Dynamobang

Two years on

2006-10-17T22:06:00.000+01:00

It seems almost unbelievable that it is two years to the day since I boarded the plane at Heathrow bound for the other side of the world.
In many ways it seems a long, long time ago. After a year and a half of working hard and not having much holiday, the six months of living in a tent and never looking at the time (well, hardly ever) mostly feels like another lifetime. However, sometimes I look at the photos on my computer at work and moments and sensations suddenly become incredibly vivid. Sights, sounds, smells, the clear crisp air. At those times, I could almost believe that I have only just arrived back in Blighty.
So 730 days ago, big bro' dropped me off at Cambridge bus station to set me on my way for what would turn out to be a wonderful experience. I left the fast enveloping British autumn to arrive to southern spring - and let me tell you, that is a fabulous thing in itself! I was, well, not nervous. Apprehensive? I don't remember even feeling that. Excited? Yes. Eager? Yes. That was what was going on in my head.
I don't think that a single day goes by when I don't think about the places and people, about the differences between NZ and the UK. I regularly yearn to be sitting at the top of the Routeburn Pass or gazing out over Lake Wakatipu. Opening my tent to see the Southern Alps or boating trough the gloworm caves of Waitomo. Most of all, Otago and Canterbury come to my mind. Clean, open space. At those times I also remember the shock of arriving back in London. The unhelpful attitudes of airport and bus staff, the claustophobia of traffic and the people crammed in. The fact that I could actually see how polluted and grimy the air was! Now of course, I don't notice all that until a conciously choose to. But every so often I do choose to. Not as self torture, but to remind myself of what I experienced. There would have been no point in doing it if I hadn't learnt something and there's no point in learning it without remembering it.
The people at work regularly accuse me of being a "New Zealand-ophile". That's no criticism as far as I am concerned. I am still in love with the place after all! I am also still sure that one day I'll go back. When is the only question.

Pics of Briz

2005-11-25T22:54:00.000Z

Go here to see what home looks like . . .

Brizzle

2005-05-10T17:45:00.000+01:00

Well, there's no point in pretending - the small adventure is finished. It was . . . emotional. Most of the emotion was related to smiling, astonishment and joy, not bad really. Having said that, it has been great meeting up with family and friends again. I spent the first week and half being pampered by my family, which was just grand. Even though current technology (like this blog) means that you're never out of touch in the way that travellers overseas once were, there's no substitute for seeing everyone and being able to spend time with them. All I have to do now is get a job (interview number one in two days time) and then life will be back into it's home routine.
If you are wondering whether it was all worth while, the answer for me is undoubtedly yes. I hope that one day I will be back in NZ to explore the little bits left as mysteries. When I do, another blog is sure to follow. Thank you one and all for taking the time to follow my odd wonderings and wanderings. Be good, have fun and get out to see the world, it's a great place.

Homeward bound

2005-04-14T22:45:00.000+01:00

Here I am, almost at the end of my small adventure. Just the one day stop off in Auckland to go after the flight up from Queenstown this afternoon and then I'll be on the long haul home. So what has it been like?
Well you've been with me since the start, so you should have a pretty good idea of what I've been up to. However, there are hundreds of small things which have never featured in my blog, which make NZ such a fun and unique place to visit and I will miss those small things as much as the more obvious features.
To give you just a few examples, heaps of small towns here feel the need to make themselves special in some way. My favourite is a tiny town called Tuatapere in the south of the South Island, which welcomes visitors with a big sign proclaiming itself as "New Zealand's sausage capital"! Fantastic. I love the fact that the tandem paragliders in Queenstown land on the playing field of the primary school - even when the kids are outside at playtime. It doesn't seem to phase the kids and the paragliders just head for a relatively quiet area. When I filled up with petrol in the east cape, the cashier didn't even bother to look at the pump to see how much petrol I had put in, he just trusted me to tell him the truth. People in smaller towns leave their cars outside shops with the engine running and the door wide open while they natter for 10 minutes. Little things like this are as important as the crystal clear air and water, the huge wide open spaces, the lush rain forests and the welcoming people.
So what have I missed while I have been away? To tell you the truth, only two things. The first is people - family and friends - who I am really looking forward to seeing. The second is a pillow. The best part of six months spent sleeping with your head on a pile of clothes every night really makes you appreciate the simple pleasure of a pillow on the rare occasions that one is available!
I hope that you have enjoyed travelling through NZ with me. It's been great to get comments and emails from everyone and I thank you all very, very much. If anyone wants information about anything New Zealand, places to visit, contact details for any trips, or just general information please get in touch. I can thoroughly recommend this as a holiday destination if you are into the outdoors, big scenery, the lord of the rings films, rugby and having fun. If I had to sum up my trip in a few words, it would have to be "sweet as".

By the way, new photos below . . . .

2005-04-14T22:39:00.001+01:00

Ahhh, Wanaka.

2005-04-14T22:39:00.000+01:00

Ahhh, Queenstown.

2005-04-14T22:38:00.000+01:00

You didn't know I did this . . .

2005-04-14T22:37:00.000+01:00

You didn't know I did this . . .

2005-04-14T22:36:00.000+01:00

You know I did this . .

Queen

2005-04-11T22:19:00.000+01:00

So here I am, back in Queenstown for my last week in NZ. My flight out of here is on Saturday, so I've still got a few more days to go. I've been out doing more walking in the hills and by the shores of fabulous blue lakes and, between marvelling at how lovely it is, thinking that I'm going to miss all of this when I come home.
Not sure what I am going to do for the next few days, the weather is supposed to be pretty good - it's warm and sunny at the moment - so keeping out and about seems like a good idea.
Sorry this is a short (but sweet (as)) post, but not too much to tell you at the moment. After all, you know by now what Queenstown is like. I'll try to come up with something more interesting and then post again . . . .

Lots of nothing

2005-04-06T00:15:00.000+01:00

So what have I been doing for the last few days? Lots of nothing, that's what! I have been out walking in the fabulous Otago countryside, just drinking in the views and the wide open spaces. I am back in Wanaka at the momnet, where the sun is shining and the autumnal colours are bright and fabulous. The days are still warm, with shorts and jandals being most popular, but night time is a different story. As soon as the sun goes down, the temperature plummets, especially with the cloudless skies we have got at the moment. It doesn't quite seem possible that in about three months this quiet town will be packed with snowboarders and skiers and that the surrounding hills, and possibly the town, will be blanketed in snow.
I haven't got much to tell you, because trying to convey the feeling of sitting on a hill top looking out over the hills and mountains is an utterly thankless and pointless task. Unfortunately my vocabulary simply isn't up to the job. All I can tell you is that I could happily spend hours just looking at the scenery here, despite that fact that I can see it would not be to everyone's taste. I'll have photo's when I get back, but they will never provide the feeling of space, the clarity of the air and the warmth of the sun. I just hope they will be enough to trigger my memory in years to come. In the meantime, I'll be making sure that those memories get as much reinforcement as possible before I leave. Right, got to go and find a hill to climb up . . .

Lake district

2005-04-01T23:25:00.000+01:00

Ok, decision made. I have wended my way back over to the southern lakes area, which is not as warm as some other areas, but is just beautiful as. Big mountains and gorgeous lakes. I am going to stay in this area for the next couple of weeks and then I have a flight from Queenstown to Auckland booked for April 16 and then fly home a couple of days later. The flight from Queenstown was cheaper than travelling overland and just a touch quicker.
I was lucky enough to stay with friends in Christchurch. Although Gordon, the guy I met on the interislander ferry wasn't in CHCH that night, his lodger was. It was good to see Ely (the lodger) again, such a nice guy. Bless is heart, he fed me breakfast, drove me to the bus stop in the city centre and even left me with a packed lunch for the journey! Good people these Kiwis you know.
Anyway, I'm in Queenstown yet again at the moment, but am looking at a couple of possible tramps and thinking of popping over to Wanaka for a few days as well. Right now I'm just going to sit back and enjoy the place for a day or two though. As plans develop, I'll let you know. In the meantime, take care all.

If you want more online mumblings (of a more cerebral nature), get yourself to:
http://robsog.typepad.com/robsog/

Confusion

2005-03-29T23:28:00.000+01:00

Crikey, I'm just not sure where I'm going to be for the last three weeks or so in NZ. Life was much more simple with my own transport! Anyway road up, I spent the easter weekend working my way across the Mackenzie country, the Canterbury high country and then the Canterbury plains. That means I am now back in Christchurch trying to decide what the best course of action is from here. I'm staying with my local friend tonight and will be off again tomorrow, but where to is the question.
There are two basic options. Option 1 is to head north to the top end of the island and then over then next three weeks, work my way back up to Auckland. That gives me the opportunity to see some stuff I didn't see on my way down here.
Option 2 is to stay down here and then fly up to Auckland from either CHCH or Q'town. This would allow me to spend more time in the mountains and probably head of for another tramp.
There's not much in it in terms of cost, so just a day of contemplation and planning ahead then . . .

Bunnies

2005-03-24T22:24:00.000Z

Just a very quick note to say happy easter to everyone. Get scoffing chocolate and kick back for a couple of days!

Gettin' on

2005-03-22T21:49:00.000Z

Just an update to let you know that I didn't head off to Wanaka in the end, I decided to stay in Queenstown for an extra couple of days. However I am off today, heading for Tekapo. It's a really quiet spot with not much more than fabulous landscape and a lake which really is blue. Just going to chill out there and have a couple of days ambling around the countryside.
There is one other thing which I feel I should mention. The idea of me taking heli rides may seem extravagant, but they are just another way to get around down here. Having said that, they are far more fun than a bus! The heli ride out of Skippers Canyon cost me the princely sum of just under 20 quid. Not that extravagant really.
Anyway, probably be out of internet range for a few days, so I'll be back when I can.

