LAX

Am I really sitting in LAX right now?

Did I really just watch Tim walk away to catch his flight to Tampa?

Is our trip in NZ, as it was, really over?

Why the hell does it feel like just yesterday we were here going the other way?

I am full of mixed emotions right now. Honestly I really don't know what to write. It's taken me 10 minutes now just to get this far. I keep writing and then erasing, writing and then erasing. I am sad to not be sitting in the country that has been my home for the past year and I'm sad that the time slipped by so fast.

If nothing else I take solace in the fact that my life has changed and the thing that I long for the most has come and will continue to come. I owe everything to the beautiful people I've met along the way who have all shown me something amazing, each in their own way. I can truly say I would be nothing without those that have been a part of my life's adventure. In all humbleness, thank you.

Tim and I had one hell of an adventure and there's still so much to write about. Once I grasp the end of this trip and get some space (mentally and physically) I'll try to elaborate. Check back soon.

Boarding @ Cardrona and 45 of Kora

Snowboarding in New Zealand is a trip. All of the places I've ridden in the states are the same in that you drive through snowy towns, navigating relatively cleared roads at high elevation (except in the extreme cases), to park at the mountain base where you proceed to catch a lift up to the goodness. Everything is at height, everything is cold, and there is snow everywhere. Typically there are no huge hills to climb, no pinnacle to get to, you just drive to the ski field base like you're driving to the grocery store, park, and catch a lift to the top. Sure, during heavy dumps of snow the roads might be a little sketch, but usually ski towns are well equipped to deal with these issues. Here it is a bit of a different story. In NZ the ski towns don't lie at the same elevations as the ski field bases. What does this mean? It means that the town vs. ski field are a world apart. When it snows on the ski field it rains in town. Usually when the town is under cloud and miserable the ski field is under sun an glorious. When it might be almost warm in town, the ski fields are still below freezing. It is also important to say that most ski fields, actually all except Cornet Peak (to my knowledge), are accessed via unpaved roads, usually with no guardrail, and usually with mom & pop manning the road plow. Needless to say, this contrast in conditions from bottom to top sets the stage for some interesting journeys on the way to powder.

Ask Kelsey, poor girl. Recently we were driving to Cardrona ski field which is about half way between here (Queenstown) and Wanaka. It is on the Wanaka side of the Crown Range and so requires/preps courage and confidence in whoever is driving. Fortunately for us Kelsey has a car big enough to hold five hooligans (aka our posse) with a roof rack for all of our boards. Unfortunately for her, this meant on this fateful day she would be driving. The Crown Range was snowy but it was all packed out so the roads were slippery but manageable. In 2wd it might have been interesting but her 4wd Subaru tackled it no problem. Hi ho, hi ho, through cloud and rain we go...the rest of the way to Cardrona. The first part of the road up to the mountain was good. It was wet and muddy but good. As we got further and further up towards the cloudline/freezline we start noticing the rain changing to snow and waterdown turning to ice. Slowly, things got whiter and whiter, including the road. Now on every mountain, as you climb towards the heavens, there are a series of "chain fitting bays" that one can pull off in and fit chains on your wheels. Most ski fields have a mandatory rule that you must carry them even if you don't use them. If you get caught without chains you can be ticketed or banned from the ski field. This is a bit of a dichotomy because chains are expensive and in most conditions (today turning out to NOT be one of those days) and with only a modest size set of juevos you can slip and slide your way to the top, especially in a 4wd vehicle (which we were in). So up we went. Past the signs saying "chains required" and into the white abyss. While Kelsey isn't an experienced driver in these conditions she was doing great and we were only slightly breaking loose on a couple of the 1.537269 million switchbacks. We were charging full steam ahead, the thought of clean lines on untouched powder loomed heavily on our minds and distracted us from the slow and arduous journey to the top of the mountain...and then came reality crashing back in the form of whiteout conditions and panic.

"I can't see anything! I can't see anything! Should I stop?!?!"
"You can do it, keep going, look for a chain fitting bay on the side, keep going..."

(37.5 seconds later)

"Shit, I still can't see! I can't see the edge of the road! If there was a pull off I couldn't see it! Should I stop?!?!"

I'm not sure what everyone was thinking at that moment but somewhere in the midst of confusion and panic a "yes" was uttered. Keep in mind there are no guardrails and the road was just wide enough for two cars to pass but they better not be overweight. So in the middle of the narrow road with no guardrails in whiteout conditions, we stop. No sooner had we stopped than had headlights appeared behind us. What happened next was a slight blur but I think it went something like:

1. Kelsey tried to go forward to get out of the way but because of the ice she started sliding backward and sideways towards and into the hillside ditch.
2. The guy behind us tried to accelerate and get around us at which time the effect of the ice had his car repeating our car's exact moves. Two cars in the ditch.
3. A car that was coming down the hill panicked at seeing two sets of headlights aiming in his direction (in what appeared to be his lane) and hit his breaks causing him to slide down the hill in our direction and into our ditch.
4. Another car was coming up the hill witnessed everything and stopped next to us to have a look. Upon seeing Tim and I (and the other male occupants in the ditched vehicles) get out with "What the f$@% just happened" looks on our faces he must have assumed we were a little lost but alright and so he tried to continue onwards immediately before he continued rearwards (if you will) and a bit sideways, right towards our vehicle. Luckily Tim was standing next to our car and was able to deflect his sliding car to some degree, sparing everything except the rear 1/4 of Kelsey's car.
   

