Daily archives: February 5, 2008

06/02/08
So, what is Waitangi Day you ask? Well, it’s a national holiday here in New Zealand. Sort of like Canada Day, but not quite. There aren’t massive celebrations everywhere, but it is a significant date for Kiwis. This is the day the Treaty of Waitangi was signed by the queen, which recognized the land claims and rights of Maoris. Of course, things are still not settled for Maoris, so as a result, there is not much celebrating, but rather, a fair bit of protest on this day in certain parts of the country. However, it is still a federal holiday, which means food places all charge 15-20% extra if you want to eat. Ha ha. Guess I’ll be eating noodles and peanut butter sandwiches today! At any rate, I’m still in Fox Glacier township right now, enjoying an almost complete day off. My only activity was about 25km of biking and hiking, to check out the stunning views of the Southern Alps from here. The rest of the day is hopefully for laundry, Internet, phone calls, etc. etc. Yup, I’m resting and getting ready for the next few days. Read on and check out the map for a bit more info.

05/02/08
Chilly hello to all you folks out there! Well, once again I find myself knackered as I write to you. Yup, that’s right, it was another busy day for ActiveSteve here at the Fox Glacier village. My feet and legs are sore today not from biking, but from all the gear I had to wear today while I was out on the dangerous ices of the Fox Glacier. I spent the whole day on the ice, and learned to ice climb. Well, in truth, there really wasn’t all that much to learn, as Ice Climbing is pretty much exactly like rock climging only you’re on ice instead of rock. So, as a result, I already knew how to tie on and off, belay, and all those sorts of things. However, I had to get the hang of using Ice Axes and Crampons, which was a hoot. Read on for a bit more about my exciting day on the glacier. There’s a map too, but I have a feeling it’ll be pretty meaningless, as it was in my pack hidden away most of the day, so I don’t think locations are correct. Sorry!

04/02/08
Good evening friends. ActiveSteve reporting from glacier country here. Yup, I’ve made it about halfway down the west coast already, and find myself at Fox Glacier. Although the day was short on paper, it was nothing short of a barn burner in reality with the nutty hills I had to tackle towards the end of the day, after a couple hours hiking around the Franz Josef Glacier. The weather pretty much didn’t co-operate for most of the day either, with clouds yet again obscuring any chance I might have at some spectacular Southern Alps views. Regardless, it was still a fun day, allowing me to get a later start than usual and stopping at the Franz Josef glacier for a while. I’ve put together a map, which includes the hike at Franz Josef, which you can check out. Hopefully this time, all the maps are up. Last time I had Internet, I couldn’t get any maps up.

03/02/08
Hello everyone out there! SuperSickSteve here reporting again, this time from his sick bed. Yup, I’m still going downhill. Today, I’ve had a nice little fever and aching joints and running nose and plugged throat all day! It’s really fantastic! Not! In spite of this, I managed to post my longest day yet, clocking over 105km on the bike to get to Whataroa, where I’m reporting to you live from a caravan, or RV if you will. Yup, for 23.50 (I got a deal) I have a little aluminum box all to myself for the night. Two beds, a toaster, a water pot, and electricity. Sadly, no Internet. However, given the on and off pouring rain and the cold temps outside, I’d say I’m doing all right despite the fact that I’m in a little tiny village along the glacier highway. Today was a good riding day for the first 75 or so km, then it got really tough for me. Not just because of Mount Hercules, but due to a group of cycle tourists known as Pedaltours. Read on for more, and check out the map.