Traveling at Southern Alps, New Zealand was Amazing

There are hundreds of glaciers locked in the Southern Alps, slowly grinding their way down to lower altitudes and melting into running rivers of uncanny blue-green hues. These conspire with the vast brown grasslands of the Mackenzie Basin and ancient green forests of Fiordland to humble you with their imposing presence, leaving you feeling very small and temporary.

The Southern Alps region is great for hiking. Terrain varies from high alpine tundra to snow-covered peaks, heavily forested mountains, and wide, braided river valleys. A good network of trails and marked routes are throughout the mountains, but be well informed before venturing into them.

There are many easier options for exploring the foothills and less arduous parts of the Southern Alps. On the southwest corner of the island, glaciers over millennia have cut the Alps into stone walls dropping into fjords, and walking trails take you into the heart of the wild Fiordland National Park.

Floods of tourists have come to see the otherworldly landscape used in shooting The Hobbit, and Lord of the Rings film trilogies, and Hollywood directors have been drawn to the area for the magnificent backdrops that depicted Tolkien's Middle Earth.