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Adventuring in New Zealand, Second Edition | 
 enlarge | Author: Margaret Jeffries
Publisher: Sierra Club Books
Category: Book
List Price: $20.00
Buy New: $6.00
You Save: $14.00 (70%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  3 reviews
Sales Rank: 1140068
Media: Paperback
Edition: 2
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 554
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.4
Dimensions (in): 8.5 x 5.4 x 1.3
ISBN: 1578050375
Dewey Decimal Number: 910
EAN: 9781578050376
ASIN: 1578050375
Publication Date: March 21, 2000
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
New Zealanders call their country the "Last Great Paradise" -- and it's no wonder. Similar in size to Japan or Great Britain, New Zealand offers a diversity of scenery hard to match anywhere in the world: glaciated mountains, active volcanoes, vast tracts of dense rainforest, wild rivers and tumbling waterfalls, crystal-clear lakes, magnificent fiords, rich rolling farmlands, dramatic cliffs, and secluded beaches.
Adventuring in New Zealand is the essential guidebook for anyone who wants to discover this country's abundant natural wonders, from the beaches and rocky headlands of the North Island to the scenic fiords of the South Island. This comprehensive volume features:
An overview of New Zealand's geology, flora, and fauna, and a brief history of its inhabitants, including Maori culture
Profiles of twelve national parks, twenty-one forest parks, three maritime parks, numerous scenic reserves, eight coastal farm parks, and many protected islands
Complete information on a wide variety of outdoor activities, including swimming, surfing, sailing, snorkeling, diving, rafting, boating, kayaking, cycling, spelunking, hunting and fishing, and horse trekking
Recommendations for the best hiking and climbing, from gentle strolls to multi-day "bush" trips, with information on New Zealand's extensive network of walking trails and backcountry huts
Practical information on visa and visitor permits, transportation and accommodations, clothing and travel essentials, maps and exchange rates, and weather and seasons
Appendices listing common plants and commonly and rarely sighted birds, a Maori glossary, and a recommended reading list
More than thirty maps and black-and-white photographs
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| Customer Reviews:
 Good Guide to Outdoors New Zealand August 1, 2006
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I am inclined to agree with reviewer Jaffe and the Editorial Reviews. As a native Kiwi I know Auckland and Fiordland well having hiked extensively in both areas.
The Auckland sections covers the well known outdoor main attractions of the region well: the islands of the Hauraki Gulf and the extensive network of regional parks, many of which are coastal and have fantastic views from the walks in them.
Fiordland is the "honey pot" for accessible wilderness hiking in New Zealand. The description of the History, National Parks, short day walks and longer multi-day treks on well formed tracks is quite good. The maps are a bit scant, but you will buy better maps when you arrive in an area. And NZ does publish a wide selection of very good maps of all our park network. For a day-by-day detailed guide to the walks you are better to buy the Lonely Planet "Tramping in New Zealand" (even us locals use it). The book index is not so good, even the Routeburn "Great walk" (the finest 3 day walk in NZ in my opinion) is not listed but you can find it on page 457 with a 1/2 page description of it. After 5 years the book is not really dated. The one new development in NZ is private walking tracks and I can recommend the Banks Peninsula Track just out of Christchurch (page 388 of the book).
So as a one volume "outdoor type" guide to NZ the book is worth buying and fills a niche not quite met by Rough Guide or Lonely Planet.
So come and visit us.
 Best NZ guide for the environmental traveler April 19, 2004
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
My partner and I found "Adventuring..." the single most useful guide for our visit to New Zealand in January 2003. I disagree with the prior negative customer review and wonder if M. Goldstein actually used this book for travel to New Zealand or was merely an armchair traveler seeking amusement. It's true this isn't the kind of general guidebook so ably done by Lonely Planet and others. Jefferies doesn't refer the reader to specific restaurants or lodgings. What she does superbly is to introduce each region of the country with a detailed essay on its flora, fauna, terrain and history. Her knowledge of New Zealand's parklands runs much deeper than a conventional guidebook. While not neglecting famous tourist attractions, she takes you far off the beaten path to smaller forest preserves that harbor natural treasures. The book is not a detailed trail guide, but it points you to the access points for the back country with useful general descriptions of many hikes. Jefferies doesn't glamorize. Her descriptions of the deforestation and other environmental abuses that New Zealand has suffered might unsettle a conventional sightseer. For the environmental traveler with a serious interest in the natural history of the islands, it's just right.
 Not up to Sierra Club's usual standards. November 5, 1998
25 out of 27 found this review helpful
Adventuring in New Zealand turns out to be a fairly pedestrian travel guide, with little to recommend it. While claiming to be an "adventuring guide", there's little more about hiking, parks, fishing, climbing, etc. than any of the standard guidebooks. Design, illustrations, and indexing are second rate. Give this one a miss.
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