It’s been a while since my last post, moving back and forth between Austria and New Zealand plus being pregnant and having a growing toddler who is full of ever growing energy has taken its toll on my writing time. Maya turned 2 in November and only 2 weeks later, little Lara arrived. Lots of … More A new baby, winter fun and the challenges of modern parenting.
Maya is a year and a half now. She is allowed to explore safe environments by herself, climb stairs, ladders and chairs, walk along edges etc. By safe environment I mean pretty much anything that doesn’t put her into great danger and her life at risk. Safe for us doesn’t mean she can’t scrape her knees or take … More The risk of NOT raising a wild child
When planning our Fiordland trip, we wondered how to best get there. Living at the top end of the South Island we pretty much had to cross the whole island. I’m a big fan of travelling by bus and it is much easier with Maya too, since she hates the carseat and to keep her happy demands CONSTANT entertainment. We … More Roadtrip around the South Island of NZ
This trip to Big Bay has been on our minds for over 2 years now. Pristine rivers, glacier capped mountains and remote surf beaches – the very best of Fiordland, in the South of New Zealands South Island. Less than 50kms from famous Milford Sound, two rivers, the Hollyford and Pyke, offer the ideal setup for … More Packrafting New Zealand – Fiordland backcountry mission
Having a garden is a bit like having a baby. The satisfaction and fulfilment it gives you is very hard to describe to non gardeners. You can easily talk for hours with a fellow gardener about how is this or that is doing at the moment; or share frustrations of what is not working out as … More The satisfaction of growing your own food
It’s the middle of the summer here in New Zealand and I keep receiving photos from the fantastic winter wonder land in Austria right now. Pictures of snow and blue skies remind me of last winter. It wasn’t that cold in Austria back then, nor did we have the same amount of snow. But with Maya just … More Ski touring with a baby
Another few days break and the middle of summer in New Zealand. Where should we go this time? I really had enjoyed the time in the Abel Tasman and was keen on exploring the area further, so we decided to go to Takaka, and then as far north as you can go on the South Island … More West Coast Kiting
The Abel Tasman is New Zealands most visited National Park, and it’s easy to see why. Golden beaches, turquoise waters, a very easy trail and huts and campsites all along the way. Having done the whole 60km coast walk a couple of years ago, I was a bit hesitant to take my mum there though. Back … More Abel Tasman Hiking
My mum recently arrived to visit us for a month and we wanted to give her a glimpse of the Kahurangi National Park and New Zealand outdoors. About an hour drive from Nelson takes us to Flora Car Park. At 900m altitude, it makes a day hike up to Mt.Arthur (1795m) quite easy. We had another … More Mt.Arthur weekend and deep survival
Maya had just turned 1 and at the same time Seon has swapped his one person Alpacka packraft for a bigger two person one that could fit all three of us. Excited to try it out, we planed a 4 day trip along the Pelorus river, hiking in from Nelson and rafting down to the … More Pelorus Packrafting adventure