At that point the other cars coming up and going down got it and didn't stop, prompting an end to the chaos. Thankfully there was enough snow in the ditch we didn't get too lodged. We were able to dig the car out, put chains on, and carefully make our way up past several other accidents and abandoned vehicles to the "base." Holy shit.

In the end it was worth it. The whiteout conditions we experienced on the way up was the remains of a storm that dumped tons of snow on the field. Crowds were thin because the view from below deterred people (cloudy, nasty, and wet) AND word of our fiasco got out prompting the road to be closed briefly while they worked to improve conditions. Luckily we made it up before hand to reap the benefits.

That night we went to watch Kora, which I would tell you about if I remembered. Apparently they played a 45 minute set... The following day we went to do some rock climbing but the rock was still too wet from the previous day's rain and so we relented to just explore a little. Kelsey got a flat tire and we had to abandon the crew and gear to cut down on weight while her and I went to get it repaired. The whole process took a while and so we were speeding to get back to pick everyone up when she was pulled over and promptly issued a ticket. Luckily the officer overlooked the fact that she not only didn't have her license but that she didn't have any other type of documentation on her proving who she was. Damn us for not getting her fake identity together in time.

eArThQuAkE!

Sorry Kristen. Sorry Jen. You girls missed out. I was sitting on the couch watching TV last night at about 9:30 when all of a sudden things started a shakin'. For a split second I thought someone was walking heavy around the flat and shaking things but before that thought was finished it was steamrolled by the realization that there was no gap between steps and it was not stopping... I had to look at my flatmates and question, "Is this what I think it is?" For the next 30 seconds or so my world had a subtle vibration. Not enough to knock things off the wall, but enough to make our 2 story apartment building sway, as we uneasily noticed from the upstairs balcony. Something surreal about being in a swaying building while watching all the streetlights rock back and forth...during an eArThQuAkE! They're reporting last night's weirdness was of the 7.8 magnitude variety that occurred probably about 3-4 hours southwest of Queenstown (as the crow flies). Since then several other more minor tremors have been felt including one today at the winery. Subtle? Yes. Humbling? Yes. Amazing? Absolutely. The disconnect between me as a human and mother nature was once again highlighted last night and I was reminded that I need to "recognize." She is something else.

Fruit of Labor

Just wanted to say: See that bottle? Do you? I made that! That's right, you heard me. I made Chardonnay and it rocks! Ok, technically I didn't make it in it's entirety but I did pick, de-stem, and press the grapes. I also "spooned" with the yeast by the fire on a cold night. Hey, someone had to take one for the team and keep the party going. That stuff is fickle! Ignore the yeast left in the bottom of the bottle as wine needs to go through a second fermentation. I've got to admit, even slightly acidic it tastes pretty good to me. Well done team.

Queenstown

I've been in Queenstown for about a month now and I've got to say, I'm indifferent towards it. It could be the overly capitalistic nature of the place or the thousands of regularly rotating tourists, I'm not sure. Standing in the shoes of a local I've got to say that the town itself just doesn't feel entirely right. The best I can do to equate what it is like to be here during the winter season is to say imagine what it would be like to have an apartment in the middle of Disney Land. Yeah, cool at first, but before long you find yourself in a state of repression due to impulse avoidance of skull smashing Walt's many creations. Moderation is key. Oh yeah, and there's no discounts for living in Snow White's Palace. If you walk on two legs you pay the two leg price, period, and at DLand that can get expensive.

With all that said I am proud to say that I have not been out at night ONCE since moving here. I'm pretty sure it's some sort of record for Queenstown. They don't call it the "Queenstown coma" for nothing. Lucky for me there are many other good things to spend my money on, including the two mountains in my backyard: Cornet Peak and The Remarkables. We've been up on both and have had a blast! I miss tree runs and big powder but there are lots of cool features that are uniquely New Zealand as well and that has been making it fun. Regardless...working all week and then spending the weekend on the hill boarding simply kicks ass.

Work itself is, well, work. Getting the vines of a local vineyard primed for growing next season... Like most things it was fun at first, but then quickly became monotonous. It's a transition period though, part of the game. We've spent the last months traveling and having a blast and now it's time to put a few dollars back in the bank. I love being outside all day, the views from the vineyard are amazing, the people I work with are amazing, its a slightly romantic occupation (I say that standing on the other side and with a bit of sarcasm), and its putting money in the bank.

I've been dreaming of surfing 24/7 but I'm not sure if that is just a case of wanting what I can't immediately have. I'll leave that sacred ground alone for now and take solace is slope shredding on the weekends. Luckily there are a few limits to push around here.

Back to Temporary Retirement: Thanks Kate!

After Chard Farm we worked a few more days for a vineyard management company, then made our way to Christchurch to pick up Kate.

Day 1
Kate arrived the morning of May 14th. We picked her up and took her around the city square. We knew she would be tired but with only two weeks we had to get on doing. With that said I thought a surf session was in order, especially seeing as it was a fairly tame day by New Zealand standards. Poor girl didn't know what hit her: a rocky coastline, cliffs on the beach, black sand, kelp, and a thick wetsuit. Definitely not in FL anymore... From Christchurch we made our way down to a secluded spot on the beach to camp.

Day 2
Got up the next morning and headed to Elephant Rocks/Hulk Hogan to do some bouldering. The place is pretty rad and full of amazing rock formations to play on and of course she loved it. This was my first taste of just how strong Kate was climbing. The last time I climbed with her she was a true beginner, and while she climbed strong considering, she was still just beginning. This time a different picture was being painted. We drove to Long Beach in Dunedin that night to camp.

