Hot air balloon over Cayuga Lake

This Weekly Snapshot comes from our trip to celebrate my cousin Mark’s graduation from Ithaca College on Cayuga Lake this weekend. The view over the lake was a welcome sight as we were reunited with my family after our year abroad.

Canon Powershot S95 Photo Properties – f number: 8, exposure time: 1/1600, focal length: 12.845

The Weekly Snapshot | Cayuga Lake, NY is a post from: Two Backpacks. One World.

Analyzing the color the beer we are enjoying

This Weekly Snapshot is to celebrate our return to Asheville, North Carolina, also known as Beer City USA. This title is given based on the results of an online survey by Charlie Papazian, perhaps the most well known name in craft brewing. Last year Asheville tied for the title with Portland, Oregon, which is already on my list of places I want to visit. This year the title is shared with Grand Rapids, Michigan, so I think we might have to plan a visit there while we’re at it! In this photo, I am examining the color of the beer I am enjoying with friends at Catawba Valley Brewing Company (near Asheville in Morganton, NC). One of my best friends, Todd, is the head brewer at Catawba Valley and likes to think outside the box when it comes to making beer. While there I helped him blend up strawberries and rhubarb to mix with a berliner weisse (low alcohol sour beer). My favorite sampling was of his pumpernickel rye beer with predominant flavors of caraway seeds, though I heard many praises for his peanut butter and jelly beer (unfortunately, the kegs of this dried up long before we made it back here).

Here’s a toast to the area we call home and all the creative flavors it has to offer – Cheers!

Canon Powershot S95 Photo Properties – f number: 2, exposure time: 1/20, focal length: 6

The Weekly Snapshot | Back in Beer City, USA is a post from: Two Backpacks. One World.

The "Shawshank Tree" ripped in half

We spent our first weekend back in the States in Mansfield, Ohio where my mom grew up. We decided to take a trip down memory lane, which included stopping by her old childhood camp, grabbing an ice cream cone (which she promptly dropped on the ground after her first bite… bummer!) and visiting Malabar Farm, home of the famous “Shawshank Tree.” The tree was used in the 1994 film Shawshank Redemption and was ripped in half by strong winds during a storm in July 2011. This Weekly Snapshot is of the iconic tree after being damaged in the storm.

Canon Powershot S95 Photo Properties – f number: 8, exposure time: 1/640, focal length: 12

The Weekly Snapshot | Shawshank Redemption Tree is a post from: Two Backpacks. One World.

Te Matua Ngahere (Father of the Forest)

This Weekly Snapshot is the last we will post while in New Zealand, our home for the past 7 months. As a tribute to this amazing country which has welcomed us and made us feel at home, we visited with some of the oldest residents of New Zealand, the Kauri trees. The tree pictured here, Te Matua Ngahere (Maori for “Father of the Forest”) is the oldest Kauri in New Zealand at an estimated 2000 years of age. Te Matua Ngahere is also the second largest living Kauri in New Zealand at over 53 feet in girth and 98 feet in height.

Canon Powershot S95 Photo Properties – f number: 2, exposure time: 1/160, focal length: 6

The Weekly Snapshot | New Zealand Kauri Trees is a post from: Two Backpacks. One World.

Above all of the beautiful places to see and explore in New Zealand, Fiordland National Park was at the top of my list. It was a snapshot of the iconic Mitre Peak in Milford Sound that initially captivated me. Perhaps you can see why:

Mitre Peak reflecting into Milford Sound

Fiordland National Park is one of the largest National Parks in the world, sprawling over 1.2 million hectares (2.9 million acres). Most of the park is untouched by humans, allowing it to be home to many of New Zealand’s rarest flora and fauna. The area is so secluded, in fact, that a flightless bird found only in New Zealand called Takahe was rediscovered there in 1948 after having been believed to be extinct for many years. There are now thought to be around 160 Takahe birds protected within this great wilderness area.

There are a number of ways to explore the park, including hiking one of the three of New Zealand’s Great Walks in the park, taking day and overnight boat trips, and sea kayaking in some of the fiords. As we only had a few days, we opted to sea kayak in Milford Sound and take an overnight boat trip in the more secluded Doubtful Sound. The map below shows the size of the park compared to the small slivers we were lucky enough to see.

Milford Sound is the only fiord that can be accessed by road, making it a popular destination for visitors to Fiordland National Park. The drive down Milford Road to the start of the sound is an adventure in itself, and we found ourselves stopping around every bend to marvel at the stunning alpine scenery around us. Along the way, a couple of Kea birds, also known “alpine parrots,” came around to say hello. Keas are only found in alpine regions on New Zealand’s South Island and are known for being very intelligent and inquisitive, and also a bit mischievous. Watch out or they will find a way to get your food!

One of the many beautiful views on Milford Road

A mischievous kea on Milford Road

A friend in Nelson recommended we sea kayak with Rosco’s Milford Kayaks. Rosco’s is the longest serving owner-operated sea kayaking business in New Zealand, and after spending a full day paddling Milford Sound with our guide, Mark, it’s easy to see why they came highly recommended. From the start, Mark made everyone feel comfortable with his humorous banter and extensive knowledge of Milford Sound.

We decided to do the Stirling Sunriser trip, so we geared up and jumped on the water taxi which took us out past the magnificent Stirling Falls.