More biking

2005-03-20T04:01:00.000Z

No, not another motorbike. Today I went and mountain biked down into Skippers Canyon, which is just outside Queenstown. The road down into the canyon is one of the most notoriously dodgy in NZ, so off road biking is probably the safest option if you want to see it anyway.
Despite heavy rain last night and this morning, by the time I set off, the sun was shining and it was beautifully warm. The biking was good, since if you are reasonably competent the guides just tell you where to stop and wait for everyone else to catch up and give you advice regarding any approaching opportunities for leaping off a precipice. For the bikies, the track we rode down was nice winding single track with a few drop offs thrown in for those who chose to do them - almost all downhill. In fact it was an old pack horse track from the days of the gold rush. The Shotover river which runs through the canyon is the second richest gold river in the world. The only trouble was that I could have carried on with the biking for far longer.
To top it off, I got helicoptered out along the canyon, which was just fantastic. The biking guide told the pilot that it was the first time I had been in a helicopter, because he said that we would get a more fun ride like that. I don't know what it would have been like otherwise, but it was certainly good fun, with the pilot making sure that I was aware of exactly what a good pilot can achieve in a helicopter! All in all, a pretty good day.
I have also blagged a lift to Wanaka from some Kiwi's I met in a pub last night, so I'll be relocating my tent tomorrow and looking for new things to do.
Take care everyone, I'll be back before too long.

2005-03-18T21:43:00.000Z

The boat home . . .

2005-03-18T21:39:00.000Z

On the Routeburn

2005-03-18T21:38:00.000Z

Nice place to camp out

2005-03-18T21:37:00.000Z

Andy and Sarah at Mt Cook

Big scenery and sore feet

2005-03-18T04:39:00.000Z

Back in Queenstown after the little stroll. I'm quite tired and my feet are complaining bitterly about all this abuse they keep getting, but the walk was excellent.
I camped for the two nights on the Routeburn walk since the huts for that walk are stupidly expensive, but I'm glad I did. The campsite on the first night was just stunning. I've got a photo which I'll try to get posted soon, so I'm not going to bore you with a feeble description. The walk itself is fairly easy going and takes you from one valley, up over a saddle between the mountains, along the side of another valley and then down to a lake, the site of the second night's stop. The views from the saddle are absolutely awesome. I know the photos will never do it justice.
On the third day the walk heads back above the bush line before dropping you down again to the junction with the Greenstone and Caples tracks. It is only a couple of hours from there to the end of the Routeburn, so I headed off along the Greenstone track as planned. This track was far less travelled and follows the Greenstone valley all the way to Lake Wakatipu (where Queenstown and Glenorchy are). All the time you are walking either in the bush or along the wide open valley floor. It's a gorgeous unspoiled area with enormous views. The swing (suspension) bridges along this track are much smaller as well, usually only suitable for one person at a time, and they can be a tad unnerving!
At the end of the track, myself and the other trampers were met by a boat which took us back across the lake since there's not sensible road route to the area.
So over five days you get beech forests, alpine scenery, rain forest, bright blue lakes, bright green rivers and the most superb views - not bad really. Fortunately there were lots of very friendly and very nice people doing the walks, which meant that the evenings went by quickly and chance meetings on the tramp were a pleasure. In case you were wondering who else does this kind of thing, there were people ranging from a group of 18 year old Belgian lads through to a 72 year old Kiwi guy and a whole range of ages and nationalities in between.
Given that this will probably be the last big tamp I do in NZ, I'm glad it was so good. The sun shone most of the time and despite being on the border of one of the wettest areas of the world, there was not a drop of rain. All in all, excellent. Having said that, I'm glad not to be carrying all that gear anymore . . .

Queenstown again

2005-03-12T20:46:00.000Z

Well the birthday was good. As predicted, the evening was spent in a pub watching the rugby and meeting strangers, not a bad way to spend your birthday really.
Queenstown is as mad as ever. Having seen far more of the south island now, I can appreciate just how busy this town is compared to the rest of the place. You know you're in Queenstown because there are tandem paragliders all over the sky, bi-planes doing aerobatics (with paying passangers of course), bungy jumpers at the top of the hill which over looks the town and jet boats flying around on the lake. I should also tell you about the highest bungy in NZ, which you can watch from the lake side. This might sound more than a bit bonkers, but it's true; the big one is now the parabungy. What happens is that people go out parascending off the back of a speed boat, strapped to an "instructor". When the parachute has reached about 180m, the instructor releases the victim, who then falls towards the lake attached to a bungy rope which is in turn attached to the parachute! It looks completely ridiculous, but is probably great fun - don't think I'm going to try it though. Maybe if I come back to NZ one day! If that doesn't appeal to you, there are loads of other activities. How about river boarding? The idea is that you slip on a wet suit and a climbing helmet and then throw yourself down a river full of serious rapids with nothing more than a body board for help. This place is quite, quite insane.
There's also a bunch of Canadian pro mountain bikers staying on the campsite. They're in NZ for 2 1/2 months making an extreme mountain biking TV program and they look like they're pretty serious mentalists. They were practicing a few stunts around the campsite yesterday on their Santa Cruz Hecklers and V10's (pricey bikes for those not familiar). Seem nice enough and the I reckon the resulting program will be mighty entertaining.
Yesterday was a chilled out day in town, looking through the logistics involved in doing a couple of tramps up at the far end of the lake. My plan is to link two tramps together for another long jaunt through the wildernesses. This time I am going to do the Routeburn walk, which heads over towards Milford Sound and then come back in this direction on the Greenstone track. The Routeburn will be busy, since it is one of the most popular tramps in NZ, but the Greenstone should be quite quiet. The big advantage of walking back in this direction is that the road journey from the far end of the Routeburn back to Queenstown is about 350km, and I have to come back since I can't carry all my stuff and will have to leave some here in storage.
So that should fill up the next five days or so and I will head off tomorrow, giving me one more day in Queenstown before the serious tramping starts again. Just time to rest and pamper my feet and get the supplies in.
Have a lovely week everyone and I'll be back with tramping stories in a few days.

Cake?

2005-03-11T03:02:00.000Z

It's back to Queenstown today, for one good reason - it's my birthday and this is a good place to spend it! It's a busy place with lots of people and loads of choices of places to spend the evening. I plan on watching the super 12 rugby games, having a couple of beers and meeting up with some random people who don't know me yet!
Twizel yesterday was nice. It's a sleepy little town, pretty much in the middle of nowhere, but it's surrounded by spectacular scenery. For those LOTR fans, it's where the battle of the Pelennor Fields and the infamous ride of the Rohirrim were filmed, so if you know the films, you'll know roughly what the landscape is like.
I was slightly surprised when the lady at the campsite suggested that I was brave to be camping, but understood it this morning when I opened my tent to look out on a frosty campsite! Fortunately my camping gear is good and my sleeping bag is toasty, so I didn't get cold during the night. It was a suprise though, considering that I was walking around in shorts and jandals only yesterday afternoon, but Twizel is a long way above sea level, so I suppose a bit of a chill in the night air is only to be expected.
I ended up getting the bus to Queenstown, but given that it's cheap and has a film to watch to fill up the three hours travel time, I reckon it wasn't too bad a choice. It was nice to be coming back to somewhere I've been before and know where everything is located. It can be a little wearing sometimes when you are constantly arriving in new places and having to go out and find everything all over again. I should point out that I'm not complaining though! The town hasn't changed much except that now the summer season is over, they're digging up the roads everywhere and blasting the dangerous cliffs on the road in. It's starting to look more wintery already way down here in the south. The mountains surrounding Queenstown have got a light dusting of fresh snow on their peaks and it all looks rather spectacular. I plan to spend a couple of days chilling out and doing some short walks that I didn't get round to last time I was here and then I may head off to do the Routeburn walk. The Routeburn is another of the "great walks" and everyone I've met who has done it says it's gorgeous. Of course, I'll let you know how plans progress.
Many thanks to everyone who sent me birthday emails and a special thanks to the Castle Camps Forbes clan, who called me this morning. It was great to speak to you all and I'm looking forward to seeing you all soon.
So take good care everyone, I'll be back on the blog in a couple of days.

Back packing

2005-03-09T23:16:00.000Z

So here I am, after nearly five months as an independent traveller I am now a real life backpacker! Andy and Sarah very kindly dropped me off in Twizel this morning before heading off back towards CHCH, so I've pitched up my tent and have various options of moving on from here tomorrow. I reckon that talking someone into giving me a lift down towards Queenstown or Wanaka will be favourite, closely followed by hitching and then taking a bus. Hitching is still a popular way of getting around NZ and I've seen and spoken to plenty of people who are doing it.
The weather at Mt. Cook wasn't exactly wonderful, but we managed a really nice walk yesterday before the rain came in and then in the late afternoon the cloud cleared and we had fabulous views of the big mountain, still covered in snow and looking very impressive. The mountains around Mt. Cook are littered with glaciers and seeing these huge lumps of blue ice filling the high valleys is really quite bizarre.
Not sure what I'm going to do in Twizel yet, but it seems like a nice place. It's pretty much in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by the rolling mackenzie high country, which is barren but gorgeous.
How are things back in the UK? Has it been snowing anymore or does it feel like spring is on it's way?
I'm off to explore this little town and see what there is to do for a day . . .

