Around this time last year, Linus Wernström and Filippa Braun sent in an application for a working holiday visa to New Zealand, which filled them with excitement and anticipation. They had no idea what lay ahead – but adventure was awaiting. Their southern hemisphere orienteering story is here:

“The first step was choosing a city to stay in. We started by narrowing it down to Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch. Since we wouldn’t have a car, good public transport was a must plus, living in a bigger city seemed more exciting. Auckland was the first to be eliminated; it felt a bit too big, and it seemed pretty far to get out to any nice maps and trails. Wellington was a strong contender, especially since we were wary of the South Island’s reputation for cold, rainy weather. But when we realised that Christchurch not only was just as warm in summer, but also had less wind and rain, the choice became clear. We had checked that there was an orienteering club and some decent maps nearby, but we had no idea just how good of a decision we had actually made.

Directly from the first day we felt like we made a good decision. Running the Southerly Storm trainings and sometimes some orienteering with PAPO on the weekends quickly got us introduced to a lot of warm-hearted fellow orienteers. Both of us have been studying for 3 years at a boarding school with 50 other orienteers, training everyday, and making more good memories than we remember. Still, coming to Christchurch did not feel that different at all  –  just with way better views from the Port Hills and no snow. The orienteering scene was just as passionate, just as driven, and just as inspiring. That’s saying a lot.

So coming from, dare we say the “heart of orienteering”, in Scandinavia, what are our highlights and thoughts about the orienteering scene in New Zealand? The variety of quality and uniqueness in the maps definitely stand out. In general, New Zealand’s maps fall into three categories: farmland, native forest, and sand dunes. For us, the dense native bush was the trickiest. Places like Hog’s Back and Boyle River and having to naviagte around the thick wilderness the green areas certainly challenged us whilst trying to keep full focus in vague terrain. It is something we are still far from mastering. Our favourite maps? Without a doubt, Canaan Downs in Abel Tasman National Park, and Waikaia in Southland. Running through towering native trees and navigating fascinating contours was an unforgettable experience. Honourable mentions go to Castle Hill / Kura Tāwhiti, as one of the most spectacular maps we’ve ever trained on, as well as getting the chance to test run courses  on the open the Northern Champs long-distance event. This is all terrain that we do not see back home.

Other memorable highlights include the orienteering camps in December. The “High Performance Camp” was a great opportunity to get to know more orienteers our age and get to run on detailed and technical sand dune maps. The Junior Camp was also a fun experience. We coached alongside our friends, sharing our experiences and skills, and gaining insight into the orienteering world of younger athletes in New Zealand. We noticed how training sessions were structured differently to what we were used to. There were many small exercises within each session, rather than focusing on a single skill as we usually do in Sweden. This makes sense given the smaller map sizes in New Zealand, requiring multiple uses of the same area in a single training session. It was an interesting contrast. 

And lastly, we can’t write about our highlights without mentioning Oceania 2025. Experiencing the biggest orienteering competition in New Zealand was both exciting and valuable for our training. It was great to get some tough competition and push ourselves in a high-level race setting. At the same time, it was funny to realise how different the scale felt compared to Sweden—what is considered the biggest competition here had the atmosphere of a local district championship back home. Still, it was a fantastic event, and the enthusiasm and energy from everyone made it a special experience.

Looking back, this trip was never just about orienteering. It was about exploring a new country, meeting new people, and seeing how a sport we’ve known our whole lives could feel so different yet the exact same on the other side of the world. Christchurch gave us the perfect base to experience all of that. We’re leaving with new perspectives, great memories, and a deep appreciation for a place that quickly felt like home. 

Thanks from Linus Wernström and Filippa Braun, from Club Växjö OK