How do you start your day when you are visiting Queenstown, New Zealand? How about jumping off a 134 meter bridge and following it with the worlds largest canyon swing.. sound good? That is exactly how I started my day in Queenstown. First I headed into the A.J. Hackett office and registered for the bungy and canyon swing and then it’s a waiting game. They have videos playing of all of their jump locations and free use of computers so you can facebook all your mates around the world letting them know that you are about to do something extremely adrenalin filled.
Once you board the bus, the driver pokes a little fun at the situation, puts on some tunes and then it is off to the Nevis Valley. The ride takes roughly 40 minutes and the bus was pretty quiet, a nervous silence you could say. You could see the fear in the eyes of some and excitement in others. I was pretty stoked and a wee bit nervous too.
Upon arrival to the jump location you are briefed, geared out with a harness and then it is time to head out in a cable car to reach the jump pod which is hanging over the Nevis Valley. It’s high, really high! Once in the jump pod the fun begins. People get twitchy and even a little funny. Tears, laughter and excitement and is a common site. You sit and watch as people toss themselves from the jump pod. It is great to watch and then it’s your turn. I personally love doing bungy’s. They feel extremely safe to me and are a great shot of adrenalin. It’s crazy how plunging toward the earth with the ground rushing towards you makes you feel a live.
After the bungy it was off to do the worlds largest canyon swing. This was awesome. You first get to walk across a seriously wicked suspension bridge that sways with the wind! Since I had did the Nevis first, they said I should do it upside down and backwards.. sounds good to me! Strapped in, wave to the camera and then whoosh you are off screaming through the valley at mind blowing speeds.
Both the bungy and canyon swings are a must do! If it isn’t on your bucket list, added it! New Zealand is the home of the bungy, so you must do at least one while here and with the largest canyon swing right there why wouldn’t ya make it a doubele shot of adrenalin! Thanks Queenstown for the new addiction – my name is Mike and I am a adrenalin addict!
Ive got a busy week ahead! On Tuesday I am off to Wellington for work and Wednesday I will be down in the south island in Christchurch. This will be my first time back in Christchurch since the earth quake. Just yesterday there was a 5.0 magnatiude aftershock 11km below the serface. There were no injuries thankfully, but from the photos it looks like there was a lot of liquifaction. Now that is nothing compared to what hit early this year, but it still makes me a bit nervous about heading there. Hopefully the earth remains motionless while I am down south.
After Christchurch I am off to Queenstown for Easter. Michelle and my mate Tim will be meeting me down there where we plan to do a bit of a tour. We’ve got a car rented and accommodation booked for a couple nights. The rest of the time we will be staying with Tim’s brother. Im looking forward to touring around down south with a local, as they always know the best spots. We will be hitting up Milford Sound, which im pretty stoked about. The place looks prestine and Ive only heard good things. We will also be visiting Wanaka, Arrowtown, Glenorchy, Cromwell and Alexandra. Unlike my last trip to Queenstown, this is a non-riding trip.
This time of year brings a lot of travel through work. Ill be heading off in May as well to Dunedin, Christchurch, Wellington and Palmerston North. On the road again…
Is the Canadian Moose somewhere out there in Fiordland, New Zealand?
In 1910 ten Canadian Moose were introduced to Fiordland’s Supper Cove in New Zealand. The conditions werent as good as thought and it is said the moose had all died with the last sighting was to be in 1952.
Over the years there has been ‘sightings’, bedding spots & antlers found, hair tested for DNA and plenty of tracks, but no photographic proof has ever come of it. I for one hope the Canadian moose have eluded everyone overtime. In a week I will be down in Fiordland and with any luck I may get some photographic proof which could net me $100,000! Hallenstines, a mens clothing store is offering $100,000 for a photo of the elusive Canadian moose wandering around Fiordland.
On Sunday Michelle and I went to the Auckland Domain for the Red Bull Trolley Grand Prix. It was the third trolley race held in NZ and the winner gets $10,000! Teams come from all over New Zealand to compete in hope that they will be crowned the champion. They are judged on the following criteria 1) Creativity (originality, innovation and design) 2) performance (showmanship of the team before and during the race – including introduction skits, spins, crashes and costumes) and 3) finish time (race time)
It was a blast of a event! There were over 100,000 people there! Finding a good place to stand was a bit tough. They did have a huge screen so you could watch the trolley’s make there way down the windy course. I would recommend getting there an hour or two early and trying to get a spot at the jump, which is where everyone crashed! We managed to stand a long the side of the course for a while, which was a great place to see the fly by (well some flew by, some didn’t make it 100 meters).