Cookin'

2005-03-09T01:04:00.000Z

I've headed off from Christchurch (CHCH) in the company of Andy and Sarah. I had a good time in CHCH with the people I was staying with, nights at the local pub and such like. The lodger, called Ely (pronounced Eli) even took me for a tour of the area, showing me the good beaches and posh areas.
Now we're staying at Mount Cook village youth hostel. As you may know, Mt. Cook is the highest mountain in NZ and it has it's own little microclimate. At the moment, the microclimate is cold and wet, but we had a nice walk this morning, with views of lots of glaciers. I'll give you more chat and photos now, but I just wanted to give you a quick update. Hope you're all on top form. Be good.

Shanks' Pony

2005-03-04T01:43:00.000Z

Well, left my bike in the centre of Christchurch with a for sale note on it yesterday lunchtime and this afternoon I am bereft of bike. Sold it by the way, not lost it. Having bought it for about 800 pounds, I've just sold it for about 400 pounds with a dodgy engine and ridden it for 12400 Kms in four months. I reckon I've done ok, it's much cheaper than any other form of transport apart from hitching.
So now I need to find another way to get about. I hear there are camper van rental companies who need people to get their vans back to Auckland for the next influx of people (the British Lions fans). I may be able to get a camper van for nothing if I take it back! We'll see . . .

Bugger!

2005-03-02T23:06:00.000Z

Keep on reading and you'll find out the reason for today's title. I think that the last time I wrote I was in Blenheim, up in the Marlborough wine world. Well since then I have travelled down the beautiful east coast and I am now in Christchurch. I stopped off in Kaikoura on the way through for a couple of nights, which is a small town now famous for it's ocean trips. From Kaikoura you can go out whale watching, swimming with seals or swimming with dolphins, as well as the ususal fishing trips, surfing etc etc. I stopped off partially because the trusty steed had started to play up, it was getting difficult to start from cold. So after having the compression checked, I gulped and headed straight for the one big city in the south.
As is turns out, the compression has suddenly dropped on three of the four cylinders on the steed. For those who don't know, this is not a good thing and potentially expensive. Since I am coming home next month (!) it's not worth me spending money on it. Fortunately a chap I met on the interislander ferry in January had given me his address in Christchurch and told me if I needed a place to crash for a few days, to come and see him. So I took him up on his offer and descended on him at his place of work yesterday, before popping round to a couple of local Kawasaki specialists for second opinions on the bike.
Gordon, the excellent Kiwi guy who is now putting me up, has been a diamond. We went out last night for a bit of food and then popped to his local for a quick beer. He instantly gave me a bed for as many nights as I need it and supplied me with a key to the door and told me to make myself at home. Sometimes Kiwi hospitality and trust is quite overwhelming!
Anyway, it looks like I'll have to try to find a buyer for the bike earlier than anticipated, but I should be able to keep travelling on it for a while. In some ways the timing is convenient, since I had planned to be in Christchurch next week to meet up with Andy and Sarah anyway. But there you have it, not an exciting few days, more of a pain in the proverbial. Of course, I'll let you know what happens and I'm sure that one way or another, I'll be off again in a few days. More to see and do as always. Take care everyone and see you in April.

2005-03-02T22:54:00.000Z

Don't get much rain in Marlborough

2005-03-02T22:53:00.001Z

Rider of Rohan?

2005-03-02T22:53:00.000Z

Not bad up in Abel Tasman Park

2005-03-02T22:52:00.000Z

Sunset in Nelson

Quietness

2005-02-26T03:00:00.000Z

Sorry I haven't had much to say recently, it's been a quiet period after all that ridiculousness in the south. I've just been cruising around, taking in the sights and chilling out for a few days now. I've slowly sauntered up from the Canterbury plains area to Blenheim, which is in Marlborough (where all that wine comes from).
The Canterbury plains are a bit like the fens, flat, fertile farming land. They do have a couple of notable differences though. If you sit in the middle of the plains, it is about half an hour to the beautifully blue pacific ocean in one direction and about half an hour in the other direction to the southern alps and winter ski fields. I can't help but feel that they may have more to offer than the fens!
I've now travelled pretty much the whole east coast and it's spectacular for most of the way - the sea is clean and lovely and the beaches (mostly with black sand) are empty. Up here in Marlborough it is what you would expect of a wine region. It is very warm and dry, with acres of green vinyards running up to the feet of the hills, which are covered in grass the colour of straw. I'll be here until Monday, when I will head off to the hills and some greenery again.
Sorry there have been no photos posted for a while, but internet access in these areas is not easy to come by, let alone finding someone who is happy for you to start downloading software and plugging in your camera. I hope to find somewhere in the next week or so, but we'll see . . .
Ok, I'm off to the pub to catch more super 12 rugby, have fun everyone.

Mt. Sunday

2005-02-21T00:29:00.000Z

Ok, since your not bored of the rings stuff yet (apparently), I'll tell you about Mt. Sunday. First of all, it's pretty remote. The trip up there involved about 50kms of high country gravel roads, which is an unusual experience on a road bike. It became increasingly obvious why most people pay someone to drive them up there in an off road 4 wheel drive vehicle. However, I'm sure that my sense of achievement in finally getting there, must have overshadowed their whole experience!
The place itself is really quite magical. It's like nowhere else I've ever been. It feels like an immense wilderness and the sensation of wide open space makes you feel very small indeed. I was lucky to arrive before the organised trips headed up there and had the place to myself.
So after the interesting road journey, it was time to head across country from the gravel road to Mt. Sunday. It's not the one hour walk I had heard about, more like half an hour. However, the neccessity to wade through knee deep, fast flowing freezing rivers had not quite been made clear to me! So there I finally sat, wet legged eating my packed lunch on the spot where Edoras had been built for the films. I have to tell you, the journey was well worth it. The views are amazing, as is the whole area. I can't get photos onto the blog from this computer, but even if I could, they will never do it justice.
So now I am back to my tiki touring and working my way around a whole bunch of small towns in the Canterbury area. It's a lovely relaxed kind of place with that end of summer feeling hanging in the air. The combine harvesters are out in force and the evenings are getting cooler, must be slowly getting towards time to head back to the northern hemisphere! Not quite yet though, more to do . . .

Canterbury tales

2005-02-18T03:13:00.000Z

Arrived in the Canterbury high country this afternoon and am camped out in a small town called Methven. I decided when leaving Nelson, that instead of doing the sensible thing and nipping up to the Marlborough Sound while I was there, I would head back down country to Greymouth. I wanted to travel over the southern alps via Arthurs Pass and get back into the mountains.
Well, the best laid plans of mice and men, etc etc - If only I had done some planning in fact. As it turns out, the weather in Greymouth was appaling. Raining cats and dogs? More like raining sheep and cattle. You know that Hollywood rain which appears in films, when the weather goes from bone dry to tropical rainstorm in a split second? Well, that's what it was like, for a day and a half (the tropical rainstorm bit). Glad I got a decent tent!
So this morning the skys cleared and I made a run for it, up and over Arthurs Pass and down into Canterbury. The trip over the Pass was beautiful, big mountains with snow capped peaks, but warm and sunny down in the pass. The weather on the eastern side of the mountains is appreciably warmer and I feel much more relaxed now!
Tomorrow I am planning to go off for a trip out to Mt. Sunday. For those people already bored with the Lord of the Rings stuff, sorry, but this is far too good an opportunity to miss. Mt. Sunday was the location for Edoras and one of the most spectacular pieces of scenery in the films. I hope it lives up to expectations! I know that quite alot of the road out to the location is gravel back road, so it's going to take a while to get there, even before the one hour walk from the road to the location itself. Might be a packed lunch day!
Apart from that, not too much to tell, although I feel I should tell you about the cricket match that was on tv last night (it was raining in Greymouth remember!). Now I'm not usually one for cricket, but this was entertaining. Australia and NZ were playing their first ever game of a format called twenty20, which is played in England. NZ decided to play in a beige outfit which had not been used since the 1980's. As a tribute, many of the NZ players also grew ridiculous facial hair (moustaches and side burns) and wore 1980 towelling hats or John McEnroe headbands to complete the look. This is a professional team, one of the best in the world, playing an important international and they turned out looking like they were going to a fancy dress party, just for the fun of it. They didn't win the match, but they and the crowd of 29,500 obviously had such a good laugh that in these days of over paid and over serious professional sports, the whole episode just has to be applauded. I can't imagine many (if any) other international sports teams taking a similar approach, which is a great shame. May be sport would be better off if more professionals could have a laugh once in a while.
Ok, well that's enough for now. I'll be back in a couple of days and will try to get more photos up at the same time. Take care everyone.

Stuff and things

2005-02-14T23:48:00.000Z

Here I sit in sunny Nelson (there was thunderstorm yesterday though) with not much to tell you. I'm all recovered from my little jaunt, although it may be some time before my feet forgive me for the abuse they took. So since I haven't done much I thought I would give you a quick lesson in Kiwi.

As far as beer goes, there are beers for areas. One of the beers which creates more feeling than others is Speights (pride of the south). In the north island, I heard the phrase "drink Speights, lose your mates" whereas in the south of the south island I was told to "wash my mouth out" for speaking of drinking anything else. I also heard a pub philosopher say "the mouth of a perfectly happy man is filled with beer". Quite liked that.

If you want to be understood, here are a few stock words and phrases you will need:

She'll be right - it'll be ok
Bugger - general dismay or dissapointment
Choice - very good
Tiki tour - wandering around (decided I'm a tiki tourist)
Good on ya - general approval
Dairy - a corner shop
Handle - glass of beer
Pie - staple food, usually meat, available everywhere
Howzitgoin - standard greeting
Wash out - road sign, part of the road has fallen down the hill
Gravel road - raod sign, road ahead is like a bad farm track
and my favourite . . .
Sweet as - seems to means just about anything good

So, that's all for the moment. I'll go away and do something now, so that I've got something to tell you about next time. Have a fun time everyone.