Day 3
Got up and spent the day cave bouldering at Long Beach. Needless to say it was sick and again, new strokes of Kate's climbing ability were being laid down and it was fun to watch. Drove that night into Dunedin and stayed at a hostel in town. Went out for a couple of beers and a burger but all in all it was mild as we were exhausted.

Day 4
Spent the day exploring downtown Dunedin; museums, old churches, crazy people, and a little shopping. We also made our way out to the peninsula to watch albatrosses fly before making our way into the Catlins to camp.

Day 5
Drove to Curio Bay Campground where we met up with our surf-school instructor turned local guide and finger pointer, Nick, for a spare board and wetsuit/booties/hood/gloves for Kate. Went surfing that afternoon in water shared with sea lions and penguins. It is still surreal for us and I think mind blowing for Kate. We also took her to the petrified forest and to watch the penguins come in from working all day (finding food for their little ones). We were able to position ourselves on their incoming path and get within 5' of them...pretty amazing.


Day 6
Drove from Curio to Te Anau with a brief and completely unimpressive stop in Invercarghill, as to be expected.

Day 7
Drove into Milford Sound for the day. Beautiful. After soaking up the sound we drove into Queenstown and introduced Kate to Fergburger and then camped at Wye Creek.

Day 8
Woke up to snow which dashed our plans of climbing at Wye. Instead we dawned our warm gear and hiked up to the South Wall before bad visibility (snowfall) and slippery conditions forced us to turn around. We spent the afternoon tooling around Queenstown where we found out through our much better informed mountaineer friends that a local ski field, while not open, had great snow and was worth hiking. Not one to waste an opportunity to expose my little sis to something new I jumped on the chance. We got hooked up with some ski gear for her and off we were. Camped on the road up to Cornet Peak.

Day 9
Drove as far up the road as we could before the icy road forced an emergency pull-off/park-job. It was a pretty surreal sight... We spent a bit of time hiking up to find a nice spot where Kate could learn the tactics of the "pizza slice" and all the other cool things skiers do. Not. To be fair she would've much rather snowboarded but we simply didn't have the gear. She knows where it's at. After some brief instruction she was off having a blast. The snow was good in areas, the weather was beautiful, and we were riding! We spent half the day riding/hiking/riding/hiking before we were all simply too exhausted to go on. Somehow we made it down the mountain, returned the gear, and drove to Wanaka without falling asleep on the way.

Day 10
Spent the day climbing at Hospital Flats in Wanaka. An epic day of climbing. The weather was less than stellar BUT the climbs were fantastic. The rock was great and each of the routes were keepers in their own ways. Asthetic was the word of the day. More firsts for Kate: first belay, first lead belay, and first outdoor sport climb. Needless to say she handled it all, and well.

Day 11
Drove to Fox Glacier. We were a little late leaving Wanaka so it was the afternoon that was dying along the way. It all culminated in the most amazing sunset I've seen since being in NZ. I venture to say it was top three all time. I can't believe we were on the road for it!!! We found ourselves stopping every few kms to take pictures. Somehow we made it to Fox before the impending iceage. Once the evenin settled in we went on a hike to see glow worms. Sure enough. It was a forest walk along a creek with little blue stars (glow worms) everywhere. Those little guys are pretty cool.

Day 12
Fox Glacier and Franz Josef Glacier. That was the day. There was no way I could let her leave without seeing those two beauties. She loved it and we were able to get closer than we'd ever been. We could practically throw rocks at it. They had horrible weather not too long before we arrived so there were huge chunks of ice on the trail, some as large as a three story building.

Day 13
We spent the morning trying to rig a positive belay station at a trad climbing spot called Charleston. The rock isn't the best but the scenery can't be beat. The place is literally right on the beach. Waves actually crash into the wall at high tide! Our main focus for the day was to get to Castle Hill and climb and as the station took so long to setup we decided to send Kate up so she could log another in the books. With no beta and no clear route layed out up the 30 meter wall, she not only had to climb hard (her hardest yet at 17) but also routefind. Can you say flash? Now I know it for sure, my sister can climb. After another great sunset and playing with the Keas (alpine parrot) we arrived at Castle Hill.

Day 14
Met up with our friend Kelsey and played at Castle Hill all day. With no crash pad we couldn't climb all out but regardless, it was fun. You almost have to see the place to believe that the rock formations are real. It's amazing what limestone can do and it sure as hell is fun to climb on! Stayed at a hostel in Christchurch in preparation for Kate's early flight out to OZ.


That's her trip in a very small nutshell. Once she flew out Tim and I went up to Kaikora to surf. While up there we stumbled upon the O'neill Coldwater Classic surf contest AND some amazing surf. We had 3 solid days of surf there before heading back to Christchurch to pick Kate up for her one day back in NZ. Oh yeah, before we left Kaikora we got to see one of the coolest things yet. A secret pool in the woods where all the seal pups from the local colony hike to (literally) during the day and play. They have to clamor up a creek for several hundred meters before reaching it. There must've been 60 or 70 pups just having the best time. Sooooo funny and such a blast to watch. We hung with Kate for her one day back in town. The following day we were off to Queenstown to move into our new pad for the winter.

Chard Farm and Then What

Can you tell I was listening to U2 when I wrote that last post? Funny stuff.

We've spent the last few days working another short harvest we found at a vineyard closer to Queenstown, in the Gibston Valley. Their harvest was short as it was just the "show" vineyard. Apparently most of their grapes come from nearby BannockBurn (where we just worked previously) and the vineyard at the actual processing facility/HQ (a beautiful mountain side chalet) is to have something around to show customers/tasters that visit. Needless to say those grapes were not pretty nor were they many. 3.5 days of work.

