B.C.A. TRIP WRAP-UP

Turner finished the final chapter of our New Zealand trip. Check it! Chris Turner

BIG DOLPHIN LOVE!

My friend Craig sent me a link about some dolphins on the north island of New Zealand that saved a family from sharks. ()NZ News

Gotta have love for the dolphins! This pic is from a pod we saw while visiting a salmon farm in the Marlborough Sounds, South Island, N.Z.

HUMPRIDGE TRACK, SOUTHLAND, N.Z.

In New Zealand trails are called tracks. This confused me at first - I kept thinking everything was going to be a race. Anyhow - this is a shot from the heli of Chris and our guide as they survey the landscape at the summit. This "track" is mostly suspended on wooden bridges and platforms as to preserve the delicate tundra and exotic plantlife on the summit. The Hump Ridge Track - which sits at the southern-most edge of the South Island - was my favorite spot of the whole trip. Incredible views of the South Pacific (including their own Half Moon Bay) and the Fjordlands of Southwest N.Z. I felt like I was on another planet.

MY NEIGHBORS - TUATAPERE, SOUTHLAND

The rustic accommodations in downtown Tuatapere featured "real live sheep" out my bedroom window. Especially cool as an alarm clock the next morning. "Taaaaahhhhhd".

BAY OF MANY COVES RESORT

This place was swank. Tucked away in one of the many coves of the Marlborough Sounds - we were treated to a magnificent thunderstorm the night we stayed. Not only did they offer some of the finest foods of our trip, one of the most comfortable rooms of our trip as well. Shortly after taking this photo we departed for the "Eco-Tour" portion of trip - visiting the first place Captain Cook set foot on New Zealand and claimed it for the Queen. Pics to come!

AERIAL VIEW OF THE MARLBOROUGH SOUNDS

Many helicopter rides on this trip - some good pilots, some not-so-good. On this day I was happy to finally put my feet back on the ground and wondered if it was the belly full of green-lipped mussels, big breaths of diesel exhaust or wild ride of g-forces that led me to almost shake hands with El Vomitar. Probably all of the above. Stunning scenery nonetheless - let the record show that ETK was not the only one to feel the effects after wild heli action.

A REAL "ACTION" PHOTO

Here is the crew shooting Chris and farmer Neal as they drench the sheep (some kind of antibiotic you have to slip the little ones via this little tube with a trigger). Comedy.

"HELLA" MT. BIKING - TWIZEL

Heli-Mt. Biking outside Twizel. Twizel lies just down the road from Mt Cook/Aoraki National Park, where the spectacular opening scenes of The Two Towers were filmed. This mountain town, set in the heart of the McKenzie Basin, was used extensively for scenes involving Rohan. Ben Ohau Station, a working high country sheep station nestled at the foot of the Southern Alps, provided the plains of Rohan where Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli pursue the Orcs at the start of the film. Our guide, pictured here with Chris was actually in the film as one of the Orcs. The biking trail was more or less a dirt road - super steep at times - and often really bumpy and uneven. Spooking the sheep along the way was fun - but it's hard to match the single track in Northern Cal and Oregon. Not that I'm complaining.... any time I can get a lift to the top for a downhill ride is just fine - especially when it's a rollercoaster of a ride with a veteran heli-pilot flying like a madman trying to match the requests of our cameraman Celso.

Southern Alps - near Grasmere Lodge

On our way to the Grasmere Lodge - we shot a stand-up here with Chris, made some mention of Lord of the Rings (how could you not). I guess they shot one of the scenes in one of the films here - how someone could possibly keep it all straight is beyond me. Check the Chris Turner blog to get a more definitive report.

Barbary Coast Adventures Does New Zealand!

Barbary Coast Adventures is the TV show. I'm currently working as Assistant Cameraman and occasionally as Cameraman (yippee!). The show airs in most of Northern California on KFTY channel 50 on Sunday mornings at 8:30 & 11:30am. If you can't get the channel - call your cable provider and request it!

The host of the show just so happens to be another fine young lad raised in Oregon. His name is Chris Turner and he now calls the Bay area home too. Chris also handles much of the writing for the programs and keeps a detailed journal of our travels. Check his site for a great play by play of the New Zealand trip.

The Mighty Aoraki (Mt. Cook)

Why is the white man so fond of himself that he finds it necessary to re-name everything he "finds". This pic of the mighty Aoraki was taken from my hotel room window. Sadly we weren't alotted the time to trek into the valley and see her close up, but just being there was grand nonetheless. Next year my friend.

Leaving Abel Tasman Park.

Seeing New Zealand from the road is the only way to go. Once you get used to feeling like you're left-handed by driving on the "wrong" side of the road - driving across the country is a hoot. This was taken on HWY 6 as we were leaving Nelson, heading toward Picton. The park is across the bay in the background.