Hard Yacker

2005-02-12T22:27:00.000Z

If you don't understand the title, get your handy Kiwi phrase books out, or just keep reading and it will become apparent. As promised, I have been off on a five day tramp taking the Abel Tasman Coastal Track on my way out and the Abel Tasman Inland Track on my way back to make a loop walk. Just to give you some idea, each of these walks is classified as 3 to 5 days, therefore you would have to say, 6 to 10 days total, but I stuck to my plan of 5 days.
From the moment I put my pack on my back, it was obvious that it was not going to be an easy amble. Clothes for 5 days for all weathers, food for 5 days, cooking gear, tent, sleeping bag and all of the rest of the stuff you might just need all adds up to quite a lot of weight on your back. The first couple of days were pretty easy going really. The Coastal Track is very well used and is more like a path than a track. The scenery is beautiful, in what I would imagine to be a kind of carribean way. Golden sandy beaches, gently lapped by bright turquoise waters. The sun shone all day and the only discomfort was aching feet from pounding the rock hard path for about 6 hours a day. I camped out by the beach for those first two nights, in campsites which had drinking water and all kinds of luxuries!
On the third day I would be finishing the Coastal Track and heading onto the Inland Track. At this point I will repeat for you what I wrote in my notebook at the end of the day, since it sums up the day pretty well!
"Left Totaranui at about 9:15, eschewing the short cut to the inland track, instead I went via Wharewharangi. Got there about 12:20 and left at 1:20 after having food and boiling some water (to purify it). Crossed Gibbs Hill and rested and ate at Pigeon Saddle, left there at 4:30. On the way to Awapoto Hut (the first hut on the inland track) my feet started to hurt really badly, water was running low and my thighs were cramping. With the sun going down behind the hills, it was starting to get dark in the bush already and I started to worry. Although I knew the hut couldn't be too far now, every step hurt and with about 100ml of water left, I couldn't drink too much. I guessed that the hut must be at the top of the hills (since it's the only helicopter access). I kept struggling upwards, following the track past lots of false peaks. Eventually I called out, to see if there was anyone at a hut nearby, no answer. I decided to go on until only a couple of mouthfulls of water were left and then I would dump my pack on the track and walk on without it. Just as this was about to become necessary, I saw the sign for the hut, which was only five minutes away."
This is a part of what I wrote, but gives you a flavour! As is turns out, the Inland Track is very, very hard work. The following day I was trapped at the next hut, literally soaked to the skin, while a fierce storm raged all afternoon and into the evening. On day five, my last day, I put my wet clothes back on and headed off for a seven hour trip through a wet and slippery forest, trudging up and down hill through water still cascading down the hill sides.
I should point out that I did not see a single person from the moment I started the inland track until the last point of shelter, about 2 hours from the end of the track. The last person to go through the huts on the track had passed through 5 days before me.
So there you have it. Mission accomplished, but not without a few scares and alot of effort.
Would I do it again? Not in a hurry.
Did I learn anything? Amongst other things, I learned that there is more than one definition of remote. Although I was not far from "civilisation" the only way in or out for me was the track. If I had been injured, it probably would have been days before anyone found me. An interesting thought!
So, anyone fancy a quick stroll . . . .

Up north - down south

2005-02-06T23:56:00.000Z

After a few days travelling up the west coast I am now back in the north of the lovely south island. The west coast was just a chilled out relaxing place to go. Didn't really do much, except go for walks in the forests, chill on the deserted beaches and watch the Wellington Sevens rugby tournament (2 days) with the locals in a pub.
Now I'm just outside the Abel Tasman national park and tomorrow I'm off tramping again. This time, for those who know the area, I am doing the Abel Tasman coastal track, but then going straight on to the inland track. That makes five days walking with my loaded rucksack on my back, complete with food for five days and my tent! It should be quite hard going given the temperatures and the fact that I've given myself quite a lot of ground to cover everyday, but it'll be a challenge after too much time doing not much.
I hope you like the new photos, and thanks for all the comments and emails I am getting. It's really good to feel like I'm still in touch, especially while I'm all alone in the south island! Keep them coming, even though I won't have internet access until I get back from the tramp.
In case you are wondering, the picture of the bridge shows a bridge which is not only one way, meaning traffic from one direction has to give way to traffic from the other, but it is also shared by the trains, who all the road traffic give way to! It's and odd set up and slightly unnerving, but seems to work. By the way, this is not the only one I have come across.
So anyway, sorry I haven't got lots of exciting news about sharks, bungy jumps or helicopters this time, but I'll see what I can do in the next couple of weeks. Be good one and all.

2005-02-06T23:51:00.000Z

Is this really a good idea?

2005-02-06T23:50:00.000Z

Unusual helipad!

2005-02-06T23:49:00.000Z

There's lots of ice on them glaciers

2005-02-06T23:48:00.000Z

Lake Matheson, postcard perfect . . .

Likey Hikey (Heli Style)

2005-02-03T01:06:00.000Z

So I've been sauntering up the west coast from Wanaka and now I'm in Hokitika. It's been sweltering recently with the last few days hitting well over 30 deg C in the shade. It's been so hot that I've even had to forego bare feet and get my jandals (flip flops) on, because the pavements and roads have been too hot to walk on. I'm not complaining mind you, the west coast is usually the wettest part of NZ with only a few sunny, dry days per year.
So what do you do when it's this hot? Obviously you jump on a helicopter and get out hiking on a glacier! Sweet as . . . (as the kiwi's say). A very, very odd experience, but well worth doing. I chose to grace the Fox glacier with my presence, since it is the less visited of the two main glaciers. The helicopter ride up was excellent, with lots of tight banking turns and close up views of waterfalls. The so called helipad on the glacier was just a small fairly flat area of ice - interesting. So anyway, on with the crampons and away we went for three hours ambling around on a huge flow of ice, which is currently travelling down the valley at a rate of 1 metre per day, with lush rain forest covering the valley sides all around us and views out to the deep blue Tasman sea, only a few kilometres away. Nice and cool up there, but still t-shirt and shorts weather!
Tomorrow I will head off again, still heading north, but haven't decided on my next destination yet. I can leave that decision until the tent is packed away and the rucksack is full.
More photos will appear when I find an internet cafe (although I'm currently in a camping/fishing shop) where I can connect up my camera and download the necessary software.
Take it easy and I'll be back before long.

Wanaka

2005-01-30T22:13:00.000Z

After the big Doubtful Sound trip, it seemed like I should get away and stroll in the hills for a bit, so here I am in Wanaka. Scenic? I should coco. It's pretty gorgeous around here, just by the Mt. Aspiring national park, with the lovely Lake Wanaka surrounded by mountains. Many people have told me how much they like Wanaka and I can see why. It's a fantastic place to just chill. I would dearly love to come back here when the snow comes in and the ski/boarding season kicks off . . .
Yesterday, for some unknown reason, it seemed like it would be a good idea to walk up to the peak of Mt. Roy, which is not far from my campsite. The walk is a vertical climb of 1300m (which is 30% higher than Ben Nevis), but the actual track just goes on and on! My legs ache this morning, so it's a day of relaxing coming up. I may have to go to the infamous Cinema Paradiso in town. Apparently it's something of an experience, since there are no seats as such, just bits of furniture and a Morris Minor (which you can sit in to watch the film). You can also order meals and beer and just take it into the cinema with you. Should be a pleasant evening!
I hope everyone is in tip top form, so take good care and I hope you like the new photos.

2005-01-30T22:07:00.000Z

A long walk up

2005-01-30T22:06:00.000Z

Those are the Forbes Mountains.

2005-01-30T22:05:00.000Z

Now imagine the exodus of the Rohan . . .

2005-01-30T22:04:00.000Z

Ah, sunset at Doubtless Sound

2005-01-30T22:02:00.000Z

My shark!

The best 100 quid I ever spent . . .

2005-01-27T02:28:00.000Z

What on earth do I tell you about my trip to Doubtless Sound? It was spectacular, fantastic, superb, and really quite good!
The trip was with "Chris and Diane" and was on a boat with only 6 berths and as it turned out there were only 5 of us. It started with a trip across Lake Manapouri, our skipper (Chris) picking us up on the other side of the lake. We were driven over a fabulous road, which at 12 miles long worked out at 100 NZ dollars per inch to build! It's not even tarmac, it's only gravel.
Chris loaded us up onto his boat (which is lovely) and then set out onto the Sound. Just so you know, Doubtless Sound is ten times larger than Milford Sound and gets to 430m deep. It's huge, remote and just as nature intended. The area is "blessed" with up to 7 metres of rain a year, making it real rainforest area. Despite this, it was all clear blue skies and sunshine when we arrived and stayed like that all day.
Chris proceeded to take us around the whole of the Sound, including going out to the Tasman Sea, cooked us fabulous food (including crayfish and venison) and took us to top fishing spots. I shocked and slightly unnerved myself by catching a shark which was probably about 5 foot long! We caught other stuff too and had fresh sushi, straight from the Sound.
At 6:30 in the morning, just as we were setting off after mooring up for the night, we saw dolphins and soon had four or five large dolphins swimming along with us, jumping about and racing around the front of the boat. The other people on the trip were two nice german ladies and a couple from . . . Bristol! The Briz couple, Simon and Alex(andra) were really cool and helped the time fly by. All in all, we were at Doubtful Sound for about 23 hours, which passed by more quickly than I ever could have imagined.
I am now skipping Milford Sound for the moment, since I am reliably informed I will most probably be dissapointed if I go straight from Doubtful Sound. Should anyone be thinking of coming to NZ, I simply cannot recommend this trip enough. It was an experience I will treasure forever.