A couple of days rest in Qtown have us itching to do something and now it's decision time. Maybe a few more days of work, maybe some Magnet Bay racetracks (amazing left pointbreak just south of Christchurch), maybe both. Either way, Kaikora, famed as the "#1 right pointbreak in New Zealand", should be 4 meters + on Tuesday with offshore winds. I could tell you where we'll be but then I'd be stating the obvious.

Ending in Cromwell

I never thought I'd be sad to move on from manual labor and so far I'm still spot on with that assessment. Sad wouldn't be the right word. Its more of a nostalgic feeling for time that has, as usual, slipped through my fingers too quickly. It's hard to believe that we're finished with a harvest that three weeks ago seemed beyond reach. I have learned so much about grapes: how they are grown, the types, the tastes, how to harvest, how to prune, how to take them from the vine all the way through to the final product, and how to enjoy the final product that much more. I am so thankful to the people that took me through the process and put up with the occasional grape involved shenanigan. We stayed at our mentor and friend's place last night and had a feast of wine and cheese. Thank you Michael for everything. Here I sit on the dawn of a new day with my part in Carrick's 2009 Vintage complete. It's a sunny morning with birds everywhere. The nets that have held them back from fruity deliciousness are removed for the year and they are taking full advantage of grapes left on the vine by those with high hopes in quality over quantity. The rising sun has shut the door on two days of bad weather and the final clouds are receding to reveal the newly snow capped mountains that surround the BannockBurn Valley. While the vines have been abused the past two weeks with cold snaps and eager hands, they hold on to few leaves of the goldest color. This in combination with all others resisting change to the bitter end paints another sunrise of epic proportions. The dawn of a new day.

A Whole Lotta Ketchup

Hello there! It's been a while I know. No excuses really. I think I just got lost in trying to find a little work, then working and not wanting to spend free time anywhere but outside. Now I'm here though. Where is here? Wanaka. Technically I should be working but mother nature still rules over here so I have a day off. A brief history of the past month or so since I last wrote:

After the glaciers we headed down to Queenstown where we moved into a house that our friend from the States, Kristen, was living. It worked out perfectly that they had a room available right when we needed a place to base ourselves out of for work. Don't get me wrong, I love living in the van, but I figured most employers would probably get sick of me after a week or so of no shower... You understand I'm sure. So yeah, Kirsten hooked it up. Her and her kiwi boyfriend Matt actually. Great people who were such a help to us. Shout out to them! Unbeknownst to us we arrived to Queenstown at a fairly crappy time to look for work. Most places were just beginning to layoff their summer season staff before a couple of months of slow business in preparation for the winter season. Luckily Kirsten was able to get us work as waiters at the vineyard she worked at. The place, Stoneridge, is a beautiful chalet type facility that is used for hosting weddings. We were there in support of that venture. Most of our time in Queenstown was spent playing with a few days of work/week scattered in. The pics from climbing and hiking are from this month of time...

From there the vineyard harvest season was beginning and we headed off to a small town called Cromwell in search of work. We landed a job with Carrick Wines which was a blessing in many ways. The people we work with and for are all amazing and the vineyard is in a great location. Free camping is nearby, it's quiet, and it's beautiful. For the last 2.5 weeks we've been there working more or less. On the weekends we've made it back to Queenstown to hangout with Kristen before she heads off for Australia and then NY. Last weekend we went to Christchurch for Jaron and Kay's going away party. It was a short weekend but it was jam packed with fun; a great surf session at Magnet Bay, climbing at Castle Hill, and one hell of a fun party which, once again, I'm still recovering from two days later. Jaron, next time no booze! We have to break that trend now before it's too late!!! It seems like everyone is going away, no? The key players... We will miss them for sure. Time will tell but I know we'll all cross paths again. They're just too good of people for life to forget. Safe travels friends.

Franz and Fox

One question that popped into my head when hovering over the glaciers and mountains the previous day was just big is all this really? I don't know if it was the lack of horizon or the constantly changing altitude (the pilot was definitely having fun) but it was difficult to tell just how big everything below us was. Franz and Fox were enlightening.

The first glacial town you come to when heading south along the west coast is Franz Josef. It is a mountain town not really in the mountains, but that's the west coast for you. A land of extremes. More or less the town itself is a bit of a tourist trap, at least superficially, but what we cared about lied just outside it's borders. Franz Josef Glacier. It was about a 45 minute hike in and bang, there you are. Massive glacier moving it's way, up?, the mountain. The first thing that impressed me about it was where it once was. Even just 100 years ago it was so much bigger. You pass signs on the hike in, 30 minutes before you can even see it in the distance (and I mean waaaay in the distance), that show where it "once was." The second thing that impressed me was just how insanely huge it still is. We couldn't get right up on it as the dangers are extreme but even from far away it makes you feel very small. We were standing in a valley, thousands of yards from this glacier, scoured by years and years of glacial movement. Franz Josef has left it's mark on every thing from the cliff walls to the tiny pebbles on he ground. It is amazing what ice can do. What is left in its receding wake is just as beautiful as the glacier itself. Incredible waterfalls, beautiful rock formations, pools of the most beautiful blue water... The pictures don't do justice. The scale and power of everything in that valley was humbling.

