s film cameras growing up, and it will take a lot for me to switch brands, especially now that I often work with Canon Australia.

My first camera was a Canon Powershot my dad bought me as a high school graduation present. A few years later I invested in my first SLR in the Canon Rebel series for Christmas before a college trip to Rome. I sold that a few years later and upgraded to a Canon 60D (a good midrange camera) when I quit my job to travel and on my first blog trip to Jordan in 2012. This is the camera that brought me fame on Instagram and was the beginning of my journey to becoming a professional travel blogger.

Where I am I going with this rambling? Anyways, when someone says they like my photo and flippantly asks me what camera do I use or my settings, it can annoy me because it implies that the camera took that photo not me. Does that make sense?

While I can rattle off a list of gear I’ve used over the years, for me it doesn’t matter as much as the skills I’ve worked on. What matters is my journey as a photographer, something I am very proud of. Every year I have worked harder and harder to improve how I take photos, learning new techniques, and really pushing myself on becoming more creative both in camera and in post-processing.

I’ll talk more about this later below, but one way in which I have been improving is doing an in-depth landscape tutorial course – Photographing the World with Elia Locardi. Teaming up with fstoppers.com, he takes you around the world and shows you not only how to shoot in all types of locations but also how to edit them in post processing. (Click here to view more details). Why didn’t I do this sooner?!

I am always trying (and failing) at new things, some do well and some bomb spectacularly. But I think it’s really important to work on your composition and try new things because that is the only way you can grow and improve. And I am sick of seeing people copy each other, especially on Instagram, but that’s a rant for another time.

Personally, I was never going to upgrade to a full-frame camera unless I was comfortable and quick shooting on manual, something that didn’t happen until this year.

Of course the better the camera the better quality results you’ll find, but just like most people don’t learn to drive on a Ferrari, it makes sense that your first camera or the camera where you learn is a friendly, easy one to use, and not a 5D Mark III.

The line between compact point and shoot cameras and bigger DSLRs is changing a lot, so you will really have to ask yourself what you want to get out of the camera before investing. Here’s a great article about this that’s easily digestable and not too techy.

I don’t pretend to be an expert, so it took me years of practice, research, asking a hell of a lot of questions to begin understand what I currently know about cameras, and trust me, I still have a lot more to learn. But I thought I would share with you what’s in my camera bag (and what HAS BEEN in my camera bag in the past).

I thought it was finally time to put together a comprehensive list of gear I use on the road, from cameras to equipment to editing tools, in the hopes it might help you all in choosing products to use. Hope it helps, enjoy!

Cameras and lenses

Canon PowerShot SX600 – SHOP HERE – $170

For people who just want to take pictures without any fuss.

This Canon PowerShot is probably the closest point and shoot camera to my first PowerShot back in 2006. This was the camera I used when I moved to Spain for the first time, and it traveled with me all over Europe when I was 19 until someone drunkenly dropped it one night in Salamanca at the end of the year. Not me, of course.

By the time I got home and sent it to Canon, it had been replaced by a newer model, which they sent me. It’s super cheap, only $170 and it’s a great first camera. Things have changed since I used cameras like this and the SX600 comes with built-in wifi so you can move images directly on your phone and you can share them immediately.

Canon PowerShot G7X – SHOP HERE – $599 

For video enthusiasts and as a back up to a DSLR or a higher end compact camera.

I use this camera now and I love it! The PowerShot G7X is a popular camera among bloggers and especially vloggers, mostly because of its flip screen so you can watch yourself if shooting with you in the video and for selfies, of course. This is my recommendation for a small, point and shoot style camera though it costs a little more coming in around $600.

It has built-in wifi, shoots great HD video, and has a much larger sensor (20 megapixel). It does very well in low light and has a great zoom and has a low aperture at f/1.8 (this means it will give you that nice blurred background, read more here). It is a small but powerful camera.

I use this camera as one of my main cameras in my kit because of its high-quality performance and size. Depending on where I am and what I am shooting, I don’t want to carry a huge, heavy DSLR kit or sometimes I can’t even bring it with me. This is the perfect alternative because it fits in your pocket and still takes great images.

Canon Rebel T5 – SHOP HERE – $399

The perfect intro DSLR camera.