In Doubt

2005-01-25T01:12:00.000Z

Well, actually I'm camped at Lake Manapouri at the moment, but tomorrow I am off to Doubtful Sound. Although Milford Sound is the Fiord which is most famous, the people I have met and the locals tell me Doubtful Sound is better, it's just that Milford is more accessible. And so my trip will take me accross Lake Manapouri by boat and then over the most expensive stretch of road in NZ (only accessed by boat and only goes to Doubtful Sound!).Then I will spend the remainder of the day and the night on board a small boat cruising around Doubtful Sound, fishing, drinking beer etc, before heading back on the following day. Should be great, especially since the sky is blue, the temperature is gorgeous and the forecast is for more of the same.
Just so you know, yes I saw penguins, seals, sealions etc and the Catlins coast really is very quiet. Hardly anyone around, petrol stations which only open from 9am to 1pm and don't open at all on Sundays and empty roads. I also went to the southern most point on the South Island, so I can tick that off the list! Anyway, got to go and sit in the sun. Be good one and all . . .

Scotland?

2005-01-20T21:39:00.000Z

Crikey, I now know what I need to do to generate lots of comments. It seems that jumping off a bridge with an elastic band tied to your ankles does the trick.
It's great to hear from my mum as well as Chas and Carol. I hope you're all very well (and get well soon to the George St collective). By the way, there's skiing down here as well you know - just not much of it at the moment.
I would also like to thank Anna for the interesting dry stone walling gift shop information, but I will obviously be opening my own virtual walling experience with real cheese improvements to be added in a further extension to the initial "pleasure dome" as time and funds allow, a gift extravaganza is built in and will soon be available in cake form.
Anyway, I am now in Dunedin, which has a very scottish feel to it. The rest of NZ swears that the people here have a scottish element to their accents, but I haven't heard any of it yet. To add to the scottish feel, it has stone buildings (unusual in nz) as well as the steepest street in the world - check out the Guinnes book of records if you are doubtful. I arrived here yesterday via the plains of Rohan - also known as central Otago. A beautiful area with bizarre landscapes and huge views towards the southern alps.
Today I will be off to explore Dunedin before heading off around the Catlins coast to Invercargil. The Catlins coast is supposed to be one of the least visited areas of NZ with wild beaches, penguins (not the chocolate ones), dolphins, sealions, whales and many other creatures not generally seen in the north sea. Whether I will get to see any, let alone photograph any remains to be seen. From there I may head to the Fiordlands - Milford Sound and all that business.
Since I'm heading to the back country, I doubt I'll get email access again until at least Invercargil, which will be a few days. In the meantime, have fun doing whatever it is that you are up to!

Bouncy bouncy

2005-01-18T02:05:00.000Z

If you want to see grace and style in action, go to www.ajhackett.com.
From the home page, click on "Daily Photos".
On the next page choose the Kawarau Bridge bungy site.
In the media search box type in the following: AJHK501171804645
Nice eh?
You can also search for another photo with the same identifier, except replace the final digit with a 6.
Hope you enjoy them! Don't buy any though, 'cos I've already got them . . .

Sarah and Sally left this morning (nursing classic NZ hangovers) and I will be moving on from Queenstown tomorrow, not sure where to yet. I'll be back here to do the big day trip sometime in Feb, when it's all quiet.
By the way, if anyone wants a job, there is an opening with "safari of the rings" driving a Land Rover round the local LOTR filming sites giving guided tours. Tempting! Take care my lovelies.

The extreme capital of the world

2005-01-16T22:01:00.000Z

There is no shortage of daft things to do in Queenstown and it doesn't take long to find out just how many ridiculous things are available. I have now decided which ones I should participate in - more in a couple of minutes.
Sarah Loo and Sally arrived in town yesterday from Wanaka and we continued where I had left off on saturday, which was watching rugby and quaffing a few beers. Over this weekend there was a national seven a side rugby competition in town. Being a charity event, it was free to go and watch, which suited me just fine! The standard of the rugby was high and I even recognised a few names out on the pitch. A great way to pass a couple of days, especially with the added entertainment of somewhat intoxicated crowd members creating extra spectacles. The best ones were the british guy who was trying to get a mexican wave going and the kiwi who gave impromptu "dance" leadership for a rendition of YMCA before the finals.
This morning Sarah and Sally are off on the Shotover Jet Boat ride - high speed stupidity through the local gorges in the river rapids. Then this afternoon I will be doing the one and only original AJ Hackett bungy jump from a very scenic bridge. That is to be my first daft thing in Queenstown.
There is also a trip I am planning to do, but may come back after the main holday season is over. The trip will be my big lavish expense, which all happens in one day. I will ride out on the Shotover jet boat to Skippers Canyon, where I then get transported to the top before a 1 hour single track mountain bike descent back into the canyon. Once I am back at the bottom, I will get picked up by helicopter and flown out over the mountains! Pretty cool trip huh?! I think I'll get the bungy out of the way before I worry about exactly when to do the lavish one.
So what have you all been up to? What is happening out there in the big wide world? Tell me everything, all at once . . .

2005-01-14T20:59:00.000Z

Those busy South Island roads

2005-01-14T20:57:00.000Z

Worth travelling half the world to see . .

2005-01-14T20:56:00.000Z

The view from my tent at Lake Tekapo

2005-01-14T20:54:00.000Z

No black riders to be seen

Big country

2005-01-14T20:27:00.000Z

As promised, here I am in Queenstown. What can I tell you about the south island after only a couple of days here? Well, it's certainly beautiful, it's huge scenery, so far it's warm and it's more varied than I was expecting.
The journey over from the north island is only about 2 1/2 hours, and the last hour is spent slowly cruising through tree covered hills in bright blue water - this is in quite a large car ferry remember! Apparently whales and dolphins (whales and dolphins, yeah) are quite often seen in the sounds, but they must have been on holiday when I was coming through. From leaving the ferry, you are almost immediately in the Marlborough wine region, which is dry, hot and sunny. The rolling hills are covered in straw coloured grass, wafting gently in the hot breeze. It was certainly the hottest I have been since arriving in NZ and so there was not much stopping done, the cooling breeze from whipping along on the bike was far too pleasant! The petrol pump man (yes they still have them here) at a garage I stooped at was obviously bored, because he told me that he had just measured the tarmac temperature at 51 deg C - that's mighty warm.
Gradually the land becomes greener until the flat agricultural land around Christchurch surrounds you. I met a fellow motorcyclist on the ferry who has offered me a place to stay in Christchurch, plus a trip to his local boozer and a blast with the local biking club. Friendly people over here you know.
My first night was spent at Lake Tekapo, which has obscenely blue water. I mean the water is actually blue - it's full of minerals which give it the colour. The lake is also surrounded by hills and mountains, with no sign of civilisation to be seen. It's a gorgeous spot. It was windy getting there though and I took quite a battering up the pass on the way . . . .
The scenery just gets more and more spectacular to the point where I will not even attempt to describe it, I'm going to try to get some piccies posted up instead. If there are none, at least you'll know I tried.
Ok, I've got to go and investigate the bungy options, catch you all later.

Wellington(s)

2005-01-11T20:46:00.000Z

New Zealand's capital, Wellington. What a nice town, a relaxed and cool kind of place. I've been here for a couple of days and tomorrow I hop on the 8am fast ferry to the south island - the world of big scenery and extreme foolishness.
I've enjoyed my few days here, despite the fact that sleeping in a tent is not as comfortable as sleeping in beds, as I was doing for most of the time while hanging out with Brizzle chums. Wellington is home to Peter Jackson and was the base for most of the Lord of the Rings filming. Since lots of it was carried out very close by, it's easy to wander into areas used as film sets; in fact the infamous place where the hobbits first hid from a black rider is about five minutes walk from where I am camping and five minutes in the other direction is the cinema where the world premiere of the last film (Return of the king) was held. At the moment King Kong is bening filmed here, but I haven't stumbled into anyone famous or seen a single huge gorilla yet.
There is lots here for the non Lord of the Rings fans as well. The Te Papa museum, which is devoted to the history of New Zealand is really superb and would easily take up half a day of anyone's time. I'm also off this moring to visit the New Zealand parliament and may relax on the beach this afternoon!
The next couple of days will mainly be spent travelling down the south island. It seems to be best to start at the bottom end of the island - while the weather there is relatively warm. Also if I'm to meet up with Sally and Sarah Loo before they leave, Queenstown is not far from the bottom of the island.
I hope to be able to get a few more photos up in the next week or so, so you will not have to be content with merely my usual mumbled rubbish.
So, of to parliament I go. Have fun, the next installment will be from the south. Take care one and all.

