Giddy Up

James's Mama took him for a donkey ride today. He liked it so much he had to have another go.

Apology

Finally a new post! Sorry about the lack of updates lately. Things have been very busy and I just haven't had the time to work on this. Funnily enough this coincided with James learning to walk...

I have just added loads of posts about what we have been up to over the last few months. I will try and keep up to date in future.

Just One More Wave

Tracy and I caught some big waves. The water was surprisingly warm and there was a nice sea breeze to keep us cool during lunch. For xmas dinner we headed home for prawns and steak cooked on the barbie. What a great way to spend xmas.

Surfs Up

Taylor's Mistake is my favourite Christchurch Beach. The water quality is excellent, there are no shops or bars and the surf is wild. Big James and I headed out for a dip before lunch.

Cheers

The traditional kiwi xmas -at the beach!

Merry Xmas

Paddling in the Lake

In the afternoon I took James for a paddle in Lake Wakatipu. The water is very pure but also very cold (12°C). It was a hot day so neither of us minded. I had to drag him out. I had a swim, the water is so clear it is great to dive into.

White Water Driving

Big James and I drove to Macetown today. This road follows the floor of the Arrow river canyon. It is not as scary as the road to Skippers, but the surface condition is far worse and requires a 4WD. There are 22 river crossings in each direction.

Skippers Road

This picture illustrates how scary the skippers road is. The bridge down below in the centre is over 70 metres above the shotover river. The road surface is loose gravel and is just wider than a car. The drop is near vertical.

Skippers School

No one has lived in Skippers Canyon for decades but the old school has been renovated and contains some information and photographs about the hardships experienced by the gold miners and their families. We had a nice picnic on the lawn.

The drive to Skippers takes a couple of hours. As I said it is somewhat scary and rental cars are not insured for it so this is a very quiet spot.

Parked by the Shotover River

Another fine day, so we drove up the old gold-miners road to Skippers Canyon. Last time I did this I was nervous as the gravel road is very narrow with sheer drops. Since then I have done a fair bit of 4 wheel driving and so I realised that the road is actually very well graded. It is still a bit of a white knuckle ride though. I was worried that Sandra might not like it but she had a great time.

Thirsty Work

After the boat trip we relaxed with a couple of nor'westers (a very fine brew).

Lake Wakatipu from Walter Peak Station

I am a bit nervous of horses but Bob was very placid and we got along fine. The view across the lake was great. The broom was in flower and it set the scene off perfectly.

On the way back we sat around the grand piano at the back of the boat and joined in the sing-a-long. James loved it and clapped along all the way through Waltzing Matilda.

Bob and Me

The weather has finally turned good so we took a ride across the lake on the T.S.S. Earnslaw, a beautiful old steam ship that has been plying the waters of Lake Wakatipu since 1912. We disembarked at Walter Peak station and I went for a horse ride with Tracy and big James.

Wellies!

It is still raining so we bought James his first pair of wellies and let him splash about in a puddle. He loves them!

Jetty, Glenorchy

Glenorchy is at the northern end of Lake Wakatipu and is one of the prettiest spots in New Zealand. It is just as scenic as Queenstown but much quieter. There are just a few farms and a pub. I hope it stays that way.

On Holiday

This week we are on holiday in Queenstown with Tracy's Mum and Dad. The weather is a bit crazy, one minute we are putting on sun cream, the next we are reaching for our rain coats. Oh well, that's New Zealand for you. Here is a picture of me and James out for a stroll on the Jetty at Glenorchy.

Cabbage Trees in Flower

Summer is here and it looks like it might be a hot one!

Guess Who's Coming to Town?

Last year James slept through most of the Santa parade but this year he had a great time (I think his Mama enjoyed it too!). He danced to the music and clapped as the floats went by. He was even given a free rugby ball by the people from Mitre 10. Quite right too after all the money his dad spends there.

Tracy's Friend

Today we took James to Willowbank wildlife reserve. This Kea took a fancy to Tracy.

Sarah's Truck

Sarah has been driving around New Zealand in an ancient Nissan Safari. Despite its age it has been to the North Island and back and has plenty of grunt. This evening we took it for a swim through the Waimak with Dougal and Stuart. It performed very well and only got stuck once. My sister thought it was hilarious because I was driving at the time. Fortunately it is equipped with a winch which pulled us out no problem. Or it did, once I took the handbrake off. Sarah found that amusing too.

Tip

To check if a river is safe to cross, we just throw a stick into the middle and see if Tip can retrieve it.

Flying Low

The drive down was not for the faint hearted.

View from Mt Hutt

The whole of Canterbury was covered in cloud and the drive up was scary with poor visibilty. Fortunately the ski slopes were above the cloud and the sun was shining on fresh snow. The view from the top was breathtaking, all around was a flat layer of cloud stretching to the horizon.

My Ski Instructor

Sarah has finished her course and is now a qualified ski-instructor. So today she took me for a lesson at Mt Hutt. It is a couple of years since I last skied so I could use a lesson.

What a fantastic afternoon; it should have been the whole day but all the clutch fluid leaked out of Sarah's truck and we couldn't change gear!

Mini-Me

James and I have been enjoying the rugby world cup. Well, I watch it while trying to stop him changing channel at a crucial moment. Because of the time difference the games are on early in the morning. It's the one time I volunteer to get up with James.

Alex and Clare sent an England strip for James (in revenge for the All Blacks baby-gro we gave to their son). I think the pair of us make a good supporters club.