The view from the water taxi with a view of Stirling Falls

Once we were out past the falls, we all hopped into our tandem kayaks and started making our way. It wasn’t long before we came across some seals playing in the water and resting on the rocks.

A fellow kayaker watching a seal on the rocks. Can you spot the seal?

We continued paddling to the falls, stopping along the way to see eight-legged starfish clinging to the rocks beneath the water and learning more about the glacier-carved fiord from Mark.

Eventually, we stopped on a small beach to take in our surroundings.

The view from the beach was amazing, too bad the sandflies thought so too!

After a nice break, we made our way back to the port, wishing we had another eight hours of paddling time.

Paddling into Deep Water Basin at the end of the day

Before we arrived in Milford we were told that sea kayaking is the best way to explore the sound. While the cruise boats are good options for those with little time or limited fitness abilities, I would recommend a sea kayaking trip to anyone looking to get up close and personal with the wildlife of the sound. Of all the places we have been so far this year, the fiords are by far the most majestic place I have ever been.

Fiordland National Park | Kayaking in Milford Sound is a post from: Two Backpacks. One World.

Wellington Harbor

This Weekly Snapshot brings us to a whole new island. That’s right, we have officially departed from the South Island of New Zealand. We landed safely at the bottom of the North Island in Wellington after taking the Interislander Ferry. This view is from the top of Mount Victoria, overlooking the harbor of New Zealand’s capital city.

Canon Powershot S95 Photo Properties – f number: 2.8, exposure time: 1/200, focal length: 8.557

The Weekly Snapshot | Wellington Harbor at Sunset is a post from: Two Backpacks. One World.

The seal decided I was close enough

This Weekly Snapshot is of a New Zealand fur seal I had a close encounter with at Separation Point in Abel Tasman National Park. New Zealand fur seals are found all over the country and have even been known to swim to Australia. We had quite a few opportunities to observe and admire these animals during our road trip around the South Island in Westport, Fiordland National Park, Kaikoura, and Abel Tasman National Park.

For more information on New Zealand fur seals, visit the NZ Department of Conservation website here.

Canon Powershot S95 Photo Properties – f number: 4.9, exposure time: 1/125, focal length: 22.5

The Weekly Snapshot | New Zealand Fur Seal is a post from: Two Backpacks. One World.

Our view of the peaceful Doubtful Sound at night

This Weekly Snapshot comes from our overnight boat cruise on Doubtful Sound. We went on this awesome adventure with Real Journeys in Fiordland National Park. This has been one of the biggest highlights in our 11 months of traveling! We had the opportunity to take a smaller boat tour for an up close view of the local flora and fauna, ate an excellent buffet dinner and dessert (including pavlova!), and enjoyed a beautiful view of the surrounding mountains and stars at night. I captured this photograph with a slow exposure looking at the surrounding area where we anchored the ship for the night. On top of all this, we woke up in the morning to a gorgeous sunrise and saw bottlenose dolphins riding the waves in front of our boat! Wow!

Canon Powershot S95 Photo Properties – f number: 2, exposure time: 10, focal length: 6

The Weekly Snapshot | Doubtful Sound Overnight is a post from: Two Backpacks. One World.

We spent this past weekend in Wanaka, New Zealand, a small lake town in on the South Island’s West Coast region. Our main purpose for the stopover in was to run in the Southern Lakes Half Marathon, however we unexpectedly fell in love with Wanaka’s stunning scenery and friendly vibe. One thing that really stuck me about it is that even though the town is built around the lake, the lakefront is preserved for public access with beaches and a running/walking/cycling path. If this town were in the States, I imagine the lakefront would be a slew of private houses with tiny (and thus crowded) areas for public access. The photos below are of the lake both at night and during the day – I just couldn’t choose, they are both so beautiful!

Lake Wanaka, Sunset

Lake Wanaka, Midday

Wanaka Night Photo:

Canon Powershot S95 Photo Properties – f number: 2.2, exposure time: 1/125, focal length: 6.852

Wanaka Day Photo:

Canon Powershot S95 Photo Properties – f number: 8, exposure time: 1/1600, focal length: 6

The Weekly Snapshot | Wanaka, Night and Day is a post from: Two Backpacks. One World.

As you may have heard, New Zealand is arguably the adventure capital of the world. From Skydiving to Scuba-diving and everything in between, this country has it all. Our latest adventure took us high into glacier country on Fox Glacier, a 13 kilometer (8 mile) long glacier on New Zealand’s west coast. In order to explore as much of the glacier as possible, we opted for the full day guided hike which took us from 167 meters (548 feet) at the base up to 550 meters (1804 feet) in the most unreal landscape I can imagine. As is usually the case, I think that photos are much more telling of our adventures than words so here are some of my favorites.

The approach to Fox Glacier

We're inside an ice tunnel!

So beautiful...

Brian straddling a crevasse

The ice is blue and is apparently four times more dense than freezer ice

The view from up high looking into the glacial valley

The view was spectacular

Fisher Family on Fox Glacier

Brian climbing into an ice tunnel

Looking back on Fox Glacier after a great day of icy hiking

Icy Adventures | Hiking on Fox Glacier is a post from: Two Backpacks. One World.