Gnuing

2005-01-07T21:25:00.000Z

Sorry it's been so long since my last waffle - before christmas I know. So what have I been up to? Well, friends from Brizzle arrived in Auckland over the festive season. First of all Sally and Madelaine arrived on Christmas eve, just in time for eating and drinking too much on the day itself. Then Sarah Loo (not her real name) arrived the day after boxing day, just in time to set off on a New Years camping trip.
We headed from Auckland to the lovely Hahei for the camping trip, which was temporarily disturbed by a day of pouring rain on the day before New Years eve. While we were in Hahei, we met up with Tris (who lives in Geneva) and Julie (who ives in Briz). It was really good to see them again and seemed somewhat surreal to be meeting up with them on a campsite on the other side of the world, despite the fact that it was all planed. Fortunately, the sun was back out in time for new year celebrations and we generally ambled about, crashed out on the beach, ate ice creams and relaxed before a restaurant dinner on new years eve and a stroll on the beach. A bit different from the normal freezing cold and rain at home!
From Hahei we headed down to Rotorua for a short stop over, before continuing down to the Tongariro National Park, which was the base for the next daft idea! We spent the following three days travelling down the Whanganui River in caadian canoes. For someone who has never been in a canoe before (me), there was a certain amount of apprehension involved. The main reason for the apprehension is that once you set off on this trip, there are no roads out until you reach the end. You are travelling through a stretch of the river where the only access is by boat and you really are in the middle of nowhere. Also, for much of the time, the river is running through a deep gorge, so there are no handy "beaches" on which to stop.
As it turned out, Sarah Loo and Sally were the only team to come out of their canoe, which happened towards the end of the first day. We were all very lucky in that a Jet boat (the only one we saw that day) happened to come up the river just a couple of minutes after the incident. The jet boat along with Andy and Sarah managed to sort them out, while yours truely was busy trying to just keep a canoe going in roughly the right direction . . The whole trip was an experience well worth the time and effort. The scenery was spectacular and the area had a wonderful sense of isolation.
We are now in Napier, soaking up the sun. Sally and Sarah Loo headed off to the south island just after the canoe trip, Tris and Julie headed off before the canoe trip, Andy and Sarah have just left to head back to Auckland, so now it is just Madelaine and myself. We are going to head back to the Tongariro in the hope that the weather will be good enough for the Tongariro crossing walk to be open. Then I will be heading south and Madelaine will be heading north. Either way, I'll be back to just me, the bike and my rucksack in a couple of days . . . .
Well, that's all for now. I hope you all had a fabulous time over christmas and new year. I'm sorry I didn't get to talk to the whole family on christmas day, but I was thinking of you all. Take care everyone and I'll be back in touch from Wellington before long.

Back to Auckland

2004-12-23T04:15:00.000Z

So here I am, back in Auckland for Christmas with my exploration of the north island almost complete. From Waitomo I headed up to Cambridge near Hamilton. Couldn't find any of the ususal pubs and all the streets seemed to have moved about, so I had to stay in on a camp site! A picture is below, so you will be able to see that's it's not much like Cambridge back home, the sun was shining for one thing.
From Cambridge I went up to a small place called Hopuhopu where I met up with a guy called Julian, who I met in the Coromandel. He is a maori who works for his tribe, the Tainui. He had given me his business card in the Coromandel and told me to drop by, since I was very interested to learn more about maori culture. Despite being busy trying to get work tied up before the christmas/summer holiday break, he took the time to show me around the tribal administration and the Tainui college, which was extremely impressive. The college is opening next academic year and is for post graduate research into ecological and environmental issues and well as the study of matters relating to indiginous people from all over the world. They are already set up to carry out exchanges with inuit and aborigini (might have spelt that wrong) students. They also have a workshop making huge maori carvings as well as the debating chamber for the Tainui administration committee - for want of a better description. It was a very interesting visit, for which I was exceptionally grateful, especially given that Julian has also offerred to take me to a very important marae - which is where maori conduct most of their local social interaction. Should be very cool.
So now I'm back in St. Heliers and have slept in a proper bed for the first time in about 6 weeks. Ah, heavenly! The preparations for christmas are just about complete over here, but the weather actually ain't too good at the moment, so sitting on the beach might be out for christmas day.
I wish you all a fabulous christmas, I hope you all eat and drink to excess and as a result are very merry (instead of sick). Take care everyone.

2004-12-23T04:14:00.000Z

It's not me in the canoe

2004-12-23T04:13:00.000Z

There's glowworms in there you know

2004-12-23T04:12:00.000Z

Cambridge, NZ style

2004-12-23T04:11:00.000Z

Sawks, is this where heaven is?

2004-12-23T04:10:00.000Z

The wind wand, oh with sun and blue sky

2004-12-23T04:08:00.000Z

No orcs in sight . . .

2004-12-23T04:07:00.000Z

Mordor Motorcycles - on Mt Ruapehu

Worms in the dark

2004-12-19T04:52:00.000Z

This morning I underwent one of the most surreal experiences I have ever had - and that's saying something.
I now understand why so many people come to Waitomo to see the glowworms doing their stuff. Of course, I couldn't just go to the main glowworm cave 500m from the campsite. Instead I went to a slightly less commercial area and went on a guided underground thingy. After going through the initial limestone cavern, everyone apart from the guide switched of their torches and we went on in the near pitch blackness. We came to an underground river where one we got on board an inflatable boat, the guide switched off his torch as well and we floated down the river with the only light coming from the glowworms which covered the roof of the tunnel.
It is impossible to explain what the experience is like, you have to do it to appreciate it! Once your eyes become accustomed to the dark, you actuall only need the glowworms in order to see where you're going - as we discovered after getting out of the boat and continuing on foot, with all torches still switched off.
Despite some concerns I had about it being claustrophobic, it was all easy going and very, very well worth doing. I have to say that the fact that we could hear a very noisy waterfall ahead when we were floating downstream was somewhat disturbing though. Not quite sure that I'm ready for the black water rafting though (racing through underground tunnels in the pitch black on a rubber ring). Maybe if I had company with me, but not on me tod!
So, if you come to NZ, come to Waitomo and go to one of the less visited caves . . .

Cavernous things

2004-12-18T01:48:00.000Z

Well, here I am in Waitomo which is a land of underground caverns, glow worms and limestone ridiculousness.
Jos, still feeling ill after his South America trip, has taken his various stomach problems to Australia for a short holiday. All being well, he will return along with Tris and Julie between christmas and new year.
I can't quite believe that christmas is just around the corner. After a few days of rain and wind, the sun is now shining again and it'll be time to break out the sun cream and the shorts again this afternoon. I am hoping that when I get back to Auckland and see Andy and Sarah again, with Sally and Madelaine arriving on Christmas eve, it'll all start to feel more festive.
I spent a few nights at a place called Stratford not far from Mt. Taranaki with Jos prior to his departure, but didn't get up the mountain until after he had gone. The mountain is quite bizarre, being a classic volcanic cone mountain, about 2500m high with snow on the top, in the middle of a flat green dairy farming area. The views from the mountain are pretty cool as you look down over alpine woodland that then turns into rainforest before becoming dairy pasture. Really most strange.
From Stratford I moved on to New Plymouth, which is not much like the original apart from the fact that it's by the sea. The sea in this case is the Tasman, which is a lovely turquoise colour instead of the grey/brown sea off the coast of the "old" Plymouth. The city is very laid back and has a thriving arty community. I spent my time there wandering around galleries and watching the Wind Wand sway around. The Wind Wand is a 45m high carbon fibre pole on the sea front, which sways with the wind, designed by a local kinetic artist. Sounds a tad rubbish, but it's actually an impressive "sculpture", especially with the high winds which were blowing at the time I was there.
And so today I cruised up to Waitomo, where I plan to do some walks, see some caves and enjoy the re-appearing summer.
Are you all prepared for christmas then? I hope so. Any snow on the way? Let me know everything . . . .

Chillin' wit Jos

2004-12-13T01:32:00.000Z

Just spending a few days kicking back in Taupo. Jos arrived from South America a couple of days and is recovering from various food related infections which he picked up there. So we are just ambling around the area slowly and not much else!
I reckon it'll be two or three days before I am off again and then I will be heading west towards Mt Taranaki before turning north and making my way back to Auckland for christmas. I plan to be at Andy and Sarah's from 22 Dec, where we shortly afterwards will be joined by Sally, Madelaine and Sarah (L). Should be a christams full of barbeques, beers and fun!
The weather here has not been too good, you will be pleased to hear. Windy and overcast, but shorts are still ok and due to the deceptive clouds, I have managed to turn my face red through lack of sun protection! It must be about the fifth time I've burned my nose since I arrived.
Well that's all for now, when I've got more news, I will return . . .

Mountains and snow

2004-12-10T01:34:00.000Z

Ah, hello everyone. I am now relaxed in Taupo after having spent a couple of days in the Tongariro National Park.
I was camped in Whakapapa village, which is not really a village at all but just a collection of about five buildings and a huge hotel, on the slopes of Mt Ruapehu. Just up the road was Whakapapa ski field where quite a bit of the Mordor part of the Lord of the Rings was filmed. The snow was still hanging around and my campsite was not far below the snow line, so it was a touch chilly. It's a bizarre place where along with fire escape instructions, the buildings come equipped with instructions of where to go and what to do if the mountain should erupt! It's still a live volcano and has been known to cause the odd problem . . . However, that makes the landscape all the more interesting, since the lava flows and such like have not really been weathered down and there are not many plants which have taken hold.
I would have liked to have walked the northern circuit around Mt Tongariro while I was there, but the winds were too high and the cloud kept on dropping down too far. But having spoken to Andy and Sarah a couple of nights ago, it looks like I will be back there with them early in the new year.
Jos should be arriving in NZ today, but I don't know his flight details. Hopefully he'll be contacting me and nipping down to Taupo to say hello. It's not as though I haven't seen anyone I know for a while though. I keep bumping into people I've met before! On the lake Waikaremoana walk a met two people I had already met in NZ, then in Napier and Whakapapa I met people who had been staying in the same huts as me on the walk. I think that I am now off the type of route that they will be taking, since most of them are heading towards the south island now. Having said that, I have got a couple of mobile phone numbers so I'll try to catch up with them when I get south.
Anyhow, I'm now rambling on. So take good care one and all and I'll be back in a few days.

