New Zealand Odyssey - Good on ya, mate!
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mostly south island.
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Bungy jump at Taupo, NZ. This was an unplanned pitstop along the Ironman bike course. I figured when in NZ do as the Kiwi's… so off I went. In spite of all the bad safety press bungy jumping gets in the US it's actually well regulated in NZ and they've never had a death there... at least that's the official tourism line.
jetboat ride to Huka Falls with Ironman finishers and friends. First rule for this ride was to hold on with both hands, which I obviously forgot to do.
swim start at the 2003 NZ Ironman.
second (and final) lap of the bike course at Ironman NZ… I only smile when it hurts.
After a few stomach aches, flat tires and a thunderstorm… I finally cross the finish line. Yep, time for a Steinlager.
view from my hotel balcony. The swim starts right about where those trees are. On a clear day you can see snow on the background mountains.
another view of the Ironman swim venue.
black loons along the shoreline of Lake Taupo.
view from my hotel balcony - Baywater Hotel - in Taupo, NZ. The hosts, Doug and Glenda were very friendly, and acknowledged their Ironman guests with a "good-on-ya-mate".
Venison farming is a growth industry here. It's really cool watching the sheep dogs round these guys up and work them into a galloping stampede.
NZ wouldn't be the same without at least one photo of the ubiquitous sheep. Sheep are not as ubiquitous as they once were. More and more farmers are turning to cattle and deer. I think it's primarily because wool farming is becoming less profitable.
more sheep. Lamb is popular in restaurants and tastes much better the frozen stuff you get in America. Livestock here are free-range grass eaters and taste better than the hormone factory produce at your local Walmart.
setting out to tour Pip and Tom's (and friends!) farm near Taupo. They refer to it as "their little slice of paradise"… and I have to agree with that!
Pip and Tom's little slice of paradise.
Another slice of Pip and Tom's paradise.
"Smokey" fields like this one are common in the central north island due to volcanic activity. This one is around Rotorua - the steam is rising from a river of boiling water.
if you look closely here and use a bit of imagination you can see boiling water.
waterfall of hot water with sulpherous crust along the shore.
hot mud pools at Rotorua.
hot mud pools at Rotorua.
hot mud pools at Rotorua.
hot mud pools at Rotorua.
jetboat to Huka falls with Ironmates from Premium Plus Sports.
jet boating on the Huka river. The pilots of these vehicles will take you on an acrobatic high speed ride that includes: skimming the shoreline, dodging rocks, and 360 degree spins.
jetboat to Huka falls with Ironmates from Premium Plus Sports.
pre race day bike check-in
charming (and windy!) city of Wellington, capital of NZ
Te Papa the Museum of New Zealand
shoreline en-route from the north island (Wellington) to the south island (Picton)
Puke Pub in Pukekura. Town population is 2… and dropping!
YUM! Catch of the day at the Puke Pub in Pukekura.
view from balcony of hotel in Franz Joseph (Scenic Circle Hotels). This is rainforest country where annual rainfall is measured in meters.
Approaching Franz Joseph Glacier.
Starting the glacier ascent. This was an all day hike on 3/7/03. We couldn't ask for better weather. Normally it's raining, but we had sun all day until we got back into the bus at the end of the day.
waterfall along glacier hike
looking down from ice bridge.
looking over side of glacier.
approaching the ice falls.
another waterfall. There were lots of them along this walk.
frolicking in the ice caves.
frolicking in the ice caves.
An Ironmate from Premium Plus Sports.
looking down from ice bridge. It's easy to get hurt here!
Pre-morning dawn over Lake Matheson… I'll discover a few hours later that I left my car lights on and am stuck in the middle of nowhere with a dead battery.
Dawn over Lake Matheson - the people here like to claim that this is the view that put NZ on the map.
sunrise over Lake Matheson
sunrise over Lake Matheson
sunrise over Lake Matheson
rainforest along Lake Matheson.
Approaching Queenstown with view of Lake Wakatipu and Remarkables mountain range.
Queenstown - the self-proclaimed adrenaline capital of the world. Cool town with lots of great restaurants and natural beauty.
a hikers cabin along the Skippers Canyon road - this trail run was a religious experience.
Skippers Canyon - the "Grand Canyon" of New Zealand.
the Pipeline bungy just happened to be en-route the Skippers Canyon trail run. This is the second hightest in NZ at 103 meters… yep I jumped.
Shotover canyon (I think).
Leaving Queenstown for Te Anau with view of Lake Wakatipu and Remarkables mountain range.
Leaving Queenstown for Te Anau with view of Lake Wakatipu and Remarkables mountain range.
Leaving Queenstown for Te Anau with view of Lake Wakatipu and Remarkables mountain range.
Leaving Queenstown for Te Anau with view of Lake Wakatipu and Remarkables mountain range.
