Monroe's Trek--A World Away from the Alps

We took this evocative trail through the rainforest to the Tasman Sea in search of penguins. Wrong time of day--no penguins. Fabulous hike, though. One of the remarkable things about New Zealand is the incredible diversity of ecosystems: from alps to fiords to tropical beaches to rain forests to windswept plains--even an active volcano. All the really cool kinds of scenery of the world in one tiny island nation.