Queen Charlotte Track, New Zealand

Ship Cove to Anakiwa

By Peter Potterfield, executive summary by darmansjah

Round-Trip: 44 miles, 3 to 5 days

When to Go: Located on the sunny north end of the South Island, near the famed wine growing region of Marlborough, the Queen Charlotte can be done virtually year round. Hike with Marlborough Sound Adventures, who have the logistics wired.

A unique journey through the sunny hills of the Marlborough Sounds, the Queen Charlotte follows the dragon’s back ridge that separates the blue waters of Queen Charlotte Sound from those of Kenepuru Sound. Water taxis take you from the town of Picton to the start, at Ship’s Cove, where Captain Cook hung out frequently between 1770 and 1779, and the finish at Anakiwa. You can camp the whole way, a style of hiking the Kiwis call “freedom walking,” or choose to turn the jaunt into a cush day-hiking experience not unlike trekking in Nepal—except your gear is carried by boat, not yak. Go luxe, and you can crank 15-mile days and stay every night in comfortable lodges at Furneaux, Punga Cove and Portage.

Insider Tip: The Queen Charlotte is one of the few tracks in New Zealand open to mountain bikers for part of the season. Go early or late in the season if you want to ride, or choose high summer if you want a more tranquil hike without bikers coming up behind you.

Bay of Fires, Tasmania, Australia

Stumpy’s Bay to Bay of Fires Lodge

By Peter Potterfield, executive summary by darmansjah

Round-Trip: 16 miles, 4 days

When to Go: October to May is the season for this beach route along the northeastern shore. Go with the Bay of Fires Walk; it’s the only way in or out.

From the start in Mount William National Park to the finish at the impressive Bay of Fires Lodge, the route never deviates from seemingly endless beaches of blinding white sand and surreal rock formations lapped by a turquoise Tasman Sea. Only the occasional headland of granite boulders, turned blood red by lichen or forested points of shoreline, pushes you up and out of the coves. The Bay of Fires walk is a four-day guided trip; you can’t do it solo, as there is no water on the route so no place to overnight. The first day takes you out to a permanent camp at Forester Beach. The second, longer day finishes at the architecturally striking Bay of Fires Lodge. It’s as green as they come—in fact, you’ll pump your own water up to rooftop tanks for a shower. Day three is the ultimate reward: free time on the stunning Bay of Fires coast with the comforts and fine wine of the lodge at your beck and call.

Insider Tip: Don’t bother learning to discriminate between the species of snakes on Tasmania—they all have fatal bites. Strikes are rare, however, so just keep your eyes peeled for the slithering black creatures when you’re crossing the headlands.

Chilkoot Trail, Alaska and Yukon Territory, U.S. and Canada

Skagway to Bennett Lake

By Peter Potterfield, executive summary by darmansjah

Round-Trip: 33 miles, 3 to 5 days

When to Go: The Coast Range opens up a bit earlier than the Rockies, so you can push the season a bit. Late June to early October works most years, but August has the best weather—and sees the heaviest traffic.

The very names on this epic route—the Golden Stairs, the Scales, the Stone Crib—are redolent with the suffering of 1898 gold miners, and there’s no mistaking the history here. Both sides of the trail are littered with rusting remains of equipment the miners jettisoned out of exhaustion. More than a century later, the backcountry journey those miners blazed, driven by greed, has become one of the iconic wilderness routes in North America. It’s a natural. The route rises quickly from tidewater to crest Chilkoot Pass at 3,300 feet. But instead of dropping back down, it meanders more than 20 miles through an alpine wonderland, while losing only a thousand feet before returning to its terminus at Bennett Lake.

Insider Tip: Spanning two national parks, two countries, a state, a province and a territory, Chilkoot Trail makes staging a challenge. Solve that by starting and ending in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, and use the robust infrastructure for trailhead transport. Take the White Pass and Yukon Railway over the mountains to Skagway, a stupendous ride, and have Alpine Aviation pick you up in a floatplane at Bennett Lake for the outrageous 45-minute flight back to Whitehorse, in plenty of time for a beer on the deck before dinner.