The Canon Rebel T5 is probably the closest thing to the Rebel XS which was my first DSLR camera way back in the day from 2009 to 2012. It’s the perfect beginner or budget DSLR camera coming in at an affordable $400. If you are interested in photography and want to step up your game, invest in one of these. They are great travel cameras and are pretty sturdy. I dropped mine all over Europe and it never broke.

This is a camera that will help you get off shooting in auto and without going into too much nitty gritty it has a much bigger sensor than the point and shoots which will take higher quality images. It shoots HD video and it’s cheap for a DSLR. I’d get it with the kit lens (18-55mm) that it comes with but know that it’ll work with Canon EF-S lenses (crop).

Canon EOS 70D – SHOP HERE – $899

A great mid-range semi-professional enthusiast camera.

The Canon EOS 70D is one of my favorite cameras, an upgrade from the Canon EOS 60D which I used for 2 years before. Even though I have upgraded now to the 5DM3 I use this as my backup and secondary camera on trips, and if you look at my Instagram feed or anything on my blog from the past two years, pretty much everything you see was shot with this. It’s weather resistant and tough as nails, the perfect travel camera.

It has built in wifi and touch screen technology but it has an amazing autofocus, especially on video which makes it popular for vloggers, plus the pop out screen. This is my favorite mid-range crop sensor camera. Don’t buy it with a kit lens. If you are stepping up to a 70D you need a good lens for it.

Tamron 17-50mm F/2.8 lens – SHOP HERE – $489 

The Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 lens along with the Canon 60D made up my camera kit for 2 years before I finally upgraded. It’s a kickass all-purpose lens between being a wide angle (17mm) and zooming into 50mm, and it’s cheaper than Canon’s equivalent. Tamron makes great lenses and they have awesome customer service and a 6 year warranty.

I’m going to add I think it’s really important to have at least one solid go-to lens for your kit that’s not a super wide angle or a telephoto that drops to f/2.8. I don’t really want to go into here, but this article here explains aperture and depth of field easily.

Note – this lens is for crop sensor cameras only (so it won’t work on full-frame cameras) but it’ll work on pretty much the whole Canon line.

Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 – SHOP HERE – $779

The Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 could be the lens you buy FIRST to go with the 70D if you can afford it. Again this lens is for crop sensor cameras only (denoted by the EF-S). Canon leant me this lens to use last year and I have refused to give it back because it’s so awesome.

This is the lens that is always on my camera – it’s my go-to lens. Because of the 2.8 aperture it works great in low light and gives that stunning blurred background. Again most of my images within the past year are shot with this lens, I probably use it around 70% of the time.

Canon EF-S 10-22mm – SHOP HERE – $599

I started renting Canon EF-S 10-22mm way back in the day on my Canon Rebel camera in 2010 and waited until I had saved enough to splurge on it, because, it is a splurge. A 10-22mm lens is so wide it borderlines being a fish-eye lens, which for some reason I love.

This is a great lens for architecture and buildings or when I am shooting in an enclosed landscape like a river gorge, and it’s really awesome at night for astrophotography because you can often get a huge part of the Milky Way visible in it.

It’s not to everyone’s taste but I don’t know what I’d do without having a super wide angle lens with me. It is an EF-S lens for crop sensor cameras so it won’t work on my new 5DM3 which means I will likely leave it on my 70D for backup.

Canon EF 70-300mm – SHOP HERE – $1,249

This is even more of a splurge but when I found out I was going to Africa this year, I knew I couldn’t go on a safari without a solid telephoto zoom lens – hence the Canon 70-300mm. Generally the 70-200mm f/2.8 is everyone’s dream telephoto lens but I figured I needed that extra f-stop LESS than an extra 100mm zoom. Also I would save an extra $800.

I’m glad I did because most of my safari shots were taken at 300mm. This is a heavy piece of equipment to cart around with you, but I find I use it more and more, enjoying the challenge of shooting with a zoom. Also it can be used on both crop and full-frame cameras (denoted with the EF instead of EF-S).

Sigma 50mm f/1.4 – SHOP HERE – $308

I honestly hate carrying so many camera lenses around, but I LOVE having one lens that has such a large aperture – the Sigma 50mm f/1.4 is SUCH a fun lens! At first it’s a pain in the ass to use because the focus is so fine and it’s very easy to screw up – you have to make sure the eyes of the portrait subject are in focus because it’s so fine that the nose will blur. My friend Mark Clinton helped me pick this lens out and I am beyond grateful. You’ll definitely be seeing way more of this lens on my site soon.

