From Adventure Seeker To Life Teacher - Josh Ferguson

Meet Josh, a heavy diesel mechanic by trade, working in the New Zealand Army and a proud father of three daughters. Growing up in the North Island of Aotearoa, Josh’s love for the outdoors and hobbies like hunting, fishing, diving, and camping are very luckily right on his doorstep. His passion for adventure didn’t slow down after becoming a father. Instead, he adapted, planning family-friendly outdoor trips, road tripping across the South Island, complete with a custom-built off-road camping trailer. For Josh, every adventure with his kids is an opportunity to teach them about respect for nature, resilience, and the joy of curiosity.

Introduce yourself and tell us about what you do for work and/or fun?

Kia Ora, I’m Joshua Ferguson and I’m from the North Island of Aotearoa New Zealand. I’m a heavy diesel mechanic by trade and have been working in the New Zealand Army for 16 years. The lifestyle is unique and exciting with plenty of valuable experiences and a great work-life balance. As you can imagine, the job comes with a stack of opportunities and perks but the one I value most is the outdoors. I have a wife and three daughters aged 6, 4 and 1.5 years old. My hobbies are always outdoors which include hunting, fishing, diving and camping.  

How do you Make Space For Adventure while being a Father? What changes have you made to your activities after becoming a Father?

Making space for adventure always comes down to planning. This doesn’t mean that spontaneous trips are off the cards, it just means being smart with which gear you take and how you pack it. The one and only change I’ve made to these activities after becoming a father is simple. Pace. All of our outdoor adventures can be achieved and enjoyed at a slower pace. Inclusiveness with kids not only allows a more thoughtful and intentional approach, but it displays great attributes of a role model, teaches you to be patient and creates memories you’ll both look back on. 

Tell us about an adventure you’ve taken your kids on?  

We took our girls on a five week, 5000km roadtrip of the South Island at the end of 2023. If you’ve ever travelled with children, you’ll know that there’s a lot of gear and the sleeping arrangements can be a nightmare. We came up with the bright idea of building an off-road camping trailer. The intention was to provide additional storage and also a more streamline sleeping setup. Long story short, we spent three months of countless hours and sleepless nights building this thing with only four days to spare. From rough plans scribbled into a notebook, to having a very capable off-road trailer is still mind boggling. The camping/off-road experiences we have had as a family with the trailer in tow has made the entire build worth it.  

Why is continuing to be adventurous with your kids important to you?

A te reo Maori word that best describes this is Kaitiaki. This roughly translates to guardian or caregiver. The foundation of any adventure should always relate to this in the sense of being a guardian or caregiver for the environment we have access to. Adventure was a huge part of my childhood and I find it’s essential for not only exposing them to different mental and physical experiences, but showing them the importance of environmental respect. Picking up that piece of rubbish, releasing that fish because we already have enough to eat or helping out that person on the side of the road with a punctured tyre. Memories, resilience, adaptability and curiosity are all valuable attributes of adventure but if we ‘leave it better than how we found it’, we’re allowing others including future generations to experience the great outdoors too. 

What essential gear do you carry? How does Rhino-Rack fit into your adventure - what gear has helped? Any packing or gear tips for other Fathers?

Our essential gear list is massive. I go by “it’s better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have its” mindset. Another thing we do is always prepare for the worst. This can be related to weather, vehicle failure, additional nights away and personal injuries.

How does Rhino-Rack fit into your adventure? Packing for a family adventure can quickly become a game of Tetris. But having multiple accessories that can become modular and adjustable in seconds allows us to utilise what would usually be an unused space, the roof. Three car seats and a dog take up a lot of space. Without the use of our roof, we’d be either taking a trailer everywhere or restricted to day trips. Our Rhino-Rack products are legitimately the only way we can achieve all that we do.

Gear tips; Type your gear list into your notes on your smartphone. This will allow you to keep the list for future adventures. We have hunting, fishing and camping specific lists that can always be amended and used. Yes it’s time consuming initially but trust me, it’s worth it in the long run. 

What message do you want to share with Fathers this Father’s Day?

You’re a hero and you’re doing an amazing job raising your kids. Protect that little spark they have and always remember to make time for yourself.

How do you balance your role as a Father with other aspects of your life, such as work or personal hobbies?

My priority is time with the kids. But a huge part of maintaining a positive mind-set for me, is about making time for myself. Don’t get me wrong life is busy, but never too busy to not look after yourself. A big part of justifying my own space is for that mental reset or mental clarity. That alone time outdoors where it feels like the stress of life is left in the car park while you walk the hills or fish the waves. One thing I always keep in mind though, I want my time away from family to be productive. If i spend my time away, thinking about work or bills it’s wasted. But if I clear my head, or gather some wild game, it becomes productive and adds value to not only myself, but my family.

Are you able to please share your top four favourite Rhino-Rack products to feature as your top picks in your feature?

My top four Rhino Rack products are:

• Hardshell Roof Top Tent. What’s not to enjoy about some personal space away from the kids? A very well thought out piece of kit that can be assembled as quick as an awning.
• Sunseeker 2.0M Awning. Providing shelter from both hot and wet weather environments and can be setup/taken down in a couple of minutes.
• Weatherproof Luggage Bag, from camping chairs to extra duvets and warm gears. It allows all of that bulky gear to be stored in a water tight bag which gives you more boot space for kids bikes, the dog or some firewood.
• STOW iT Utility Holder – We use it primarily for the shovel but it can easily become a fishing rod, axe or paddle holder. Can't beat a product that has multiple functions.