As the Herald reported this week, many national cycleway trails are open. But elsewhere progress is painfully slow. Kirsten Warner visits Hokianga to find out why

It's a feat of mental and physical willpower to conquer mighty Kilimanjaro and Vanessa James is determined to master the mighty mountain.

Scaling the Matterhorn is something best done while you're young, says Alpine guide Rudi Steindl.

Jim Eagles finds that the inhabitants of the mountain town of Xiahe a hardy lot.

Sherpa mountaineer Nawang Gombu, the youngest member of the climbing team that first scaled Mount Everest, has died.

Photographer Sarah Ivey, who grew up in the Mackenzie Country, uses her camera to introduce the rugged beauty of a place few New Zealanders have visited.

Liz Light walks in the Grazalema Mountains in southern Spain.

A climber is reported to have been killed and a paraglider has spinal injuries after accidents on two South Island mountains today.

The public has narrowly voted in favour of renaming the South Ridge of Aoraki/Mt Cook after Sir Edmund Hillary.

Champion skier Claudia Riegler enthuses about the shops, cafes and clubs that make the European ski experience so special.

The riches of the Paparoa Range were enticing, but the cost of extracting them was greater than anyone imagined, writes Grant Bradley

Meandering goats, cow bells and jaw-droppingly beautiful views bemuse Herald cartoonist Rod Emmerson in the Swiss Alps.

Families can enjoy a close encounter with Aoraki/Mt Cook 'The Cloud Piercer' from the comfort of the valley floor, finds Paul Rush.