Prior to leaving Seattle in January 1989, I had an Automobile Association map of the North Island of New Zealand. On one occasion my friend Nik and I sat down and I jotted down notes on the map of places that he recommended going. On another occasion, I spent some time with Ron and Jody, and they provided me with many suggestions also. During the trip I had a copy of reference 1, which had good information too. I used reference 2 to help with selecting Tracks to hike. I knew I would be fishing during the trip, which would take up a good chunk of time also. Although I had an idea what my itinerary would be, I was not on a rigid schedule, and if I wanted to spend additional time in an area, I had extra time to do it. This proved to be a good way to do it.
Note 1: The "New Zealand" web page can be viewed by selecting Sitemap->NewZealand from menu bar at top.
References:
1. Sunset New Zealand Travel Guide, 2nd printing, January 1986
2. Tramping in New Zealand, Jim DuFresne, 1982
