Often, the first question asked about a tattoo is whether there’s a story behind it. Sometimes, the story of getting the tattoo can be as interesting as the tattoo itself.

It takes a lot to get me to return to a place I’ve already traveled to, and to return a third time puts Utah in a very select group of places. Yet this state has some of the most incredible rock features I’ve yet to see finer examples of.

I am now back in the United States. I first left North Carolina on June 13, 2025 and returned on June 7, 2026. In one year I have: · Seen a volcano eruption · Bungee jumped · Backpacked all 11 Great Walks, plus five other world-class multi-day hikes · Visited all 13 national parks in New Zealand And so much more!

When I first planned my trip to New Zealand, I had zero intention of visiting Tasmania. I met my fair share of Aussies who told me that I should check it out. Figuring that it would never be more convenient than now, I happily appended it to the end of my stint on the far end of the world.

The Great Walks were not the only multi-day hikes I’ve done during my time in New Zealand. The scope of my adventures was bound to expand to include lesser known, but just as spectacular hikes. I ended up including 5 other big trails into my plans, and I rank them here.

When I originally began looking into spending time in New Zealand, I knew I wanted to focus on exploring all the natural beauty the country was known for, especially in terms of trails. At the time, I had only heard of the Milford Track, but as I began to do research, I discovered that it was just one of 11 Great Walks New Zealand had to offer. Naturally, I expanded my goal to accomplish all of them.

As a way to share some of the other things I’ve done during the last few months in New Zealand, I decided to post some of my favorite day hikes. I tend to favor tougher, longer hikes, as they are usually a little quieter and a little more rewarding, but, as you shall see, all of these were photo-worthy.

I went bungee jumping for the first time in my life. I had been skydiving once before, as I’ve mentioned previously, but that was something I had always wanted to do. I cannot say the same about bungee jumping.

There are some people who know exactly where they belong. For better or worse, I am not one of those people.