And it can be used with both crop and full-frame cameras on Canon.

Canon EOS 5D Mark III – SHOP HERE – $2,499

For the pros, top of the line.

I’ve only recently upgraded to the Canon EOS 5D Mark III but I can already tell you, I’m in love. This is a full-frame camera for serious photographers who want the highest quality gear possible. To be honest, I put off upgrading for years. Not only because of the rather significant price jump (EEEP!) but because I wasn’t sure I could handle it. I wanted to be truly confident with shooting in manual and really feel like I needed this camera. It’s a whopper to carry around just as a hobby.

Now that I sell and license my images and I am hired frequently as a professional photographer on travel campaigns, it was time to make the switch.

Otherwise I can only imagine if any of you guys are interested in buying the 5DM3, you don’t need any of my advice because you probably already know what I would say.

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 – SHOP HERE – $1,799

The 5DM3 needs a powerful lens to go along with it, and since neither of my go-to mid-range lenses will work on a full-frame camera, I needed to upgrade and the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 is a powerful, kickass lens. I don’t have this lens yet but have just ordered it on Amazon (sorry credit card) and can’t wait for it to arrive before my next top-secret trip in January!

The rest of my camera stuff

Landscape photography course  

Basically everything I know about photography I taught myself, watched on YouTube, or learned from hanging around other photographers. I knew there were gaping holes in my knowledge base and there were things I was doing that were just to scrape by.

I have been meaning to take a photography class for years, and finally took the plunge after my friend Elia Locardi told me about his new online course with Fstoppers – Photographing The World: Landscape Photography and Post-Processing with Elia Locardi. With 12 hours of video content on location and later in processing, I’ve already learned more in a few weeks than in years. What took me so long?

If you splurge on one thing on this list, this is probably the most valuable!

INSURANCE 

If you are going to own expensive camera equipment you must have insurance. I am not a responsible person but I have all my crap insured because I am unlucky and clumsy. I have a property insurance policy with Clements which gears towards travelers and expats and it’s totally affordable.

Memory cards 

I don’t know why but memory cards are always significantly cheaper on Amazon than anywhere else. Universally cheaper. Like they cost 50% less there. No idea why but it’s spoiled me and I only buy cards on Amazon. My friend Matt Vandeputte helped me pick out the best cards (he’s my go-to gadget friend) and now I use the Lexar Professional 1066x 32GB Compact Flash Card for my full-frame camera and the Transcend 64GB SDXC Class 10 Memory Card Up to 90MB/s for everything else, the standard size card. And after I lost my 5th memory card I finally invested in a memory card case.

Tripods

If you take photography seriously, you’ll need a tripod, and a relatively good one too – they are a necessary evil. If you do anything that requires a slow shutter in low light situations, a tripod is usually essential, especially if you want to learn to shoot the stars or do any nighttime photography.

I have three main tripods. My first one is the which is the perfect travel tripod – the new Vanguard VEO 265CB Carbon Fiber tripod. It’s small and light and easily portable. My second tripod is a monster – it’s huge and a pain in the ass to carry around but it’s the best so I use it when I can – it’s the Vanguard Alta Pro 254CT Carbon Fiber Tripod with the BBH-100 head ball on it. Finally I have the JOBY Gorillapod which is an awesome tripod you can hook onto anything.

Timer

Everyone always asks me how I take photos of myself. It’s easy, here’s my secret – I use a remote and timer and put my camera on a tripod. My friend Melissa Findley recommended the Hahnel Giga T Pro 2.4GHz Wireless Timer Remote for Canon and I’ve been using it ever since. Sure, it looks funny if anyone is watching, but it’s worth it. Now if you look closely in some of my photos, you’ll probably see the remote scrunched up in my right hand unless I’ve photoshopped it out. Busted!

Camera bags 

I have two main camera bags, neither of which look like camera bags, something really important to me. My first one is the ONA Brooklyn Camera Satchel in Chestnut, which I usually use as a purse with one camera, an extra lens and my usual purse essentials. The other is also by ONA, the Camps Bay Backpack in Field Tan. I can put my entire kit in here plus anything else. This is usually my carry-on on planes, and no one ever weighs it because it’s a backpack (secret). It’s mostly waterproof and I can fit a tripod on the top.

