November 7, 2011
Hororata Highland Games & the Trimble ‘Tug of War’ team
The village of Hororata across the Canterbury Plains was holding it's inaugural Highland Games this weekend to raise funds for the community there to recover from the "Darfield" earthquake in September 2010. Trimble got a last minute call from MoreFM to enter a team in the Tug of War competition but, after getting through the heats unbeaten, our team went out with a small whimper in the semi-finals. Great day out, with plenty to see and do, including Highland dancing, pipe bands, fairground rides, etc.
Kudos to Cam, Geoff, Ildica, Jason, Jonathan, Mark, Michael, Neil, Norman, Pat & Steve! And Pat’s Highland dancing girls, Isla & Mhairi.
Full gallery here.
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Posted by conor at 9:20 AM
September 6, 2011
Ohau Retro-style
Our neighbours, Paul & Amanda, at Castle Hill invited us to join them down at Lake Ohau for an extended 40th birthday gathering with a retro-theme, and the retro-style competition both on and off the slopes was hard to beat. Fantastic calm blue-sky day on the Saturday for a barbeque on the slopes with the mother-of-all-barbeques arriving on it’s own wheels. It’s getting harder and harder to keep up with Evie on the slopes, and Conor, Ildica & Evie all had some (mostly successful) attempts at the snowboard box jump! Ohau Ski Field is an awesome location, would love to go back sometime when it’s got more snow.
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Posted by conor at 3:02 PM
March 25, 2011
Sobering
Footage from the Christchurch CBD after the 6.3 earthquake on February 22, 2011. Footage by Frank Film for the Ministry of Civil Defence.
I just cannot believe more people weren't killed in Christchurch on the 22nd, bearing in mind the earthquake struck at lunchtime.
Posted by conor at 12:05 PM
March 11, 2011
Earthquake Damage
Finally here's a small selection of photos showing damage to our house in Huntsbury. The collapsed garage is quite impressive, especially when you see our neighbour John's dinghy still holding up one end of the garage roof even after all the aftershocks. The rest of the damage all looks superficial in the photos, but the insurance company happened to mention on the phone yesterday that their current estimate of repair costs to our house may be in the vicinity of NZ$250,000. We're not quite sure how they've come up with that since there's only been one rather superficial 45min assessment so far (and no structural engineering inspection), although we know that the whole house has shifted 20mm north on the foundations and that it's almost certain all the stucco and weatherboard cladding on the older part of the house will need to be replaced. The brick chimney in the dining-room has already been “deconstructed”.
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Posted by conor at 2:32 PM
June 21, 2010
Photos revisited
I upgraded to Adobe Lightroom 3 a couple of weeks ago, and revisited a few old photos with it. One advantage of shooting raw images (as opposed to JPEG) is that old photos can benefit from advances in processing software simply by reprocessing them.
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Posted by conor at 4:41 PM
May 31, 2010
Calm after the storm!
We finally caught a glimpse of the sun after having forgotten what it looked like over the last week (during which time we’ve had over 180mm of rain), so nipped up the gondola for a peek. Lo and behold, the top gondola station was above the clouds, although they were still looking pretty stormy across the plains.
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Posted by conor at 11:04 AM
March 3, 2010
On the way to work…
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Posted by conor at 10:22 AM
January 29, 2010
Woolshed Creek Tramp
The kids first "proper" overnight tramp to Woolshed Creek Hut on the Mt. Somers Sub-alpine walkway in south Canterbury. We brought along a couple of extra Sherpas who seemed to enjoy the experience too. Had a little bit of everything, sun, wind, cloud, including a reminder of a) how wet the inside of a cloud is, and b) how quickly the weather can change in the mountains. 5 kms each way, plus 400m of ascent, and the kids did brilliantly, especially Ruairi whose legs are somewhat shorter than everybody else's.
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Posted by conor at 9:41 AM
January 21, 2010
Summer Holiday Part III
A quick overnight at Tekapo en-route from Te Anau to Mesopotamia.