2004-12-05T23:04:00.000Z

8:30am in the middle of nowhere.

2004-12-05T23:03:00.000Z

It's busy around the east cape . . .

2004-12-05T23:02:00.000Z

Sarah and Kate "do Vogue"

2004-12-05T23:00:00.000Z

From the door of Bag End

2004-12-05T22:59:00.000Z

The lovely Hahei beach

2004-12-05T22:58:00.000Z

Sunset at Hahei

Tramps

2004-12-04T22:20:00.000Z

Just been tramping. That doesn't mean that I have been nursing tins of Tennents extra strong lager, sleeping in doorways and mumbling incoherently (although that may be true). Tramping is the NZ word for hiking or walking.
Yesterday I finished a four day tramp around Lake Waikaremoana, which is simply gorgeous. It is a large lake about 500m above sea level in the middle of a huge area of untouched forest and bush land. Overnight you stay in huts dotted around the wlaking route, which are really just bunk rooms with a communal area for cooking and chatting. The walking was great, you could wander through the dense bush and along the lake side without seeing a single person all day. There was a side track up to a beautiful waterfall in the middle of nowhere and from the highest hut you could see Hawkes bay and the pacific ocean in one direction, with nothing but bush covered hills in the other direction. It was a real escape from the world - no mobile phone reception, no computers for miles and only rain water and stream water for drinking. Met lots of good people who were staying in the same huts as me, two of whom I had met before - which was quite bizarre! All in all, despite the tired feet, it was well worth the 40Km of riding along gravel roads to do it.
Now I am in Napier, which seems like a pretty laid back kind of town. It's stuffed full of Art Deco buildings, and is judged to be one of the finest collections of buildings of it's type anywhere in the world. I plan to stay here for a couple of days, just looking around and taking in the atmosphere before heading off again. I'm not sure where the next stop will be, but I've got a couple of days to decide . . .
I hope you're all feeling tip top and getting in the christmas spirit. The christmas parades have started up over here, but when you're wandering around in shorts and a t-shirt it all seems a tad surreal.
Anyway, have fune everyone and I'll write more rubbish soon. While I'm in Napier, I'll see if I can get more photos on the blog too.

Old style NZ

2004-11-29T13:48:00.000Z

Now this may seem a but rushed, but I have just typed this entry once and then lost it!
So, from the smells and mud of Rotorua I headed north to Whakatane and Ohope on the coast of the Bay of Plenty. A really nice area with a chilled out feel and sandy beaches lapped by the south pacific surf. None too shabby.
Heading out along the coast, I made for the east cape - the eastern most point in NZ. This is an area mostly ignored by tourists and blissfully free of rented camper vans and such like. I pitched up my tent at a farly basic campsite where you could have a hot shower, but only if you lit the wood burner about 2 hours before you wanted the hot water! The site was right on a pebble beach between two bush covered headlands and the only other people there was a group of about 15 or so from Whakatane who were there to celebrate a 21 birthday. Kiwi hospitality being what it is, I was 'forced' to spend the evening sitting by a campfire on the beach, drinking their beer and having a good time. They were a really cool bunch and very generous with their beer . . .
The rest of the trip around the cape and down the coast was very relaxing. The whole area is ridiculously laid back. The petrol stations, of which there are not many, apparently run out and it takes and age to buy anything in a shop (if you can find one). When I stopped in a village, kids would appear out of nowhere and be amazed to find that I was from the UK. Random people wave at you as you go by, probably glad to just see someone making use of the road. It's a very unspoiled area where you can see falcons hunting right by the side of the road. I hope it doesn't get any busier.
So, now I'm in Gisbourne, which feels a tad run down. It doesn't feel quite as welcoming as most places I've been, but I've only been here for a couple of hours.
Next plan is to do a four day walk around a lake to the south of here. It'll be a few nights staying in huts and just ambling along. I'm off now to check it it out at the local DOC office.
I hope you're all surviving the cold. Take care and I'll be back in touch soon.

Smelly geysers

2004-11-24T16:51:00.000Z

Kia Ora from Rotarua, the land of hot mud, geysers (not geezers) and the smell of sulphur. Sorry it's been a little while since I updated, but today is the first time I've seen a computer for a while.
So what have I been up to? Well, the last time I wrote, I was in Te Aroha. As it turned out, the campsite was full of the strangest bunch of people in New Zealand. They were all local and lived in permanent caravans on the site. Don't get me wrong, they were perfectly friendly, but the way they could talk for 10 minutes without breaking eye contact of blinking was rather unnerving! Anyway, didn;t stay there for long, but headed up the Coromandel peninsula instead.
The Coromandel is basically just a range of hills (or mountains as they would be known in the UK) with sea on both sides. The west coast is more rocky with rougher beaches and that is where I stayed on Thursday night. I camped in Coromandel town, which is just a big village really, and met up with a maori guy who was camped on the same site. We arranged to meet for a few beers at the local pub, but by the time he arrived, I had been there for about 2 hours and was busy nattering with the locals. By kicking out time, there was a group made up of backpackers, locals and myself and this maori geezer. So, of course, we went back to the backpackers and cleared up any beers they had! This means that I now have an open invitation to visit the maori village where this chap lives and experience all of the stuuf most people have to pay for, for free - nicely.
And so to the weekend. I met up with Andy, Sarah and Kate again at the bach they had rented out in Hahei. Hahei is on the east coast of the peninsula and is a gorgeous spot. It was very quiet which meant that lounging on the white sandy beach as the (cold) pacific lapped gently at the shore was quite blissful. I also got to sleep in a proper bed and got fed properly. I may well fall to bits over the next few weeks without Andy and Sarah to look after me!
We had a top weekend with a bit of sight seeing, a bit of walking and plently of lunging about. The others went sea kyacking as well, but I'm saving that for the south island in the new year.
And so to Rotorua (via coromandel town again). It's actually not as smelly here as I expected it to be, but the thermal activity is really quite bizarre. There are bubbling ponds in the park, holes with hot mud burping away and some of the storm drains in the kerbs have got steam coming out of them! All in all, it's not quite like anywhere else I have ever been. During the course of today I have seen geysers spurting boiling water all over the place, bright red and green rocks surrounding steaming holes in the ground, maori dancers and warriors and real live (and awake) kiwis. If I'm not careful I'll have done everything too soon!
So there we are, up to date. Thanks for all the comments. A particular mention to Graham - nice to hear from you and jobs aren't fun anyway.
Take good care one and all . . .

Hobbits and giant waves

2004-11-17T03:05:00.000Z

Just a very quick update, since I don't have much time on this computer. When I got to Raglan (the surfing place), a huge storm hit! I kid you not, the waves were higher than a two storey house - needless to say I didn't surf. Even the surfers from Alaska described the conditions as "just too gnarly man". So I just spent some time chilling out in the laid back environment.
Went to Hobbiton - no hobbits at hokme though. Still, pretty cool to go to the place where the only remaining part of Lord of the Rings set is. Nice place, you should go.
I am now in a town called Te Aroha, which is not far from where the North Island gold rush was going on about 100 years ago. Been out walking in one of the local gorges today and will go up the local mountain tomorrow.
Sorry this is brief, but more chat soon.
By the way - Rift Zone eh Rob? Nicely new experience? Get yerself down Afan way.

The week ahead

2004-11-12T06:44:00.000Z

Just thought I'd give you an idea of the vague plan for the week ahead. It's Friday evening now, which means that you'll still be asleep with Friday still to come. We are 13 hours ahead here at the moment (I think).
Tomorrow Andy and I are going to a show in Auckland called "big boys toys", it sounds like FHM in real life - loads of bikes, boats and such like stuff. Then tomorrow evening, I think that myself, Andy, Sarah and Kate will be meeting up with Andy's sister - Sue.
Sunday will be when I set off from Auckland again and I think I will head for Raglan. It is reputed to have one of the best and longest left hand surf breaks in the world, so I think a couple of days there and hire out a board might be a nice way to spend some time . . . .
Then I will head across country towards the Coromandel peninsula. I have been told that it is simply gorgeous and Andy and Sarah have hired a bach (holiday cabin type thing) for next weekend. Hobbiton (Matamata where the first bit of the Lord of the Rings film was made) is one the way, so I'll have to stop off there. Apparently most of the set still exists, so I'll try to get a photo of Bag End.
So there it is, fairly loose and flexible as plans go, but should work out fine I hope!
By the way, If you want to leave comments on the blog, rather than having to send a separate email to me, it's easy. Click on "comments" under the photo or piece of text and then "post a comment". You can leave a comment anonomously - so you don't have to go through the process of signing up or put your name in the comment somewhere. I'll always check the comments and may leave you a reply on the blog . . . .
Have a lovely Friday and weekend, I'll be back with more rubbish soon.

2004-11-11T00:53:00.000Z

Big them Kauri trees . . . .

2004-11-11T00:52:00.000Z

Sarah, Kate and the Kai Iwi sunset

2004-11-11T00:51:00.000Z

90 mile beach at 70 mph

2004-11-11T00:50:00.000Z

Nize voo . . .

2004-11-11T00:49:00.000Z

Loaded up and ready to go

Water and big trees . . . .