Action cameras 

Sometimes I physically can’t (or don’t really want to) bring my nicer cameras on some of the adventures I go on, especially where water is involved. In those cases I’ll bring a waterproof action camera. I’ve used GoPro for years and they let me down all the time (remember those damn firmware updates in 2013?) and I’ve destroyed more than one, but I tolerate them because I haven’t found anything better.

I have the GoPro Hero 4 Black after someone filched my Hero 3 when I was in Spain this year. I also just started using the TomTom Bandit camera which I am really starting to enjoy and I have high hopes for. I’ve written about it here.

Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop 

If you are going to take fabulous photos, you need to have a fabulous editing program to match. Every professional photographer I know uses Lightroom. Now for $10 a month you can have Lightroom and Photoshop as part of the Adobe Creative Cloud Photography Plan.

Hard drives 

You’ll need to make sure you are backing up your photos regularly in multiple different locations. I have so many external hard drives but I find I prefer the tougher grade ones with at least 1 TB of storage such as the Silicon Power or the Transcend Military Drop ones. On trips I usually bring 2 with me and store them in different parts of my luggage.

PHEW! Are you interested in photography? Have I covered all my bases? Have any questions? Leave a comment below and I’ll answer them all!

Heads up – some of these links are affiliate links which help foot the bills. Thanks!

The post What’s in my camera bag appeared first on Young Adventuress.

The sun was frying the top of my head like an egg on the warmest day this spring in New Zealand as I slipped and slid my way through the mud towards the the summit rocks on top of Whenua Hou (Codfish Island), home of one of the rarest birds in the world – the kākāpō.

With a population of only 125 birds left in the world, the kākāpō is a nocturnal flightless green bird that kinda looks like a parrot and an owl had a baby. They have literally been brought back from the brink of extinction by a handful of determined individuals, most of which now were out and about tracking and working on this little island at the end of the world.

Whenua Hou (remember “wh” is pronounced as an “f”) is one of the few predator-free islands where these elusive and rare birds call home. Because their main defense is camouflage as they can’t fly, kakapo were almost wiped out when humans brought animals like cats, stoats, possums, and rats to New Zealand back in the day even after strong conservation efforts. Time to make amends.

Kākāpō have one of the most amazing stories in New Zealand, and one that above all deserves to be heard around the world. My love for these odd parrots was solidified after meeting Sirocco in Wellington a few months ago, a very special kākāpō.

There is just something so special about these birds that tugs at my heart. They are so different and unusual, quirky and smart. And each one has its own personality and let’s be honest here, they are funny as hell. You can’t help but love them.

Whenua Hou is one of the main islands where kākāpō live. It’s off limits to the public and has no boat access. I was lucky enough to go over last week as a part of a giveaway with Department of Conservation, celebrating 25 years and 4.5 million dollars of sponsorship with New Zealand Aluminium Smelters (NZAS), where two people won an incredible trip to be kākāpō rangers for the day.

And I got to go along for the ride after much begging and pleading. And oh man, let me tell you it was one adventure after another.

NZAS helped bring kākāpō back from the brink of extinction in their partnership with DOC -The Kākāpō Recovery program started way back when in 1990 when there were only 49 kākāpō remaining.

NZAS staff help with maintenance on the island and go over regularly to help set up and repair the island’s infrastructure with more than 1,100 days of employee volunteer support. Along with the contest winners, a NZAS staff member came over with us to help out.

You know, once we finally made it on the island. Dun dun dun.

I truly hadn’t realized how lucky I have been with things not going wrong on my travels until last week when even my patience was tested.

Whenua Hou is located right next to Rakiura/Stewart Island, an island off the bottom of the South Island of New Zealand. There is not much between it and Antarctica, so I’m sure you can imagine the weather isn’t always exactly predictable or well-behaved in this part of the world.

Access to Whenua Hou is by permit only from Invercargill after undergoing the most stringent quarantine process this side of the equator.

Don’t worry – it’s totally normal they hold their heads like this, it’s to keep them from biting. One time a kākāpō bit a ranger HARD on the nipple and wouldn’t let go!

After meeting Amelia and Josh the kākāpō ranger winners, we all journeyed together to quarantine to begin the process of making sure all of our gear and clothes were squeaky clean and pest-free.