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Posted by conor at 12:38 PM
January 14, 2010
Summer Holiday Part II
Better luck second time round; the weather in Te Anau itself was much more friendly, although one didn't have to step much closer to Fiordland to see a lot of heavy rain clouds. Lots more stuff to see and do, including a Karearea (NZ Falcon, which I’ve only ever seen one other of, and this one was much bigger and more impressive) in the beech forest at the end of the Kepler Track, fantail parents feeding a just-fledged fantail chick on a branch, and the Te Ana-au Glow-worm Caves.
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Posted by conor at 10:35 AM
January 13, 2010
Craig Mc's 40th @ Mesopotamia Station
Had a very enjoyable weekend on Mesopotamia Station at the head of the Rangitata River helping Craig McLean celebrate his 40th birthday in some style.
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Posted by conor at 8:26 AM
January 12, 2010
Summer Holiday Part I
This year, we planned a tiki-tour down to the Catlins at the south end of the South Island via Dunedin to see our friends Ken & Elly. However, the weather in the Catlins was so miserable (and forecast to remain so) and the campsite so exposed, that we bailed early, and headed to Te Anau instead. Not that the kids seemed to mind. They had a ball camping, regardless of the weather!
Here’s Kakanui, Dunedin & the Taieri Gorge Railway, and the Catlins.
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Posted by conor at 1:13 PM
September 13, 2009
Sunset at Lake Ellesmere
We had the last field trip of my University of Canterbury landscape photography course to view the sun setting over Lake Ellesmere, and the photo gods obliged. The conditions could not have been better.
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Posted by conor at 7:12 PM
September 6, 2009
Photography overload!
Last minute decision to head to “Daffodil Day” at Otahuna House, Tai Tapu to check out the gardens there, and basically enjoy some beautiful spring sunshine.
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Posted by conor at 10:17 PM
Landscape Photography on the Peninsula
I spent a great day out photographing on Banks Peninsula on another Canterbury University course, tutored by Paul Daly (who among other things shoots for NZ Geographic, a magazine which we avidly subscribe to). Another great opportunity to indulge myself with my camera. My newly acquired 10-22mm lens absolutely rocks.
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Posted by conor at 10:04 PM
August 24, 2009
Nature red in tooth and claw
Who'd have thought a "meer" meerkat would have been literally the most bloodthirsty looking animal we'd have seen at Orana Park after our bike ride at McLeans Island?
Posted by conor at 1:56 PM
August 9, 2009
Sunset/Moonrise over Huntsbury
Snapped this on the way home from work one night this week. The “bright” house coincidentally belongs to friends of ours.
Posted by conor at 12:41 PM
June 3, 2009
Mt. Sunday on a Monday (& other Lake Clearwater adventures)
Yet another stunning Queen's Birthday long weekend in the high country, staying in a small bach (no electricity with long drop, etc) at Lake Clearwater. -5 degrees overnight, single figure temperatures during the day, but the sun and cloudless blue skies on 2 out of the 3 days more than countered it. Mt. Sunday was the location for Edoras in the “Lord Of The Rings” movies, and proved to be a very enjoyable walk for everybody with the excitement of an unexpected river crossing or two to be made on the way to the summit (for some reason the kids refused to take their turn at carrying others across the river!), and stunning views up towards Mt D’Archaic and other peaks in the headwaters of the Rangitata River.
Posted by conor at 11:53 AM
April 14, 2009
Tramping at Montgomery Reserve
Had a great day tramp on Easter Monday at Montgomery Reserve, near Hilltop on Banks Peninsula. It could be considered the kids first “proper” tramp with their own rucksacks, some challenging scrambling for little legs up a rocky path, and the satisfaction of an obvious summit with great views over Akaroa Harbour and Banks Peninsula. No pleas to get carried, hearty appetites at the top, and plenty of tiredness by the end of the day!
Posted by conor at 4:41 PM
March 17, 2009
Lake Matheson revisited
Posted by conor at 10:00 AM
February 2, 2009
Good day for the Kites at Brighton
After a calm start, a more southerly change cooled things down a bit, and kept the kites up a bit.
