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hiking

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In Kyrgyzstan

What to do in Karakol – Hiking to Jeti Oguz

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Hiking to Jeti Oguz Located a 30-minute drive from Karakol, Jeti Oguz is home one of the best one-day hikes in Kyrgyzstan. This is one of the best things to do in Karakol.  We visited the landlocked Central Asia nation in June 2018 and a harsh winter a few months earlier meant that many of the mountain passes used for the multi-day treks in the area were not yet open. Not to be deterred we headed to Jeti Oguz with a rough route planned out whilst being suitably prepared to change our plans. Getting there and away We hired a taxi from the centre of Kochkor. You don’t need to find them, they will find you. We negotiated down to about 40 som and arranged from him to pick us up from our guesthouse at 8:30 am. Unfortunately, he spoke no English, so my Russian came into use (check out…

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In Kyrgyzstan

What to do in Kochkor – Hiking to Kol Ukok

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Hiking to Kol Ukok: Welcome to one of Kyrgyzstan’s most breathtaking hikes. It’s usually done over two days with one of the day having vastly more walking than the other. Although there are trails that go beyond it, the lake of Kol Ukok is the highlight of the hike. We hiked up to our yurt camp on day 1 and planned on hiking up to the lake the next day. Weather forecasts said rain would be coming the afternoon of day 1. Sadly the weather forecasts weren’t entirely correct and it remained pretty clear until nightfall when it began to rain. Leaving us to wonder if we’d made a rather monumental cock up. However when our alarms went off at 5:30am we were greeted with a few clouds and no rain. We then hiked up to Kol Ukok and back down to the trail entrance where our wonderful hostel owner…

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In China

What to do in Zhangjiajie – A perfect 3 day guide

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Visiting Zhangjiajie Zhangjiajie may not mean much to many, but this is one of China’s most popular travel destinations. Located in northern Hunan province it is most famous for being the inspiration for the film Avatar (the whole site is sometimes erroneously referred to as the Avatar mountains). The park is huge and there are numerous different sites, trails and paths giving you the chance to experience the stunning scenery close up. However this is not like national parks in Australia, the US or New Zealand. You can’t just head off on your own adventure and explore freely. You have to stick to the concrete paths that wind their way throughout the park. The main reason for this is due to the parks size and the huge number of visitors it receives on a daily basis. The scenery more than makes up for this lack of freedom though. Welcome to…

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In New Zealand

A Few Great Hikes in New Zealand

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Looking towards Mount Cook

New Zealand is a country of outstanding natural beauty, friendly people and activities galore. You could be there for years (not necessarily a bad thing) trying to do everything. Hiking, or tramping as it’s called in New Zealand is popular and accessible almost everywhere. The 9 great hikes get a lot of attention from books, blogs and guides, but there are hundreds of other excellent hikes all over the north and south island. I-sites as well as DOC (Department of Conservation) information centres are usually good places to pick up information on local walking routes. Naturally New Zealand’s National Parks are full of excellent trails that range from short and easy to challenging multi day treks. Particular favourites of ours were the Tongiriro, Abel Tasman, Aoraki and Arthurs Pass National Park. Below are a few of our favourite hikes from our 5 1/2 week trip. Bay of Islands: There…

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In Georgia

What to do in Svaneti and Kazbegi

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Some of Mestia's stunning mountain scenery

Visiting Svaneti and Kazbegi in the spring Kazbegi and Svaneti are justifiably two of the most popular destinations in Georgia. Both offer spectacular mountain scenery and excellent hiking. The best season for hiking in the greater Caucuses mountains is the summer which begins around mid May/early June. However that does not mean that these two destinations are off limits outside of this time period. We ended up visiting Kazbegi at the beginning of April and Svaneti at the end. Major hiking routes close to Kazbegi itself were free of snow however this was not the case in Svaneti. When we were planning our trip to the Georgia traveling to these two regions outside of the summer seasons was one of main concerns. By the looks of some of our google searches it seemed we weren’t the only ones that were asking questions. Here we will give you all the tips…

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In China

Emei Shan

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It is rather disconcerting to find yourself part way up a mountain, around dinner time, as storm clouds are rolling in. No-one around you, the only guesthouses are somewhere “on the trail” according to the guidebook and the final cherry on the top of this rather frustrating predicament is that its hot, humid and you’ve got a mouthful of water left. To understand how I ended up in this position, I need to rewind a little. I’d managed to sneak in some annual leave to get a short 5 day break built around my Tuesday and Wednesday weekend back in July 2013. I decided to use this time to take a trip down to Chengdu, one of Chinas coolest and most happening cities. Great food, great scenery and a dialect of Mandarin that can leave even the most proficient speaker confused and befuddled. I landed in Chengdu on Monday lunchtime…

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In Hong Kong

Hiking to Lantau Peak

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Sunset Peak and Lantau Peak

Hiking in Hong Kong? Hong Kong isn’t just all skyscrapers and neon lights, it is also home to some pretty spectacular scenery and some awesome hiking trails. The hike to Lantau Peak, part of the Lantau trail, is one of the jewels in Hong Kong’s hiking crown. We have another article focusing on stages 1 and 2 of the maclehose trail Getting there and away Head to Tung Chung subway station, then from exit B take bus 11 or 23 and get off at Pak Au Chung. The hike finishes at the Ngong Ping, so you can take the opportunity to explore the Tian Tan Big Buddha and the Po Lin Monastery. From the Ngong Ping you can take bus 23 back to Tung Chung or head down to Mui Wo and take the boat back to Hong Kong Island. Is it a difficult hike? The walk took us about…

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