If you’ve ever visited New Zealand, you know they take biosecurity very seriously here, especially in customs at the airport. No food, no fruits, no wood, clean shoes, the list goes on and on to protect the special environment here from introduced diseases, insects, and pests. And Whenua Hou is exceptionally important.

I spent hours washing my gear clean, scrubbing dried sheep poop off my boots and rewashing all my clothes only to realize I hadn’t even scratched the surface. Nothing puts biohazards into perspective quite like having to pick out every single seed and bits of grass embedded in the mesh inside your hiking boots for half an hour with tweezers.

Mad respect for the DOC quarantine workers!

Spring in New Zealand can be incredibly windy. Our fixed wing flight to the island was canceled because of it leaving us with a helicopter only option. No complaints here. I love flying in helicopters! Top Gun! Hot pilots!

But just as I picked the last seed out of my boots and had my duffel ready to go, boom, the helicopter got canceled too. NO!

There was a big fire out in Southland which was hard to control thanks to the crazy winds, and all of the choppers had been called away to help put it out. The next few days were a waiting game for the wind to die down.

While we waited around, we took in a bit more of the conservation efforts down in Southland.

We visited a breeding center for takahē, another very rare flightless New Zealand bird. Their feathers are so blue it reminds me of the sea here. They were thought to be extinct before they were rediscovered in some of the harshest mountains of New Zealand in the 40s.

We also visited the Southland Museum which has a tuatara breeding program. Tuatara are very cute rare reptiles, and like most native New Zealand animals, they are very weird and interesting; I first saw them on Somes Island in Wellington. They are basically little dinosaurs.

Eventually we had a small enough window to make the flight over. I’ve never come so close to having a trip not go through! It definitely made me appreciate our time on Whenua Hou even more!

A few days after our intended departure, as we flew out over the Foveaux Strait, the morning clouds lifted and the sun turned the water the most beautiful bright turquoise. As we flew over Stewart Island, I was mesmerized by the white sandy beaches and blue water. It looked almost tropical.

Trust me, it’s not tropical.

Whenua Hou is a highly important place inMāori culture and to the Ngāi Tahu iwi (tribe), and have a spiritual, physical, cultural level. 200 years ago there was a settlement on the island of European sealers and their Māori partners.

Many Ngāi Tahu families descend from these relationships, with the settlement at Sealers Bay being the first permanent association between Māori and European people in southern New Zealand. Whenua Hou has several important archaeological sites containing significant buried taonga (treasures) and urupā (burial ground), some of which date back to the 13th century.

Kākāpō are considered to be taonga in Māori culture, and even their lost feathers found around the island are returned to the Ngāi Tahu.

And in the distance I finally got my first glimpse of the place I had been hoping to visit for years – Whenua Hou, home of the kākāpō. Pinch me, was this finally happening?

Have you guys ever visited a place that is so hard to access? At the risk of sounding annoyingly cliche, for me, finally visiting Whenua Hou was a dream come true, mostly because I never thought it would actually happen.

Once we got out of the helicopter and made our way to the hut where you go through one last quarantine check and brief of the island before settling in.

Flying over one of the huts on Stewart Island – can’t wait to stay here one day

The people who are usually on Whenua Hou are generally the DOC kākāpō rangers, volunteers (read more here) and the researchers. There was only a handful of people on the island when we visited which meant we all go to know each other and become friends fast.

The dynamic of getting along with everyone is vital in a place like this where you have to live together in close proximately for long periods of time on an island.

We had a quick lunch and then headed off to start exploring the island and learn how the rangers go about every day.

We spent about five hours hiking and climbing through the dense forest. It was about 5 minutes into the walk when I sunk up to my ankles in mud. All those hours of boot cleaning gone! MAN!

Our first task was to release Arab, one of the original kākāpō found by a guy nicknamed Arab on Stewart Island. He had been a bit sick and once he was sorted and put on more weight, it was time to return him to his territory.

It was a really special opportunity to briefly interact with a kākāpō on Whenua Hou as they are actually really really hard to find normally, even on a small island. They are nocturnal and blend in so well with the bush, it can be tricky to find them. One kakapo even hid on Whenua Hou for over 20 years before he was found again.

We were able to have a close look at his feathers, see the transmitter harnesses each kākāpō wear to track them, before heading off to return him to his home. One thing I found really interesting is that they don’t really know how old Arab is (he was found in 1980), or how old kākāpō can live until; these were found in the 70’s when the conservation efforts really took off, so only time will tell (full list of kākāpō here).