Heading south from Franz you come to the town of Fox Glacier. It is basically a smaller version of the first, the town that is. I believe Fox Glacier is supposed to be the less trafficked glacier but for me it was the more impressive. I don't think the valley was as beautiful but the way you approached the glacier itself was special. You basically walk in the brush for 20 minutes or so which is very green and thick and then out of nowhere you crest a little hill and between the forest and trail you can see the glacier glowing in the distance. Very cool. It was also neat to see the pools and river carrying away pieces of the glacier. For us, catching pieces of ice was like touching the real thing. Not the same I know but as close as we could get. I'll take it! The vantage point at the end of this trail is up on a hill so you can look down on the valley below. This is where I took the pictures of the two guys walking below us. The whole experience, the two glaciers and chopper ride deep into the mountains, really opened my eyes to just how amazing and extreme the terrain is out there. I don't think I imagined it right because the reality of it all blew me away.

A Rivermouth Sans Kiwis and Glaciers by Air

From Hokitika we drove down the coast with intentions of ending our day's journey at Okarito. This stretch of coast (particularly from Greymouth south) is known as the last frontier of surf exploration in New Zealand. Along the way we took numerous detours in an effort to scope potential spots for the upcoming winter, however, it's a complicated stretch of coastline with no great ways to access what could be "holding." Most of it is national park and farm land only accessible by foot, boat, or trespassing. Adding to the allure are the endless points and bays visible on the map. The right bottom with that exposure to the Tasman...! I can only imagine. What areas we did see where amazingly barren stretches of beach with more driftwood piled up than I'd ever imagined. We'd check a spot, drive 30 minutes, check another and it looked the same as the last. Note to self: Need to get rich, buy a plane or helicopter, and thoroughly explore this area again. Either that or para-sail which Tim and I are talking about. We'll see on that one.

As we got further down the coast we happened to cross a bridge that carried us over the strangest shade of blue I'd ever seen. "What the hell was that?!?" Right as we were about to turn around we noticed a pull-off for an i site. That's another cool thing about New Zealand travel. Almost everywhere you go there are i sites. If there is more than 10 houses in a town there's an i site. There on all the maps and all the nearby road signs. These little gems provide a wealth of information regarding area offerings, weather, they usually have internet, and can book anything for you from accommodation to activities. A truly amazing invention. As we drove down the turn off for the i site we noticed the buzzing of a helicopter. We came to the could a sac right on the river and that's when it hit us. We're in glacier country, this must be glacial run-off. It's hard to describe just how different the color was. It was almost as if you took the bluest sky you'd ever seen and added a touch of milk and light. Radiant. We sat there, took a few photos, and watched some rafters come in when we were approached with one hell of an offer.

The owner of a site seeing company told us that he had two people booked on a tour of the local mountains/glaciers and that there were four seats. For him sending anything less than a full vehicle was just bad business and for doing him the favor of filling two seats he'd knock 40% off. Apparently the buzzing we'd heard was the transportation... How do you say no to that? Off we were on a heli tour of the local mountains and glaciers. Wow did that change my perspective of the local terrain! It was endless jagged peaks wrapped in huge ice flows. In every crack and crevasse were pools of crazy blue water. There were clouds forming and moving at amazing rates all around the area giving the feeling of the mountain being alive. It was almost what I'd imagine flying above a volcano would be like only this was ice. I don't know why it felt alive and volatile but it did. For the first time I feel like I know why mountaineers do what they do. I see the allure at that elevation. It truly was awe inspiring.

At the end of the day we made our way to Okarito and upon checking the beach found a perfect little river mouth to surf. The only problem, or potential problem, was that the waves looked the best of the other side of the river. Normally this is a no issue but this particular river was DUMPING water into the ocean at a rate which raised the red flag (at least 1/2 way up the pole): Can we paddle across this before getting swept out to sea? Tim and I, being men of brawn, decided to charge it. We walked way up the river, jumped in, and started paddling our asses off. All was going well and both of us were looking good thinking "no problem," when I noticed that the opposite embankment was not like the one we just left. It was not sandy, smooth, and gradual, no, it was made of pebbles that dropped vertically into the water. I have not seen a shoreline like this before. As I approached it I jumped off onto the vertical shore but as I clawed my way up pebbles just kept moving and moving, making it almost impossible to climb. While paddling we had drifted almost to the point where the river meets the ocean. I think our fear of getting caught in that current and our slight "concern" with Dante's shoreline prompted adrenal flow and subsequent shoreline summit. I still don't know how hard it was to climb. It just happened. Luckily the surf was really fun and consistent and the paddle back was onto a shoreline we'd come off of and knew it was easy. So yeah, surfed till sunset then made the long paddle back.

That night we cooked some dinner on the beach then remembered seeing a pull-off for a "Kiwi habitat" when we came in. The first park of it's kind that we'd seen in NZ. Understand this about Kiwi's. There's the fruit, the people, and the bird. The people are everywhere (obviously) and that term for them is fact. It's not rude and it's not overly endearing. They just are kiwi's. There's the fruit which, while in every grocery store and surely grown here, I have yet to see on a tree. This is duly noted however since their price in grocery stores is just right. Then there is the bird, the mother of them all, the flightless little ball of feathers that looks like something you just want to squeeze. If I'm not mistaken this is where the word "Kiwi" started. Funny thing about it. They are NOWHERE. Don't get me wrong, they do exist, but even most of the born and raised locals have yet to see them in the wild. For some reason I have a feeling I'll see one and have been ridiculed for that notion since arriving. "Suuuuure you will," is what I usually get. This "Kiwi habitat" was our chance!!! They are nocturnal birds so the time was right. Off Tim and I went. It was a short up-hill hike to the "habitat" and while we did hear them all around us calling to each other, we could not get our lights on them. A tricky foe this Kiwi is turning out to be! Luckily there was a large wooden platform at the top of the hike where you could relax and the benches were perfect for laying down and looking up at the always impressive New Zealand night sky. I saw a Kiwi alright, in the stars! Dammit I will see one on this trip!!!