2004-11-08T23:37:00.000Z

Hello my lovelies! I've been out of phone and internet land for a few days, so I thought I should give you an update.
I met up with Andy, Sarah and Kate at Kai Iwi lakes on Friday night and spent the weekend there with them. The lakes are quite bizarre really. They are natural fresh water lakes only about a kilometer (as the Parrot flies) from the west coast and the Tasman sea. The water is crystal clear and the sand around the lakes is very fine and almost white. Sitting outside the tents at night there was absolutely no background light pollution and looking up past the trees, the stars were brighter than I have ever seen them.
The local beach was gorgeous, a long stretch of wild beach going on and on with hardly a person in sight, just a few fishermen casting into the surf. Andy tried out his new surf casting rod, while Sarah, Kate and I sat back and relaxed in the sunshine or ambled slowly up the beach. All very dreadfull!
On Sunday I headed back up north about 30 Km's to stay at the Waipoua Forest for a couple of nights. For anyone who has ridden a motorbike, I have to say that the road through the forest is the best motorbike road I have ever been on. The road winds through the forest, avoiding the Kauri trees (more on those in a minute), with trees and ferns coming right up to the edge of the road. Even more importantly, you can travel right through the forest, a distance of about 18 Km's, without seeing any other traffic at all.
The forest itself is beautiful. It is one of the few remaining areas of native forest with large Kauri trees still standing. The Kauri is the second largest tree in the world, but since the trunk does not taper at all, they look simply massive. The oldest tree is around 2000 years old and I'll post pictures when I get back to Auckland. Suffice to say, you will have to see them to believe how big they are. Also, the forest is a wildlife reserve, so wandering through this ancient forest, surrounded by huge Kauri trees while watching parrots fly through the canopy is quite some experience . . .
Anyway, back in relative civilisation now and heading slowly southwards again. I will be in Auckland this weekend, but may manage an update before I get there. I hope everyone is well and happy. Take care.

The far north

2004-11-04T03:25:00.000Z

Well, it's Thursday - probably - and I am all set up in a town called Rawene on the west coast of the Northland of the North Island. Yesterday was a fun and interesting one. After consulting with the locals regarding the possibility of getting off ninety mile beach with my bike intact, I decided to take a bus up there instead! However, since it is still early in the season over here, the "bus" turned out to be a Toyota Land Cruiser four wheel drive thingy, with only four of us on it. This type of tour is usually about NZ$450, but we got it for NZ$60 - nice bargain!
Well, ninety mile beach is enormous, even when you're belting up it at in excess if 70mph (these crazy Kiwi's). Stopped off a couple of times on the way up to be astounded by the general immense size of the beach, before leaving by the only route, up a quick sand river. Remember, this beach is supposed to be a highway! The driver told me that if you stopped for about 4 seconds when driving up the river, you would lose your car. Given the leftover pieces of buses which we saw on the beach, I was not inclined to doubt him.
This was followed by hurtling down huge sand dunes, head first, on boogie boards. Now that's fun - apart from hiking up the dunes first.
Then swiftly off to Cape Reinga, the most northerly point, the meeting of the Pacific Ocean and the Tasman Sea and a very sacred place to the Maori. It's quite spectacular and fortunately all protected land. Via small deserted sub tropical coves, we wended our way back to Doubtless bay, where I was camped out.
The landscape up here is ever changing and always wonderfull. At times it is flat pasture land and then 20 minutes later it feels as though you are in the foot hills of the alps, except for the sub tropical bush which covers the hills and mountains.
Tomorrow it looks as though I will be heading south to meet up with Sarah, Andy and Kate (Sarah's sister) for the weekend camping by some lakes. After that, I will come back up north a little way to visit the Kauri forests. More of that later. For now, take care one and all.
Oh yes - for the "mystery VFR800 owner" more bike details follow on from your comment . . . .

Just a quickie . . .

2004-11-02T02:49:00.000Z

Internet connections don't come cheap up here in the middle of nowhere. I am at Doubtless Bay on the North East coast, not far from Cape Reinga, the top of NZ. Last night was spent at Haruru Falls, a nice little campsite in what used to be a volcano crater (so I was told in the pub). The night before was spent at a DOC campsite sandwiched between State Highway 1 and a completely deserted and quiet beach. At night I could hear the surf and in the morning I could hear the cars - a bit strange really.
Anyway, tomorrow I am heading up Ninety Mile beach to the cape. It should be a busy day and full of odd experiences. For anyone who is not aware, 90 mile beach is 64 miles long and is a designated highway! When the tide heads out, specially adapted buses blast up the hard sand to the cape and back. There is also the bonus of sand toboggoning (might have spelled that wrong) on some huge dunes. I'll let you know what happens. More photos will be on in a week or so I reckon.
By the way, further to the comment from "the Moores" I have to apologise for being so remiss in not adequately either thanking or praising my hosts in Auckland. They are highly recommended, good company, mine of information, comfy beds and lovely food. Book early and expect prices to rise in the near future . . . .

Up north again

2004-10-31T01:18:00.000Z

It’s Sunday, it’s hot and sunny and it’s Sarah’s birthday - hurrah! We’ve just been down to the beach to watch the Auckland marathon runners sprint/jog/struggle past while we sat back enjoying a relaxing coffee and breakfast in the morning sunshine. A very pleasant stroll along the sandy bays and a dip of the feet into the sea later and it was obviously ice cream time.
We are now back at Andy and Sarah’s place and I am finishing off the packing of my gear, ready for the off in an hour or two. I am planning to head north to Waipu (pronounced “why pooh”) Cove or Uretiti Beach. Both have campsites, with the Uretiti Beach campsite being a Department of Conservation (DOC) site. I suspect I will be staying at quite a few DOC sites, they are basic but usually only cost NZ$6 (about 2 pounds 30) per night and they are all in conservation areas. I haven’t decided where to stay tonight yet, I’ll just see what the campsites look like.
In the next couple of weeks I’ll head up the east coast to Cape Reinga, the most northerly point in NZ and then come back down the west coast to Auckland. By that time, both Andy and Sarah’s sisters will be in town, so I’ll stop by to say hi before heading away to the Coromandel peninsula.
So there we are, a very rough plan for the next three weeks or so. I’ll be updating the blog whenever I can and posting photo’s if possible. If I can’t get photo’s on, you’ll have to wait until I get back to Auckland before you can see the sights . . . . . So take care everyone, and I’ll be in touch again soon.

2004-10-30T03:01:00.000+01:00

The steed . . . .

Biking

2004-10-29T21:00:00.000+01:00

Hurrah! Have transport, will travel. I'll post a photo of the steed later today, but suffice to say that my two wheeled companion is in Sarah and Andy's garage and I will be heading off to the Northland tomorrow. Not much to tell of the last few days, mostly it's been spent getting my transport sorted out. But now I can look forward to a couple of weeks mooching around the most northerly area of NZ before coming back through Auckland and heading south.
I've got my technical camping equipment, a book of NZ campsites, a book of Lord of the Rings locations (!) and a mode of transport - what more could I need?!
Oh yes, I've got a NZ mobile phone as well, so if anyone receives very odd random text messages at wierd times, it might be me holed up in a bar somewhere . . .

Perfect woman?

2004-10-26T20:28:00.000+01:00

I forgot to mention that I missed the Wanaka "perfect woman" competition, which was held last weekend. To give you a flavour of how it worked, two of the categories were:
1. Opening a beer bottle without the use of a bottle opener.
2. Guy bucking - rodeo riding an untamed guy from the local rugby club.
Not quite Miss World . . . .

Up North (part one)

2004-10-25T21:25:00.000+01:00

Thanks for the comments posted, I think. Not sure about the Holmes and Watson thing though. Is it masquerading as some sort of joke?

Back in Auckland after a weekend in the Northland. Sarah, Andy and myself set off on saturday morning, with camping gear and no particular plan except to head north. On the way we discovered delights such as a place called the "art of cheese". It turned out not to be a commune of the southern hemisphere's premier cheese sculptors, but just a cheese making facility and shop. I am sure you will understand my great dissapointment.
However, we continued northward, via the surf beach at Mangawhai heads, to Paihia on the Bay of Islands. The bay is a popular tourist spot in the height of summer, but wasn't too busy this early in the spring - after all, it's the equivalent of April in the UK.
Saturday night was the NZ rugby version of the FA cup, so the pubs were packed with slightly drunk but entertaining and friendly kiwi's, who suddenly became even more friendly when they found out I was a Scotland rugby supporter!
Sunday kicked off with a visit to the Treaty House and grounds at Waitangi, the place where the treaty between the UK and the Maori was signed and modern New Zealand began. An interesting place with a small one bedrooom house which belonged to the official British representative to NZ. Hardly impressively palacial.
So from there, a walk through the bush, across the mangrove swamps and past the waterfalls led us, rather conveniently, to another pub!
The Bay is a lovely spot, with clear water and sandy beaches. A ferry took us across to the quiet and colonial town of Russell, where relaxation is very much the order of the day. But if you want, you can sail up the coast to dive on the wreck of the Rainbow Warrior (the Greenpeace ship sunk by the French secret service) or head off down the coast in enormously powerful 50 person speedboats. For us, it was kicking back and enjoying the sunshine though.

2004-10-25T21:23:00.000+01:00

Sarah and Andy in the mangroves

2004-10-25T21:19:00.000+01:00

Unfortunately, no cheese sculptures though

2004-10-25T21:18:00.000+01:00

Proof at last . . . I am in NZ

Getting camp

2004-10-22T19:59:00.000+01:00

Today will be day four - so what happened to day three? Well, the last couple of days have been spent ambling around Auckland, checking out the outdoors shops (of which there are loads) and completing my camping kit. So I now have rather nice technical tent and an equally lovely technical sleeping bag! Of course, I had to visit every outdoors shop I could find before finally buying anything. So now all I need to sort out is some transport and I can be off and away, leaving Sarah and Andy in peace.
Off camping for the bank holiday weekend very shortly, so there will be more photo's and chat in a couple of days . . . .