Posted by conor at 11:54 AM
January 30, 2009
Whale Of A Time
We had a great few days camping in Kaikoura with Ildica's mum, during which she kindly treated us to a whale-watching trip (saw 2 sperm whales, 1 of them twice, along with a Royal Albatross and quite a few rolling swells - only Ruairi succumbed!) The sunsets from the campsite were spectacular, and the kids loved the icecreams and the campsite swimming pool/hot tub.
Posted by conor at 12:31 PM
January 7, 2009
"Cook"-ing at Glentanner
Had a great few days camping at Glentanner, on the side of Lake Pukaki, which leads up to Aoraki/Mt. Cook. A lot of these photos are literally taken from outside the tent. The Mackenzie Country really is beautiful even if you do feel as though you're baking under the NZ sun at this time of year.BTW, most of my photos are now resized more in a widescreen format, since this fits really well on my 1680x1050 widescreen monitors at work, and also on the 800x480 wireless digital picture frame that Auntie Boo kindly got us for Christmas.
Posted by conor at 1:32 PM
December 16, 2008
Section at Castle Hill
We've just been lucky enough to purchase a section at Castle Hill on which we hope to build a "bach" (Kiwi-speak for a holiday house) when we've saved enough funds to actually allow us to build something! | This shows our section (across the laneway) looking SE towards the Torlesse Range. |
 | This is the view NW from the middle of our section towards the Mt. Cheeseman & Broken River skifields. |
 | Incidentally, I was up near the village on Sunday mountain-biking at Craigieburn. |
Posted by conor at 12:00 PM
June 11, 2008
First snow of the season
First snow of the winter fell across the South Island over the weekend. The ski fields got 30-40cms, various parts of the Canterbury Plains got a dump as well, it was snowing in Cathedral Square while I was in Warner's Hotel watching Ireland take on the ABs. I took the kids up the Gondola on Sunday morning where there were some stunning views across the plains to the snow-plastered Canterbury Foothills, and across Lyttleton Harbour.
Posted by conor at 1:48 PM
June 2, 2008
Crisp starry weekend in Hanmer
Enjoyed a long weekend up in Hanmer Springs with a couple of cold starry nights (still enough for some 40 minute star-trail exposures), an enjoyable dip in the hot pools, a trip up to Acheron Homestead, a spin on the bike down Jollies Pass, a round of minigolf, and a walk in the forest in the rain.
Posted by conor at 11:20 PM
April 29, 2008
Photos from the Coast
Some more photos from our March trip, including the Nile River Gorge near Charleston with it's bush train "Cecil" (our car's called Cecil too), and Shanty Town just south of Greymouth with a lot of historic mining miscellany.
Posted by conor at 2:44 PM
April 7, 2008
Late (great!) summer holiday
This year's holiday (well, summer holiday, since we've already got a holiday to the UK in August lined up too), was a bit of a tour round the South Island culminating in the Warbirds over Wanaka airshow at Easter. We started off by heading up to Golden Bay for nearly a week at Ligar Bay (same bay as last summer), which was great, and got us in a relaxed mood for the rest of the holiday. Then we spent a week camping down the West Coast, staying at Westport and Fox Glacier. Great weather for the Coast, and I was pleased to be able to get down to Lake Matheson to get some nice photos of Aoraki & Tasman reflected in the still waters of the lake - a beautiful spot. Then it was on through Haast Pass to Lake Hawea near Wanaka where we had rented a large house on the waterfront for 10 days. Among other things, Ildica & I had a great overnight in Brewster Hut, high above Haast Pass, with some beautiful weather, and a scramble up to the top of 2154m high Mt. Armstrong, where we had great views north to Aoraki, and south to Mt. Aspiring.
