I published 110 posts this year, just over two a week reflecting less travel post-Covid, compared with three a week in previous years. It was basically a catch up year, with no trips from 2020 appearing until November. The blog covered my travels in India, UK, Eastern Europe, Bhutan, Morocco, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Australia, interspersed with a few New Zealand posts.
Pleasingly the blog is getting steadily more popular, averaging around 5,000 visitors at month, which is nothing by internet standards, but still represents many more people than I’ve ever met. Around 40% of visitors are from New Zealand, 10% from the US, 5% from Australia, and then a long tail from almost every other country, included amazingly Syria, Guam, and Afghanistan.
Most popular posts
New Zealand Great Walks ranked remains by far the most popular post, accounting for 7% of visits to the site, followed by New Zealand tramps (multi-day walks) ranked. Quite unexpectedly the third most popular was my post on McLeod Ganj, the Indian home of the Dalai Lama, published in January.
Followed by North Shore Coastal Walk – Devonport to Long Bay, which was published in July 2015 but suddenly became popular this year for unknown reasons.
Fifth was Auckland Heritage – Roy Lippincott from October 2015 which was particularly popular in September this year, probably because there was an episode of Grand Design New Zealand that featured the conversion of his Farmers Tearoom into an apartment.
The most popular posts published in 2020 were Travers-Sabine Circuit and Angelus Hut (twice), Addis Ababa, Favourite countries I’ve visited, and Moving to Wellington.
The most popular in terms of likes were Central South Island and Highlights of the Snowman Trek.
Least popular posts
Time to show some love to the least popular new posts this year, discounting those published in the last month or two of the year. I though the Monasteries near Leh were fascinating and photogenic places but they didn’t seem to interest many other people.
Some of my posts on hiking in the Rwenzori Mountains were popular but not those on Margarita Camp to Bugata Camp, Hunwick’s Camp to Margherita Camp, or Kyanjuki to Sine Camp.
I was in Bhutan for a month so there were a lot of posts, most were popular but not Bumthang, Jakar, Trongsa, and Wangdue Phodrang, Snowman Trek – Shomuthang to Laya, Geche Woma to Dur Tsachu, or Tarina to Tenchey.
A couple of highlights of my time in Morocco didn’t appeal either – Todra Gorge and El Khorbat, or Marrakech.
