Matakana Extravaganza

4th June 2009.
Today I had Hayden and Cameron from Tauranga and Paul and Azamia from Austria for our Matakana Extravaganza Tour. WE meet at Pilot Bay at 9am and after our safety briefing and a short lesson on paddling technique we were off, paddling over to Matakana Island. The day was perfect with very little wind producing very glassy calm water conditions. We took our time and I informed our friends from Austria a little bit about the local history and culture of our beautiful city. As mentioned the water conditions were perfect and we were able to see plenty of piper and kahawai swimming in the shallows.

Janie was there as always to great us on our arrival at the island and she soon had them loaded in her van and off they went for their horse trek adventure. As I do most times I got back on the water and headed up the harbour to look for more wild life. I am glad I did as it wasn't long before I came across dozens upon dozens of stingrays. I was letting the tide take me right over groups of three or four sunning themselves in the shallows while at the same time witnessing another three or four gliding through the water towards me. At the same time there were dozens of fish swimming underneath me as well.

When Janie returned I offered them the opportunity to experience the stingrays. I was uncertain if there would be as many as the tide had come in but we soon came across them. Not as many as before but definitely enough to have an amazing encounter. It was soon time to head back so off we went.

Glow Worm Tour

22nd May 2009
Today we had Paul, Sonny and their children Mia, Oscar and Daisy who wanted to do the Glow Worm Tour at McLaren Falls Park. We used two double kayaks and with a large center hatch we were able to put a the two smallest in their own little cockpit. It was a great night and as always after the kayak I offered them the opportunity to take a short walk to see the glow worms up close where you actually get to see the worm and their silk web. They had quite a busy day but Mia and his her Paul were keen to go exploring while mum and the two younger ones kept warm in the van. As always we found the native New Zealand Silver Fern and carried on to where the glow worms were where they got to opportunity to have a close encounter.

Glow Worm Tour

23rd May 2009
Received a call from an associate who was unable to take a family on the Glow Worm Tour so he asked if I could do it. Obviously I said I would so I picked Paul, Sonny and their three children, Mia, Oscar and Daisy up from the Harbourside City Backpackers and headed out to McLaren Falls Park. The center hatch on our kayaks is perfect for smaller children so I threw Mia and Oscar in with me and Sonny, Paul and Daisy went in a second double kayak. It was another beaurtifyul evening ont he lake and the glow worms didn't dissapoint.

After the kayak, as always I offered the option of the walk where you can get up clsoe to the glow worms

Cruise Ship Package

14th March 2009
A few weeks ago after dropping some passengers back off at the port I was approached by Warwick who worked at the casino on the ship. He saw the smiles and excitement on the faces of the group and asked what we did. I explained to him we mainly customised our tours to suit the groups but largely dealt with the more adventurous type. So, on the 14th Warwick had rounded up 12 staff from the ship who wanted to go rafting and zorbing. first stop was Raftabout and a ride down the Kaituna. Once again I was offered a trip down the river and once again I accepted. I was placed up the front of the raft and Albie was back guiding us after being away for a couple of weeks. We had a pretty strong team and negotiated the river pretty well. Albie set me up again but testing my balancing skills on some of the more gentle rapids. To be honest I had a feeling what he was up to when his first attempt to dislodge me from the raft failed and he returned to the rapid and did it again this time with success. Always up for a challenge I remained perched precariously on the front of the raft for the next rapid which again saw me swimming. It is the type of guide I am, willing to take one for the team. Another great trip down the Kaituna. Next we were off to the Zorb. Once everyone was signed in they headed up the hill for the ride back down. They all seemed to enjoy themselves with at least one trying a couple of times to stay standing up the whole way down. Unfortunately he was unsuccessful. Time for a quick feed before showing them a few of the geothermal areas and then we had to head back as one of them had to be back on the ship by four. They have told me they will be back in April and want me to take them out again. They will be staying for a bit longer so hopefully we can show them more of our lovely country.

