While I visited many Lord of the Rings film locations during my multiple road trips all over the North Island, people kept telling me “the South Island is the real Middle Earth.” With its untouched, mountainous geography and less than ¼ of the New Zealand population living there, the South Island is the perfect setting for filming an epic like the Lord of the Rings. It’s no wonder I couldn’t help myself while road tripping around the region. Everywhere I looked I could envision orc battles, hobbits having second breakfast, and elves and men riding their horses across vast landscapes.
I sought out many of the South Island film locations with my equally nerdtastic travel companion, Carolina. Some were easier to find than others and some were less accessible than others. But in the end, we visited most of the locations completely independent from any paid tours—and we had great adventures of our own finding them!
I have seen and done so much in Germany since I arrived here nearly 3 weeks ago, it’s difficult to determine where to begin writing about my second country on the year of deviation tour. I’ve traveled from Bielefeld to Cologne to Frankfurt to Munich to Regensberg – and that’s just half of my time here so far!
Instead of going chronologically, I’ve decided to do some highlights starting with a list about things you must do in the city of Cologne (Köln). I spent 3 days staying with relatives in a small town about a 30-minute train ride into the city center. Cologne was mostly destroyed in WWII, but some historic gems remain, and many modern sights and cultural features together make Cologne a great introduction city to Germany.
I watched Carolina trot away from the car toward the bus stop in Höfn. It was early in the morning and we had just said our goodbyes. I was excited to learn that one of her stops on her 10-month journey will be New Zealand—one of my main destinations. Perhaps we’ll see each other in a few months on the other side of the world.
Fabrice and I got back to Route 1 to continue our drive around the Ring Road. Today we would have to travel the most distance in one day: 360 km to Lake Mývatn. I had heard there were amazing natural hot springs there—less expensive and less touristy than the famous Blue Lagoon near Reykjavik.
When I looked out over Portland at Council Crest, the craggy, snowcapped Mt. Hood beckoned. That mountain felt to me like my ticket to an adventure—and I was right but in a most unexpected way. I booked a 24-hour car rental with my friend so we could drive to the Mt. Hood Adventure Park at SkiBowl in Government Camp, Oregon. Just an hour and a half outside of Portland, the park offers a series of activities: zip-lining, hiking tours, bungee jumping, horseback riding, and more. I figured it'd be a good place to find some fun. Once we arrived, we decided to do a water-related activity. I had my sights on stand-up paddle boarding but it was the day after July 4th. "Sorry, SUPs have been booked for weeks," the apologetic SkiBowl employee told us. She handed us their book of activities to flip through to find something else. White water rafting caught our attention.
I like beautiful scenery and a taste of adventure. So here are my top 5 outdoor experiences from my trip to Portland, Oregon this summer.
Forest Park is not the kind of place for an inexperienced hiker. We came prepared with water and snacks because if you don't know where you're going you can easily get lost there. Forest Park is big. Really big. And even though we saw stray locals wandering through, there were long stretches of time when we were completely alone. You can feel totally disconnected from the city and avenues below in there and not know which trail will take you out or turn you deeper into the woods. At times, our hike felt a bit like the hobbit and the dwarves' trek through Mirkwood.