Leaving Queenstown for Te Anau with view of Lake Wakatipu and Remarkables mountain range.
Friendly ducks in Te Anau
views from the top of the Kepler Track (Mt. Luxmore). When I set out on this hike I expected to be half disappointed because it was raining and cloudy. Ona a clear day you can see deep blue waters, snow capped peaks and fjords. I had little hope of seeing fjords this day.
views from the top of the Kepler Track (Mt. Luxmore). As I continued to climb the air got foggier and views more obstructed. The views weren't great, but the adrenaline high (I was running) made it all worthwhile.
views from the top of the Kepler Track (Mt. Luxmore). Eventually the mist started to clear and I was on top of the clouds. I didn't get the anticipated views of fjords, but this is every bit as special.
views from the top of the Kepler Track (Mt. Luxmore). Too beautiful for words.
views from the top of the Kepler Track (Mt. Luxmore)
views from the top of the Kepler Track (Mt. Luxmore)
views from the top of the Kepler Track (Mt. Luxmore)
Descending Mt. Luxmore… down through the clouds and mist… and back into the rainforest.
This kitchen is typical of well appointed and maintained cabins along NZ's famous tracks. The cabins typically take in the best views along the tracks. The woman in the photo works for the national park and told me to tell the world about the Kepler challenge - a 60 km ultra-run... so here you go! http://www.keplerchallenge.co.nz/.
This kitchen is typical of well appointed and maintained cabins along NZ's famous tracks. The cabins are typically located to take in the best views along the tracks.
This bunkbed (50 at this hut) is typical of well appointed and maintained cabins along NZ's famous tracks.
along the Kepler Track, approaching limestone bluffs
along the Kepler Track, approaching limestone bluffs
obligatory floral shot along the route.
leaving port on the Milford Mariner. Heading towards the Tasman Sea through Milford Sound. The cuisine abord this ship was superb and they were very accommodating to my special, gluten-free diet.
inspiring Bowen Waterfalls and glacier carved rock along Milford Sound, the self-proclaimed 8th wonder of the world (http://www.fiordland.org.nz/).
inspiring waterfalls and glacier carved rock along Milford Sound.
looking into Milford Sound from the Tasman Sea.
sunset over the Tasman Sea.
"Sails" on the Mariner. They're just for show and have no mechanical purpose… a bit hokey if you ask me.
me! Totally fried after doing an Ironman and 2 ultra-runs within the past 10 days.
heading back to port from the Tasman Sea.
heading back to port from the Tasman Sea.
Very close to Bowen Falls. I'm surprised the picture came out as well as it did. The boat was rocking due to the abuse from the waterfall and the shutter speed was about 1/10th of a second. The magic of this spot is hard to describe. Imagine cascading velvetty sheets of shimmering water, the sound of soft thunderous undulating streams, and wet acoustic waves gently washing over you. Pure magic.
Cruising in Milford Sound.
Cruising in Milford Sound.
Mitre Peak at left. This is one of the highest mountains in the world (1692 m) that rise directly from the ocean floor. So named because its shape resembles that of a Bishop’s mitre, or head-dress.
Another waterfall along the pier. I think I took this from shore.
steep road to my hotel in Dunedin. This is the most Scottish city outside of Scotland. Also refered to as "Edinburgh of the South", the "Victorian City of New Zealand", "City of Spires and Towers", the "Athens of the South". This area has some of the best wildlife viewing anywhere! Famous for its colonies of Albatross (http://www.albatross.org.nz/), fur seals, penguins and other sea birds.
Spires in Dunedin. S. Paul's Anglican Cathedral (http://www.geocities.com/stpaulscathedralnz/Architecture.htm).
A lunch buddy on the rocky shores of Dunedin.
Getting close and personal with my lunch buddy on the rocky shores of Dunedin.
World's steepest street - Baldwin St in Dunedin according to Guinness.
Christchurch… the "city of gardens".
Museum at the botanical gardens. I think it's the art museum, which was closed for renovations.
looking towards Cathedral Square.
Approaching Akaroa harbor.
Swimming with Hector's Dolphins in Akaroa. These are the world's smallest and most endangered dolphins, but are plentiful in this harbor. The murky water (due to mixing from rivers) helps these guys hide from predators such as sharks. This harbor is also a good place to see blue penguins - the world's smallest and most endangered - I saw one, but it was too tiny to photograph from a boat.
Botanical gardens, Christchurch.
Botanical gardens, Christchurch.
Botanical gardens, Christchurch.
Botanical gardens, Christchurch.
Botanical gardens, Christchurch.
Botanical gardens, Christchurch.
Botanical gardens, Christchurch.
Collage of top of Mt. Luxmore from the Kepler Track (http://www.doc.govt.nz/pdfs/southland/greatwalks/Kepler-Track-Brochure.pdf).