Wild What?

Wild Foods. You name it and you can probably get it at this festival. I mean it, go ahead, give it a shot. Brain? Got it. Lambs tail? Got it. Sheep's balls? Got it. Chances are that if you have a hankering to eat something that is/was at one point part of a living animal found in New Zealand, you could do it at this festival. They even had a few nice "live" dishes as well but before I get into the nitty gritty, let me rewind.

The festival itself is held in the Pounamu (Jade) capital of New Zealand; a little beach town by the name of Hokitika. It is an artsy place seemingly guided by the jade carving industry. There are such beautiful pieces in sizes that I didn't even know jade could be found in! What added to the artsy feel was that in addition to the "wild foods" part of the festival they set up the town square with booths of artists and crafts makers from all over New Zealand. Trinkets galore. My mom would have been in heaven. Our first day there was spent wandering the booths, getting our tickets for the next day's shenanigans, and trying to surf. I say trying because that's exactly what we did. I have never before been in a rip current that strong. No matter how hard I paddled I couldn't beat it. I was in its clutches. The funny thing about it was that the rip current wasn't going out to sea, it was going straight toward and adjacent to shore! Tim and I were both paddling for about 5 minutes before we realized we weren't going anywhere but down the beach. The current was so bad when we finally made it to the next sandbar where we could stand (maybe waist deep), we put our feet down and dug in but were still getting dragged! In the end Tim never made it out and it took me every ounce of effort to get through the rip. When I finally did I caught two waves and came in out of shear exhaustion. Can you say beat down?

Now it's time for Wild Foods. Maybe. The first thing I noticed at the festival was just how insanely big it was. If I remember correctly I think they were limiting tickets this year to 15,000 people. Apparently there was no cap in past years and it was just getting out of control. Imagine it. 15,000+ people descending on a town of 3,000. One massive party... Apparently the taboo food isn't so taboo anymore. I saw everyone from little kids to an elderly lady in her Sunday's best cruising around in a rascal. There were costumes, games, sing-alongs, lots of food, and lots of drinking. That was by far the largest group of truly inebriated people I have ever seen. The great part was that there was lots of green space (central park in town) which facilitated the "inebriated sprawl." You could almost tell the time by the increasing amount of people falling out on the surrounding lawn. Alright Matt, the goods please? By FAR, the most disgusting food I saw was sheep's balls. Hands down. I didn't get to see anyone eat them but apparently earlier in the day someone did order and eat one. Check the pictures...they're full on disgusting. They were mincing the huevos and making sandwiches out of them which seemed quite popular but still, not my kind of edible organ. That seemed to be the overriding king of disgustingness. You had to be somewhat careful because wild foods seemed to mean two things. There were the wild foods that might be a delicacy in another country and were prepared with scrutiny and then there were the "Fear Factor" wild foods that just tried to be as grotesquely extreme as possible. One tent might have a wild meat stew that was wild venison, wild boar, wild goat, wild mushroom, etc., and one might have a stew by the same name that had brain, testicles, eyes, etc. If you come, read the fine print. I feel bad for the guy who gets extremely drunk and indiscriminately hungry in a place like that. "I ate what?!?!" As far as what Tim and I had: chocolate covered grubs, grasshopper, worms sushi, ostrich, kangaroo, and wild venison and mushroom sausage. I have to agree with my brother, the crunchy bugs are my least favorite. Worms tasted too much like dirt. Grubs probably were the least attractive initially but the best tasting of the three. Kangaroo and ostrich were delicious as was the venison. We also had some ham and cheese crapes as filler in between. We figured it wasn't a good idea to walk around hungry as we did have a beer or three. Thankfully not all the food was on the side of extreme. Another cool thing we got to try was kava from Fiji. It was a very interesting drink and not nearly as bad tasting as I'd thought. I've heard over and over that it tastes like dirty water and that some people have a hard time drinking it. To me it just tasted like an earth tea or something. Not repulsive just not epic either. I'll definitely need to try it again though because outside of a numb tongue (hell yeah it was fun) I really didn't get too much of an effect. Could have been all the food and beer interfering.

So that was it. That was Wild Foods for us. Lots of walking around, lots of eating and drinking, lots of bouncing to the live music, etc. It was a beautiful day with beautiful weather and if I remember correctly we hung around outside that evening watching the sunset and thinking just how bad of an idea it would be to try and go for a surf...

Charleston

From then till now, where have we been? Payne's Ford was amazing as was the whole northwest/Golden Bay area of the South Island but, as a traveler who has respect for his profession (traveler), I needed to move on. It's funny really. Before coming here I had a "fantasy" of sorts regarding what being in New Zealand would encompass. One of the things I really looked forward to was the whole "going slow" aspect of things. Living a "mini-retirement" with no agenda present or future. I pictured staying in places for weeks at a time and truly wearing out each location. What I am realizing and what I've heard before but never grasped is what seems to inevitably happen when you become a traveler, at least in my case. Someone famous once said, "Life is like a book and those who don't travel read only the first page." What I've come to find is that once you do finally turn that first page the second comes much easier, even as if with momentum, and that nature/flow becomes a part of you...or maybe it was there all along but now uncovered. For me it seems a more natural way. All the places here are amazing but it feels so good to get on the road and go someplace new, even if it's only a town an hour away.

