Step off the beaten path and into a window of trekking rugged trails, wandering through hidden corners of the globe, or capturing fleeting moments through the lens. Here, travel, hiking, and photography come together to offering inspiration, practical tips, and vivid imagery or just to travel vicariously.

China - Silk Road 06 - Into the Desert

China - Silk Road 06 - Into the Desert

A bus ride into the desert outside of the city revealed an unexpected wild area of rock formations and vast dramatic skies set against a glorious sunset.
June 2016
China - Silk Road 05 -The Outer Limits

China - Silk Road 05 -The Outer Limits

With the mighty Gobi desert to the east and north, and the massive Taklamakan desert to the east, the heat is on. I visit a reconstructed Ming-era outpost and the outer remnants of the 4th Century Great Wall.
June 2016
China - Silk Road 04 - The End of the Line

China - Silk Road 04 - The End of the Line

Once the edge of civilization, Jiayaguan was where caravans feared bandits and dreamed of dumplings. I arrived expecting windswept solitude and ancient ruins—only to be greeted by bullet trains, megaphones, and a selfie-stick battalion. Turns out, the last outpost of the Great Wall now comes with high-speed rail and a souvenir shop.
June 2016
China - Silk Road 03 - Rainbow Rocks

China - Silk Road 03 - Rainbow Rocks

Danxia Rainbow Rocks are what happen when you take hundreds of metres deep of tightly packed rock layers, paint each a different colour, then bend, shape and sculpt it all into a fantastical landscape. A wonderful off-the-beaten-track place to visit while heading east to the Taklamakan desert.
June 2016
China - Silk Road 02 - Mati Si Temple Grottos

China - Silk Road 02 - Mati Si Temple Grottos

Tucked up on the edge of some very large mountains that form the northern barrier to the Tibetan Plateau sits a lush valley with an array of ancient Bhuddist temples carved into the sandstone cliffs starting from over 1,600 years ago with many of the temples accessible only by climbing hidden staircases and vertical shafts in the cliffs.
June 2016
China - Silk Road 01 - A Close Shave

China - Silk Road 01 - A Close Shave

Reaching my Chinese starting point in Lanzhau in a dodgy hotel and a battle with railway bureaucracy.
June 2016
Waiting on Chinese visas

Waiting on Chinese visas

A few days waiting on visas in Hong Kong, hiking on the islands trying to acclimatise to the sudden change from a New Zealand winter to a very hot and humid Hong Kong summer.
June 2016
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