The trolley’s were amazing. They had a Buzz Bee toy, roast chicken, mr potatoe head, run-a-way portaloo, giant golf ball, transformer, lego, office desk, mt taranaki and heaps more! There were over 80 enteries for this event. When I first heard about the event I tried to enter a team, but unforunately it was too late.
The atmosphere was electric and everyone was there for a goodtime! I don’t even know who won, but it was heaps of fun and a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon!
Here is a short video from my gopro helmet cam from Grundy’s Track in Queenstown, New Zealand. This track is basically a link between a couple other trails. Fun track.. enjoy!
I can’t believe I have been in New Zealand for one year now! The time has gone by so quickly. Looking back it is just one big fun ride! Ive enjoyed myself so much that I am looking to extend my stay in NZ for another year! Ill keep everyone posted on how that goes… at the moment it’s trying & stressful, but I am just trying to keep in positive spirits.
So I figure it is a goodtime to look at my to-do list and see what exactly I have or have not accomplished from it.
1. Heli-Bike – I cant say I have done this. I did push my bike up a mountain that is commonly heli-biked and hussed down, but no heli ride as of yet.
2. Bungee Jump – Done. Though I would still like to do the Nevis in Queenstown as it is much bigger than the Auckland Harbour Bridge Bungee.
3. Sky Dive – Nope.. still keen, just haven’t gotten around to it.
Learn to surf – Done… well I did a lesson and did ride a couple waves, but I am no surfer.
5. Abseil Waitomo – Done. I actually did this twice, so double check mark!
6. Hike Tangario – Half-done.. so I guess not done. Last year we hiked to summit but had to turn back because of a snow storm and 60km gust.. that was awesome!
7. Work in Bakery – hasn’t happened. I was luckily enough to secure a job a couple weeks before I arrived in NZ and it has been great. Working within the travel industry means discounts and freebies!
8. Learn Yoga – Nope.. didn’t realize how bloody expensive a class is.. yikes!
9. Go Whale Watching – haven’t made it out yet. I could go out in Auckland, but want to save it for Kaikoura as it is the best spot to see whales.
10. Scuba Dive – snorkel – nope.
11. Ride in Moa Beer race – nope. I totally forgot about this race and missed it. Ah well.. im not super keen. But I have drank my share of Moa.. half done ahah
12. WOOF – nope. Been working and had no time to woof.. maybe some other time.
13. Couch surf – haven’t done this, but have managed to meet locals and crash out at their place. So I consider it accomplished.
14. See All Blacks play. Done.. I watched them demolish Wales.
15. Kite-board – this came in as a suggestion and I am still keen. Just been lazy I guess. Being so mountain bike obsessed means that I pretty much ride in my spare time rather than trying some new things… must work on that!
Wow.. still have quite a few things to do! If I wasn’t so addicted to riding tracks over here Im sure I would have more checked off!
A lot of my motivation in NZ has been to ride mountain bike tracks all over this country and I would have to say ive been pretty successful at this. Ive rode tracks all over both the north and south islands and had a couple weeklong bike trips to some wild places. Ive met some amazing locals that have shown me tracks that I would have never had a chance to ride without their knowledge. Do I more tracks to ride and see… HELL YES! I have a few things in the works for riding this year and you will have to stay tuned to learn more.. but if it works out should be big epic rides!
Now what have I missed about home.. family. This was my first Christmas away from everyone and it was toughest time I had in NZ. My family is always in my thoughts and Im always thinking about what I am missing: my nephew and niece getting older, family get togethers, partying and getting way to carried away with my brother, the cottage, my mates and I could carry on with this list for ages, but who really wants to hear about.
So what is to come? First thing first I need to sort this visa out or I will be deported. At Easter I will be heading back down to Queenstown with Michelle and my mate Time (who is a Queenstown local) to see the sites. This is a none bike riding trip – so we plan to do Milford Sounds, Wanaka, Te Anau, Cromwell, Alexander, Glenorchy and whatever else comes a long. Ive got a couple work trips, where I will be taking my bike a long (of course) to ride. And like I wrote earlier, hopefully some big epic rides to come.
My advice to anyone who is thinking of heading to NZ or anywhere else in the world to work and travel… do it! It will most likely be the best experience of your life! Don’t just think about it, make a plan, pick a departure date and go!