Posted by conor at 4:00 PM
February 18, 2008
Beautiful Castle Hill (again)
Spent an overnight at Castle Hill again, leaving Christchurch in torrential rain (long overdue) to find the rain had stopped in the mountains an hour and a half away. The next day dawned beautifully clear and calm, and with an extremely photogenic "pond" in place at Kura Tawhiti (Castle Hill) Conservation area. I've also got a new lens for my camera (a Canon 55-250mm IS lens nominally for the Warbirds over Wanaka air festival we're going to at Easter), so it was an excuse to practise with it - great for long range candids of the kids for a start!
Posted by conor at 12:22 PM
February 8, 2008
2 days on the Casey-Binser Track
For the first time since before Evie was born, Ildica & I got to do an overnight tramp, courtesy of some great childminding by Granny & Grandad Boyd. The Casey-Binser Track is a loop over two passes in the eastern regions of Arthurs Pass National Park, with a night in Casey Hut, near the confluence of Casey Stream and the Poulter River.
Posted by conor at 9:46 AM
January 5, 2008
Christmas 2007
Nice to have 2 weeks off to spend with the family, doing a range of things, like fighting a bush fire on Quail Island, 3 days in Arthur's Pass (including a day's tramping without the kids for Ildica & I!), doing the Gondola Walk, etc. Oh yeah, and seeing the kids getting excited unwrapping presents!
Posted by conor at 9:45 PM
Amazingly clear days
I've been amazed how clear the weather has mostly been over the Christmas break, and as always, how lucky we are to have a view to wake up to. The first picture below is west towards the Torlesse Range and Porter's Pass, which are about 80 kms away. The second is towards an obvious pointy peak due north of us and 100 kms away called Mt. Tekoa, which is near Culverden on the way towards Hanmer Springs/Lewis Pass. Dad & I spent some time a while back trying to work out which peak it was, before Google Earth got some majorly updated imagery/elevation info about 6 months ago, which made it a no-brainer to work out!
Posted by conor at 8:52 PM
November 26, 2007
Gondola trip... again...
Posted by conor at 8:33 AM
November 12, 2007
Wonderful part of NZ we live in
Picnic at Allandale Reserve, Lyttelton Harbour, followed by driving home along the Summit Road over the Port Hills. Both kids even fell asleep by the time we got to The Sign Of The Kiwi, where Ildica & I sat in the sun with an icecream each; just like old times before the kids came along... it was grand!
Posted by conor at 2:11 PM
October 9, 2007
Glenrock Station with Bernadette, Shane, Lauren and Ella
Just back from a weekend up staying at Glenrock Lodge. Glenrock Station is a working high-country farm with a couple of very comfortable cottages available for rent. It was a wild and windy weekend, with gale-force winds and torrential rain on the way in on Friday afternoon, and a deafeningly impressive 6 hour thunderstorm on Saturday night (where the shockwaves from the thunder rumbling up and down the valley continually rattled the windows and indeed the whole cottage). However, both days were blue and sunny, if still windy, and we had a very relaxing weekend with a couple of wanders round the farm, and up the valley, plus getting to feed a couple of well-fed lambs and calves. And we won't mention the rugby (watched over breakfast on Sky in the cottage), since the shock loss for the All Blacks is obviously a National Tragedy... ;-)
Posted by conor at 12:44 PM
August 29, 2007
Lunar Eclipse, 28th August 2007
Well, it was worth the wait. Not having seen an eclipse before (that I can remember anyway), I only really started getting interested in today's eclipse late last week, and then the weather yesterday afternoon turned threatening. I ended up driving about 25kms each way up over the Port Hills towards Godley Head to even see the moon, and then it clouded over and started raining before the eclipse even started! However, by the time I was as good as back home, the clouds rolled back to ultimately reveal this:
Posted by conor at 11:16 AM
June 8, 2007
Superb weekend away
First weekend in June in New Zealand is a public holiday to "celebrate" our illustrious Queen's Birthday. We headed up to a cottage on Lake Heron Station, a high-country farm 2 hours drive directly west of Christchurch.
Cold, crisp, mostly calm, early winter days in some stunning scenery. We all had a great time. Here's a selection of images from the album.
Posted by conor at 2:41 PM
May 21, 2007
Visiting Ken & Elly in Dunedin
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