Visions of dollars flying out of his wallet dulled my husband’s enthusiasm for the idea of a summer family weekend on Waiheke Island. And the prospect of long, leisurely afternoons of wine tasting did not excite him one little bit either. My hyperactive husband (HH) does not really do relaxation; he likes activity with a [...]
Richie Clark and his dad Dave stood at the top of the hill surveying the 80-hectare block of land they had just purchased. It was mid-winter and heavy rain had turned a low-lying paddock surrounded by a horseshoe of hills into a bit of a bog. Dave casually commented to Richie, “You know, a few [...]
New arrivals to Gisborne are awestruck by the little beachfront city on the east coast of the North Island, encircled by a half moon of green hills. Travellers are also discovering the place. They are amazed and delighted to have discovered a place of such prosperity, peace and space, where there is a joie de [...]
Images of the Milford Track adorn posters and billboards the world over. Thousands of people from all corners of the world book months and years in advance to hike the famous four-day, three-night, 53.5km Great Walk. I approached the expedition with some trepidation having heard stories of the legendary storms that Fiordland is capable of [...]
The ‘H’ word used to strike terror in my heart. They were horrific things to be avoided at all costs. Now I find them exhilarating … as long as they are not too narrow, boulder-strewn, or on the edge of a precipice. Hills are of no consequence to an e-biker, a mere blip on the [...]
Kevin Williams wasn’t very happy with his wife Donna when she entered the Westpac Business Excellence Awards. “He doesn’t like the limelight,” says Donna, his partner in the K Williams Shearing partnership, which ended up winning the Māori Business Excellence Award, much to Kevin’s horror. “Kevin would rather put on his gumboots and go to [...]
When we go away on holiday, we stress out about our cat George and who is going to feed him. It seems like such a huge responsibility owning an animal, a small furry life entirely dependent on a couple of humans. But an experience I had recently put our concerns about George into perspective. At [...]
Auckland’s wild west coast is just a stone’s throw from the city, but once you emerge from the dark bush canopy of the Waitakere Ranges, you feel as though you’re on another plapan> For a family of East Coasters accustomed to the Pacific Ocean and the golden sands of Gisborne, the land and seascape [...]