Matakana Extravaganza

13th March 2009
Rob and Nicola have been living in New Zealand for the last couple of years and were about to head back to England to live. After initially planning to head out in the morning, due to reasons beyond our control we had to reschedule for the afternoon. In the end it worked out great. The wind had died down and the habour was calm and glassy. It took no time for Rob and Nicola to master the art of kayaking and we were off across the harbour to Matakana Island. We had a bit of time up our sleeve so we got to explore the harbour for a little longer than usual. We soon got the call that their transport was waiting so we headed to Panepane for the pick up. Panepane is a favourite spot for fishing and great for catching kingfish. While Rob and Nicola were off on their horse riding adventure around Matakana I watched the fisherman with interest to see how they were going. They had landed a couple of big kingi's and had seen a couple of large schools swim under the wharf. A couple of hours went past pretty quick and Rob and Nicola were back at Panepane. They seemed a bit overwhelmed and told me they now wanted to stay after their tour of the island. We said bye to our hosts and headed back to the mainland in the kayaks. It was a beautiful afternoon and I think if there were better job opportunities in New Zealand Rob and Nicola would still be here.

Team Building

11th March 2009
We had arranged for an afternoons activities for the Property Services Division of the District Health Board. Pilot Bay at The Mount was our intended location but with winds gusting up to 30 kms required a change of venue. With kayaking and beach olympics been on the agenda I went and had a look at the Mount beach. It was a little more sheltered but as the day went on the wind just picked up more and more. After speaking with DHB management we went for our contingency plan and organised a whole lot of activities at the Mount Action Centre. We swapped the kayaking for building the bikes and doing a lap of the car park. Most of the other games, caterpillar walk, spin around the pole, blind folded relay races and some ball games to work on communication skills and eye and hand co-ordination were able to be held on an indoor court. Near the end of the day we decided to join the teams together and play ultimate Frisbee and in line hockey(without the skates). Although it would have been great to have been able to do the activities on the beach in does show how versatile Adventure Bay of Plenty can be.

Spanish Armada

5th - 6th March 2009
Coca Cola in Spain had run a competition to promote Fanta. The winners were able to invite a friend or two to go for a holiday in New Zealand. Peter from Elements Watersports had the dubious task of organising everything and because of my relationship with the local Maori community on Matakana Island and i had kayaks he asked me if I could help. After months of planning we were all set to provide water activities and a cultural experience for them. The plan for the 5th of March was to provide several activities down at Pilot Bay, Mt Maunganui. These included sailing, kayaking, windsurfing, paddle board, sea biscuit rides etc. There was a bit of wind which was great for the sailing but a little frustrating for kayaking although we were able stay close tot he shore and avoid the worst of it. The day went until 1.30pm when it was time to pack up and start preparing to go over to Matakana Island to set up for the next days activities. Everything went smoothly and all we had to do was wait for the next day to come round. The weather gods were not on our side and the next day brought consistent rain. As with every well organised plan there are contingencies in place and we had a few. Once they all arrived on the island we transported them to the clubrooms on the island where three Young warriors performed the Wero (Maori challenge) before the Powhiri (Maori Welcome). The school children then performed the Kapa Haka (Maori song and dance) to which the Spanish performed their National Anthem. The men then had the Moko painted on their faces and learnt the Haka while the ladies learnt how to make a Poi, how to use the Poi and sing a song. After they performed their new learnt skills to the local community their was a break in the rain and the call went up for a game of rugby. The men raced down to the field followed closely by the local community. The ladies were given a tour of the local school by the principal Jack. It was soon time to head back to the lodge where we had set up some marques, toilets, showers and the hangi. Once everyone arrived the hangi was pulled up and everyone had dinner and a few drinks. It was soon time for the group to head back to Tauranga so after a song and haka performed by the adults they were herded into the vans and taken back to where the ferry returned them to town. Myself, a few of the helping hand and the locals stayed up to the early hours of the morning singing songs and talking about the day.