Often we would get a whiff of kākāpō on the breeze even when we couldn’t see them. They have an old musty smell that reminds you that these are ancient creatures. The rangers describe it as the inside of an old violin case, you know those red ones?

Random but true.

If you ever get the opportunity to smell a kākāpō, you’ll believe me. Oh and thank you Arab for letting me smell you. Legend.

My mind was whirling as I tried to keep up with the ranger carrying Arab up the trails. Seriously, those guys are fit!

As we released Arab, he quickly scampered off into the bush with a very annoyed look on his face.

It was on this tramp that I finally was able to see for myself firsthand what I had only visualized and heard about how kākāpō really live. We were able to see their tracks on the trail from their dinosaur feet, see the rimu fruit that plays such a vital role in their breeding, see where they dig out bowls in the earth and make a trail to lead the females to them (kākāpō sit in the bowls and make a subsonic boom to attract females during mating season), and even see nests from the previous breeding seasons.

Kākāpō rangers use special telemetry receivers to track the kākāpō. Each kākāpō has its own station on the radio to hear them.

Remember when I told you the story of Ruapuke? The miracle kākāpō born a few years ago after his mother accidentally squashed his egg and a ranger taped it up with masking tape and he survived? We were hoping to find him and spent most of the day trying to track him.

But like all wild animals, they don’t play by the rules and listen to us. And now that Ruapuke is a teenage kākāpō, he likes to go off wandering and exploring, making him hard to find.

Oh well, just another reason so come back!

I was grateful to have that experience with Arab and back with Sirocco in Wellington.

Sirocco doesn’t live on Whenua Hou anymore because he doesn’t interact or get along with the other kākāpō and generally annoys everyone else, especially during the mating season. Remember, he was the bird that imprinted on people as a baby and thinks he’s human.

Once he even built his dug out bowl to boom into in on the track to the toilet and would jump on unsuspecting kākāpō rangers in the middle of the night going for a pee. Come on Sirocco, that’s not how you get the ladies.

Seriously guys, how can you not love this bird? HA!

With a fully stocked kitchen, there was the best atmosphere in the evening after a big family dinner with everyone of fully loaded chili nachos. Nothing better than that after a long day in the mud tracking kākāpō!

We watched the sun set over the beach and a huge moonrise and yellow-eyed penguins surfed into the beach home for the night. After the sun went down and the wine was flowing, we all piled around the cozy couches to watch a few documentaries about kākāpō while munching chocolate.

My favorite was from the 70’s or 80’s with original footage showing how the last kākāpō were found in Fiordland and on Stewart Island. Flannel shorts, stubbies shorts, and impressive beards featured prominently.

After a good night’s sleep awoken a few times by little blue penguins screeching outside the hut windows, we spent the next morning exploring and helping fix up the chick enclosure for the upcoming breeding season.

On an island where every little bit of help matters, it felt amazing to lend a hand on something important, even though there were some huge (and I mean HUGE) spiders lurking behind some of the enclosure walls.

Seriously though, not cool.

I’m not going to talk about leaving Whenua Hou because it depresses me. I’ll be back guys.

Seriously I could go on and on guys.

To me kākāpō represents New Zealand’s original culture, before humans, when it was a land of birds and these bizarre green parrots reigned supreme. They are beautiful and quirky, dignified and clumsy, ancient and sprightly. They are a bird of beautiful contradictions and fascinating personalities, and it’s directly our fault they almost disappeared from the face of the planet.

I haven’t figured it out exactly yet, but I’m determined to do my part to help save these guys.

Have I converted you into a #BirdNerd yet? How interesting is the history of the kākāpō? Would you like to volunteer or visit Whenua Hou and see their home one day too?

**You can donate to kākāpō recovery here.

A million thanks to DOC, NZAS, Ngāi Tahu and Forest and Bird for believing in me and inviting me Whenua Hou. It’s the coolest thing I’ve ever done (and I don’t say that lightly) and means the world to me. Thank you for letting me part of the kākāpō story. Like always I’m keeping it real, all (fangirl) opinions are my own – like you could expect less from me. 

The post In search of Kākāpō – 24 hours on Whenua Hou appeared first on Young Adventuress.