Moo and Moochelle

Papaiti Walkway, WHANGANUI

You’d be forgiven for not having heard of Papaiti, a little semi-rural suburb in Whanganui, but it has been really been put on the map recently (well, at least for those of us who live here). It’s making a little name for itself as a gin tasting pit-stop on the Mountain to Sea bike trail. […]

WELLINGTON ZOO ✨

Sammie turns One!! On the lead up to Sammie’s first birthday we chatted over what family traditions we would like to keep / add to in order to celebrate birthdays. For a long while we were going to go to Fiji to celebrate, but Mikey was made redundant shortly beforehand and so (even though it […]

Bason Botanic Gardens, WHANGANUI

How is it that I’ve lived in Whanganui for 7.5years, been to Bason Reserve a number of times, and YET this is the first time I’ve actually done this walk? We were inspired to do this walk today, Matariki observed (Friday 14 July, 2023), as we have recently decided that we should do a *new […]

The Pyramids (Victory Beach), Dunedin, OTAGO

This is one of Dunedin’s most remote beaches and it’s absolutely beautiful. I can’t believe I lived in Dunedin for 6 years and never came here (except I can, because it’s quite the mission). Fun fact: Dunedin has like 25+ beaches. I should do a blog post dedicated just to Dunedin beaches, because they are […]

Ross Creek Reservoir, Dunedin, OTAGO

This is one of my favourite places to regularly walk in Dunedin. (Do I say that about every walk? This one I try to do most trips to our home-away-from-home). We even had some wedding photos taken here in the bush, although we were behind schedule so missed out on photos by the reservoir itself […]

Tunnel Beach, Dunedin, OTAGO

Tunnel Beach is one of Dunedin’s worst kept secrets. For good reason. It’s a great spot, although it’s a steep (but short) walk back up to the car from the beach. The highlight of course is the tunnel down to the secluded beach where you can hunt for fossils and explore caves (at low tide) […]

Nicols Falls, Dunedin, OTAGO

This is one of my favourite spots in Dunedin. It’s a relatively short walk (though fairly steep) and not many people know about it for some reason. It is definitely a “hidden gem” in lush native forest, which isn’t super common around Dunedin. There is also a great spot for glow worms if you go […]

Dyke’s Dam (Sowburn Walkway), Patearoa, CENTRAL OTAGO

Patearoa is a small settlement in rural Central Otago, meaning “fortification with a clear view” in Te Reo Māori, although this may be more the original name of the Rock and Pillar Ranges, rather than the name given to the village. Europeans settled here in search of gold in the 1860s, and named the place […]

Blue Lake Loop Track, St Bathans, CENTRAL OTAGO

St Bathans is a former gold and coal mining settlement in the heart of rural Central Otago. Fun fact: it was previously named Dunstan Creek, but was founded as St Bathans in 1863. It was named by surveyor John Turnball, after the Scottish parish of Abbey St Bathans. By 1887 it had a population of […]

Māori Rock Carvings, TAUPŌ

“Trip Facts” Located in Mine Bay, Lake Taupō We visited the carvings (this time) through Sail Barbary, which runs an eco sailing yacht (its backup motor is electric) The trip was from, and returned to, Taupō centre city 2.5hours scenic cruise, guided tour of the lake and lots of interesting info provided about the carvings, […]