So off to the West Coast... We drove through Westport down to a little coastal town called Charleston. It was very small but beautiful. What attracted us to the place was a climbing area by the same name found right on the beach known for trad climbing (a style of climbing where you place your own protection in the rock's weaknesses). Now this is the West Coast mind you, the Tasman Sea, known for being a rough SOB. There are climbs that traverse out on cliffs with massive waves breaking below the climber threatening to take out the belayer. All the local climbers warn of rogue waves, making sure the belay ties himself to the rock on certain routes for fear of being swept away, and even tourists that drowned while scavenging for shells. Unfortunately for us the stories were the most exciting part as we were there for two days but the rain never let up enough to climb and we had an important date to keep with the Wild Foods Festival.

Payne's Ford and Able Tasman

We made it, somehow, from Murchison to Payne's Ford which is just south of Takaka. Leaving Murchison was tough for no other reason than we were both exhausted from the festival. One night of sleep is not nearly enough to recover from those kind of shenanigans. Not at this age. At the rate I'm going by the time I reach 35 it will take me a solid week to recover from the consumption of large volumes of alcohol. How anyone over that age still parties is beyond me.

So...two days later we made it to "Hangdog" which is the climbers' campground for the greater Payne's Ford climbing area. The place itself is pretty sweet, reflecting the ode' to nature and slight hippie flavor that permeates most of the New Zealand culture we've seen thus far. There are signs everywhere warning of how precious water is and to use as little as possible, everything is on the honor system as far as paying for camping and showers go, the campground (patrons and managers included) expect you to compost everything you can, there is a recycling section for everything (and I mean everything!), there are community bicycles, slack-line's hanging between trees, community fires at night, funny poetry on the bathroom walls, a semi-outdoor shower, vegetable gardens, chickens roaming throughout the place, and a slightly herbal scent wafting through the air on most days. Oh yeah, and there's always a few randoms doing yoga in the morning. It's nice and borderline over the top at the same time. I find myself waiting to see elves pop out of the bushes and dance a jig...or is that just the "air" having an effect on me...?

The climbing itself is amazing. Paynes consists of about 10 different walls all consisting of many routes and many grades. Slabs to long ceilings, traverses to dynos, it's all here and has really allowed Tim and I to step up our climbing. I had my first lead and Tim diligently stepped up his mettle to lead harder and harder routes. We met a really nice couple from British Columbia, Canada, named Jenny and Greg who climbed with us almost the entire time. We also had the good fortune of a couple of friends from Christchurch, Kelvin and Kelsey, coming up and climbing with us for two days; one at PF and one at Pohara.

Pohara is a rad little spot about 20 minutes north from Hangdog that consists of cliffs along the beach. There's not much more I can say about it. Good climbing and beautiful views. Once you get above the tree line on routes you can turn around to see the ocean and mountains in the background. It gains it's merit in that.

In our downtime we did two things:
1. Terrorize the local swimming hole where there were rope swings and a sick deep water solo traverse and,
2. Kill ourselves on the Able Tasman Coastal Track.

The Able Tasman is a National Park on the North part of the South Island. The Coastal Track itself is known as the most popular of the New Zealand Great Tracks. Once you're on it it's easy to see why. Around every corner is another amazing bay consisting of lush jungle, crystal clear blue/green water, picture perfect rocky coastlines, and sandy beaches. It is set up to be done in 3 or 4 days with the intention of doing short days, allowing yourself ample time to soak it up on some of the beaches. Because of the time constraint of Kelsey and Kelvin we decided to do it in two days. BIG mistake. On the track there are two tidal crossings that can only be made at low tide. This forced us to do 34 kilometers on the first day to make it in time, otherwise we would have had to take a third day. First day synopsis? Kelsey had 8 blisters. Tim made it 1/2 way before his ankles started killing him. I made it 3/4 of the way before a sudden pain in my foot. Even Kelvin, the tramper of the group, admitted to some soreness at the end of the day. But wait! It gets better... We woke the second morning on what was supposed to be our short day, about half the distance of the day previous, to a "Kelsey Realization" that we didn't have keys to our end vehicle. You see the track is not a loop. We had to drop a vehicle at the finish, about a 1.5 hour drive from the start. In the haste of our first (and early) morning we all (aka Kelsey) forgot to think about the keys required @ the finish line. How about them apples?!?! What? Did we beat her with obscenities and lashings of the painful sort? Did we cover her in honey and tie her to the nearest tree? Noooo... Firstly there are no bears in New Zealand so the honey and tied to a tree wouldn't work. Secondly we were all secretly jumping with joy because each of us knew that while this day was supposed to be 1/2 the distance of the previous, the previous was horrendously freaking long and this day was still going to be solid by hiking standards. Each of us knew deep down that oh yes, we could make it, but not barring the possibility of forward momentum Colby style (my brother's 9 month old son) by days end. So what did we do? The same thing any beat down hikers on the Able Tasman do! We called a water taxi!!! Yep, you heard right. We hiked 4 kilometers to the next main bay (the closest location that water taxis pick up) and we hopped on a boat which took us all the way back to where we started. In the end it was all worth the effort. We met some really cool people at the campground the night before, saw the moon rise over the ocean, slept to the sound of waves and wind, and got to take a 1 hour boat ride through rough seas in and out of the bays we'd seen the previous day (albeit from a different perspective), and did it all early enough to still have time for dinner at a local cafe. Meatlovers pizza and beer never tasted so good!

