NZ Water is Blue...

...just like they taught you in school.


Saw these pics while reviewing some old photos, and thought I'd share. Sharing is caring.


Thanks to everyone who sent some birthday and love my way this past weekend!!! It was received, and much appreciated.

Much love back to all the folks up top!

Christchurch

This post should probably include a picture or two. But it doesn't. So I'm sorry. I'm sorry for that, and the lack of writing or stories of and about Christchurch. The place in New Zealand where I spend the most amount of time.

So today I write my Top Three things that come to mind about Christchurch (Chch) at this moment in time...

1. The Crusaders. The Crusaders are the Super 14 rugby team that play in Chch. I used to ride my bike by their stadium everyday on the way to uni, back when I stayed on a back porch. (Cheers Wheels!) Super 14 is a rugby union league. I think that's how you'd describe it. I know there are two leagues, or styles in which rugby is played. League, which is where a side gets 7 tackles (I think) to score a try, or else they must give up the ball to the other team. And Union, which is where they just burlfest each other until something happens (which in my opinion flows a bit better to watch.) The Crusaders play Union, and they are the shit. In fact they just won the Super 14 Championships last night over a South African team named something that sounded like the Warthogs. But they weren't actually called the Warthogs, because if they were, they probably would have won. There's also another style of rugby called sevens, where only seven blokes are allowed on the pitch. That's another story.

2. The Port Hills. The Port Hills are Chch's saving grace. These are the hills to the south of the city separating Chch from Lyttelton Harbor. They contain some of the radest mountain biking tracks I've ever experienced. Yesterday I rode up the hills to a spot called Castle Rock which overlooks the city, the ocean and the Alps. It was rather pretty I must say!

3. Bike Paths. Chch has bike paths. And a lot of them. I remember noticing these as soon as I first arrived into town. They are now my best friend. What's really cool about the bike paths here is that they are not on every single road. Well, that actually would be cool, but kinda un-realistic if you're not in Holland. But what is cool, is that they've carefully planned out their bike paths. So that no matter where you're trying to go, you can usually get there just about the whole way on side streets or bike paths. If that make sense. It's rad, and really encourages cycling. Well the paths do, and the fact that the city is as flat as a pancake also helps. You never have to peddle up-hill, unless you want to. But sometimes you have to peddle into the wind, which is similar to peddling up-hill, if conditions are right. Or wrong, depending on how you look at it.

Chch, in three thoughts. I'm hungry now.

More Abel Tasman...

This is a buddy of mine. He is not human. Nor an otter. I think otters are rad as. He is a sea monster. A seal monster. A seala monster. A sealamonster and I'm a eat you! No, he didn't try to eat me, luckily. He was interested in my map though.


Later in the trip we found classic Abel Tamsan weather. This is a shot Wheels took of me while we were flaoting along in heaven. Five minutes after this photo was taken a conversation took place. It went as follows...

Me- Bro, these rocks look like clouds!!! (referring to the cliff/rock lined shores)
Wheels- But there are no clouds!!!

It was amazing. What's even more amazing, (well actually it's not quite as amazing, but I'll tell it anyway) is the story I heard of a woman that circumnavigated the entire South Island and SKIPPED Abel Tasman NP completely, by cutting over to the Marlborough Sounds from Farwell Spit. Silly girl!

You can see the Southern Alps from the top flight of stairs at the Uni library. This is a discovery I made the other day.

A picture from me to you...

This blog has not been anywhere as successful as I had hoped. Sorry about that. But I'm going to keep it going, just for the sake of hope in the future, that one day it will become a more updated joint.

So now, I post a picture from me to you. I think it is purrty. I hope you do to. New Zealand is a purrrty place. I've probably said that already, in fact many people have probably said that. Over the course of this world, many great men have risked their lives saying how pretty New Zealand is. The Prettiest of the Prettiest have gone to the Prettiest points to say the prettiest things about the prettiest places. Jack Kerouac once said, "On Starvation Ridge little sticks Are trying to grow." I say, In New Zealand little sticks have grown, some have been cut down, some have grown larger, and some are now covered in dog slobber. Mmmmmmm, dog slobber.