Oh yeah, did you know that the moon can make a rainbow in the rain at night? It sure can. We ended up going back to Hangdog that night for a place to camp and sure enough. It was pitch black out and raining on the horizon. The moon was just coming up and was so bright that it literally made a rainbow in the distant sky. Definitely something worth keeping an eye out for...

The latest album can be found here.
All of the pics from my New Zealand adventures can be found here.

Buller Fest

It's Sunday and I can't find my liver. I know I had it on Friday but somewhere between here and there it went AWOL. The river fest was way too much fun. Got to Murcheson Friday night and bummed around. There's not much to see in this town... Everyone arrived later the same night and it was beers + catching up.

Saturday we were up early and on the water by about 12pm. Good times... We had 1 raft with 8 of us on it, several kayaks, and about 136 beers. I think there might have been some liquor in there as well but I never saw it (selfish bastards). It took us about 4 hours, give or take, to do the trip not counting setup/breakdown. The river itself was fun and not too serious with a couple of minor rapids and a few standing waves. Oh yeah...and a semi sketch 10m cliff jump that required a moldy/slippery traverse using a piece of string. Ok, it wasn't that bad but definitely NZ. Relying on Darwin... From there it was back to the campsite to muster dinner, more drinking, I think there was a nap or two in there, and then back out to what ended up being a themed party of neon craziness. Think crazy wigs, neon clothes, neon lights, guys dressed like girls, girls dressed like guys, body paint, crazy drum and bass music, lots and lots of dancing, and lots and lots of drinking. It was a blast although I managed to loose a pair of long underware in the process, don't ask how.

Today we had a delicions breakfast and watched the big air competition. I didn't know watching people launch themselves off a 2 story ramp on kayaks could be so entertaining. That was pretty much the weekend. Good times. Now I'm looking for my liver.

A Synopsis of the Start

In light of the fact that I am lazy when it comes to typing volumes and that efficiency is truly how I roll, I've decided that this html conglomeration is the best way (for me of course) to keep those truly interested (I love you mom) up to date on my shenanigans. Hopefully I'll be able to keep it as colorful as my time here in New Zealand really is but I can't make any promises as even on the days that are meant to be uneventful, the eventful happens and it's hard to keep it all chronicled. This place has a funny way of keeping you entertained. Plus, I really only type with two fingers and one eyeball.

A brief synopsis of what in the hell we've been up to thus far: Flew from Tampa, to LAX, to Nadi, Fiji, to Auckland, NZ, and finally to Christchurch, NZ. We spent the first week in Christchurch fervently looking for a set of wheels to call home for the next year. This was a major pain in the ass as most of what we looked at were basically rusted pieces of crap that had been abused by some _______ (insert nationality) as they toured around NZ. We ended up finding a car from a local kiwi that was just what we were looking for. Before leaving Christchurch we went to "SoundDay" music festival and were exposed to a plethora of amazing kiwi music. If you get a chance check out the following:
Fat Freddy's Drop
Black Seeds
Shapeshifter
From CChurch we went to Queenstown and partied through the weekend for Kay's birthday. The pictures on Facebook don't do the debauchery justice. Oh yea, that reminds me, thanks Jaron and Kay for getting us kicked out of the club. Something about dirty dancing and boobs on heads. It's all a blur. We spent the following week climbing in Queenstown and found some amazing crags. From there we went straight down to the southern coast. Invercargill, the Catlins, and Dunedin. The surf down there is amazing as is the sea life. One minute you're getting barreled and the next you're getting chased down the beach by sea lions, literally. We surfed with the world's smallest dolphin (the Hector Dolphin), spent evenings watching the endangered Yellow Eyed Penguins come in and feed their chicks, rock hopped over sea lions, and tramped (NZ for "hike") around a 180 million year old petrified forest. And this was all in one place!!! Porpoise Bay in the Catlins... Just amazing. While down there we also did a little caving where we stumbled upon some baby Blue Penguin chicks and we found a little beach bouldering (a type of rock climbing for you non climbers) that would've been prime at low tide. The surf was amazing and is amazing all along the coastline here. Around every bend there's a different point, reef, sandbar, or bay and they are all uncrowded! Even in the bigger cities that we surfed there is more than enough room to get your own without the paddle battle.
From the south coast we were slowly making our way back up the island on our way to Murcheson for the Buller River White Water Rafting Festival that kicks off tomorrow when we decided to stop for the night @ a Department of Conservation Campground (DOC) @ Trotter's Creek. It had been raining all day and when we got to the campground that night the creek was barely flowing. With the rain only maintaining, not increasing, we thought the creek would be fine and that the two crossings we made to get to the campground would still be passable in the morning so that we could get out and back on our way. NOT the case. We woke up to find both creeks had risen by at least two meters and that there was no way to get out. After three days and the help of a local who owned a neighboring farm (and who's vehicle had been swept downstream when he tried to move it on the first night) we were rescued. He and three of his friends brought an outfitted Land Rover with a massive car trailer attached and pulled us all across the two still heavily flowing creeks to safety. The funniest part about the whole ordeal was that the paper was there to catch it all and the following day we were on the front page. Luckily it wasn't just your two American friends in the debacle. We were there with a few French, a Czech, two Australians, an Austrian, and a German. Enough of a mix that "from the States" was lost in text. Whew, that was a close one. I know I know, we're really trying to improve the American image, I promise...
Now we're in Murcheson. The festival starts tomorrow and I'm stoked. Never been white water rafting before and we all know how much fun firsts are. Minds out of the gutter please.