OH! I almost forgot about the picture I put up. You might want to know a couple interesting things about this picture...It was taken in a country called New Zealand. No really. Not joking. It was. It was also taken in a National Park called Abel Tasman NP. The picture might have been taken on Easter Day. But it might have been taken on another day, it's hard to say, which exact day, the sun did lay, on this might bay. There is a kayak in the picture, and in the Kayak is a fellow named Wheels. He ain't skeered.

Word up big bird.

And there were pictures...

New blog posts up on the Team RIOT Blog...

http://teamriot.blogspot.com/

And on Downstream Movement...

http://downstreammovement.blogspot.com/

Enjoy!

Hello!

New Zealand is fun! I like, very much.

Living the Good Life

Cue up Weezer's "The Good Life" on the iTunes, iPod, or iPhone (if your're Daniel Talley.) Here's the low down...

I've been here six days now. I've boated over ten times in the past five days. LIFE IS GOOD! The first four days (the 2nd-5th) we were on the Kaituna River. It's a "Sweet Arse" run, just a few km's long. A super short shuttle and warm water! Has a few really fun waterfalls on it, and then a wicked playspot at the end. The gorge the run goes through is amazingly perrty! Vines of native bush sweep over the river and hang down off the bank like a a scene from George of the Jungle. (But if you say you think the jungle is cool here, the locals will correct you that it's bush, eh?, not jungle.) Anyways, it's super hard to pay attention to the rapids because the scenery is way too cool. There's this cool store at the put-in with some amazing pies. Pies down here are not Pizza pies, they are like Chicken Pot Pies, except way better fillings, and much crispier, flakier, more pastry style crust. Point is, they're damn good. Especially right after boating!

Today we got a couple runs in on the Wairoa River. Another fun cruiser that reminded me alot of the Boonetown home-run, the Wah-taw-guh! Sweet Arse, mate!

A couple funky things about NZ culture that comes to mind...

-They've got a fly zapper at the place I'm staying right now, (Andy and Amy's place in Papamoa on the coast of the Bay of Plenty) and within the past minute three flies got zapped. That's not saying there are a bunch of flies here, (I hear the bugs are bad down on the South Island!) but I just thought it was funny three just went POP!
-Today we were paddling a dam release run and two goats got stranded on these two tiny rocks in the middle of the river. They obviously got caught by the water and we least than stoked on their situation. It was bloody hilarious! Stand by for pictures.
-They drive on the wrong side of the road here, like they do in Britain as well. This causes more problems than just on the road.
-If you want to talk like a Kiwi just replace a "u" for when you would normally say an "i." "U'd luke a puece of Fush and a scoop of Chups"
-They put egg and beatroot (which is kiwi for beats) on their hamburgers. It's actually mighty tastely.
-I went to a wedding of Wheel's buddies last night and the ceremony was no more than 15 minutes, in, out, papers signed and on to the boozing. That's how it should be done every time, seriously. They made out like three times when they said you may kiss the bride. It was hilarious.
-Avocados are the only thing that's cheap in NZ. You can get 10 for $3. That's opposed to a burger which ran like $11 today at lunch!
-Real roundabouts are fun.
-Highways are not massive, which is refreshing. It's very rare to see more than a two-laner anywhere.
-They are way into cricket. Like WAY into it. When it comes on the tele people get stoked, and when you ask them what the fuck is going on, they can't explain because they are too into it.
-The mix of the indigenous culture, the Maori, and the British influence is pretty amusing at times. You can drive down the road, enter a town that's name is ten syllables long and god knows how to even start pronouncing it, then two minutes later you're in the town of Bethlehem.

That's enough random thoughts for now. We are about to start our journey down to the South Island, then on to Christchurch, my future home. There I should be able to upload some pictures and really start getting ya'll aquanted with this crazy land down under!

For now, Cheers mate!!!

Arrival

I have made it to New Zealand!!! Not via Chicago, or Fiji, like I planned. I always seem to have a problem when traveling by plane...I never can seem to fly the flights I'm assigned. Oh well, I made it, and so did all my bags/ gear/ boats and paddles! Stoked. New Years Day my buddy Gareth picked me up at the Auckland Airport and we drove to Mount Manganui. It was un-real. A super sik worn-out volcano right on the Bay of Plenty. Today, the 2nd, we paddled the Kaituna River. Un-real. I wish I could describe this place better, but for the moment, I'm speechless. I will get up photos and better stories/ descriptions as soon as I have time!!! Happy New Year, all!