IN THIS EDITION…

• Update from the base

• What's new

• Staff profile - Daniel Murphy

• Hiking New Zealand features in North and South magazine
• Secret South video

Update from those left at base over the winter

We are all struggling to believe that it is now August here at the base. That is by no means a reflection on the weather! It has most definitely been winter here in Christchurch – fantastic for all the skiers and snow boarders.

Glenys Erskine has been making the most of her weekends and heading up to the various ski fields in Canterbury. Juanita one of our guides has been joining her most weekends, in fact that could be a bone of contention seeing Juanita only turned her hand to skiing last year and is already cutting some pretty impressive tracks on the ski field.
André Booth has been staying a little closer to home as he and his partner await the arrival of their first baby in the next few weeks.
Mark Brabyn enjoyed his time lecturing to the tourism students at Waikato University and was impressed with the level of discussion from the students.
Daniel Murphy features in our staff profile this newsletter so what more can we say. It has certainly been a good winter for Daniel as he now owns his first horse. We will be putting in some restrictions on riding over the peak summer season as we can’t afford for Daniel to take a fall.
Anne Murphy is quietly getting a little nervous about speaking at the Backpack New Zealand conference. She was taking it all in her stride until she discovered the New Zealand Prime Minister will be speaking as well.
Chris Steel also deserves a mention, although not technically at the base, Chris has been pounding the streets of London meeting with some of our UK based agents. Chris will also be meeting some of our existing European agents as well as potential new agents. The stories of sunshine and summer are not always welcomed at the office.

Hiking New Zealand team

What's new

The new Safari brochure saw the Eastern Epic Safari back on the departures list. The Eastern Epic is a favourite amongst the guides and many of our clients. As it is the most challenging of our safaris the numbers are not as high as many of the other safaris. But some decisions have to be made about stunning locations and client experiences rather than financial return.
Dusky Track – we have had requests to run the Dusky Track Expedition again this summer. It is such a gorgeous remote location and those that went last summer enjoyed it so much we have decided to put on another departure for this summer.
Lonely Planet – is now offering links through to Hiking New Zealand on their New Zealand Travel Services pages. We were thrilled to be approached by Lonely Planet, as like many people travelling the globe we have used their trustworthy guidebooks. What is included in the New Zealand Guidebook is completely separate to their website.
New look website – watch this space. We are in the midst of redesigning our website. Don’t worry we will be keeping all the valuable content the same, we just want to give it a fresh new look. Thanks to many of our past clients who have sent us some stunning images, some of which will be going up on the new site.

Guide Profile
Daniel - Guide / Director / Horseman

Daniel has been with Hiking New Zealand since 2000. His guises are about as long as his guiding career, some may remember him with long curly locks or more recently with that terrible homespun woolly hat of his! Noted for early expeditions into nude rock climbing, he also likes to champion that he was one of the companies best joke tellers in his time. He has amassed quite a repertoire due to his brilliant memory and many days in the hills. Daniel has a top ten jokes of all time so a free t-shirt to the first person who can get Dan to tell his all time number one joke – it will leave you in stitches!

Dan started off at the company as a guide then Operations Manager and has since bought into the company with his wife Anne. Having a couple of children has not slowed him down and although he’s hung up his rugby boots he trains and competes in multi-sport events, orienteering and is often seen trotting around on his horse. His hiking boots certainly last a lot longer than they used to but he is always eager to get out into the hills whenever the opportunity arises.

North and South magazine

New Zealand's North and South magazine has an article on Hiking New Zealand in the September issue that has just gone on sale.

Safari-style with Hiking NZ

"Do you find it easier to read a bowl of fettucine than the squiggles on a topographical map? Is the ancient Kiwi art of fitting tent poles together lost on you? Never earned your bush survival badge at Guides or Scouts? Or perhaps you’re simply looking for like-minded people to enjoy the outdoors with?

Hiking New Zealand offers an extensive range of guided walks and adventures
nationwide and, because the friendly staff are passionate, experienced walkers themselves, they can advise which adventure would suit you best, or even tailor an itinerary to your requirements. Hiking New Zealand has a variety of tours available, ncluding safari-style: each group travels self-sufficiently with a vehicle and customised trailer. Everyone pitches in with carrying the gear, cooking meals, gathering the firewood, setting up camp. You’ll learn basic tramping skills like how to cross rivers safely, getting a good fire going in wet weather and map reading. Enjoy feeling like you’re part of the whole experience, rather than being led. The guides are natural-history buffs and because the groups are intimate – maximum 11 people – there’s ample opportunity for questions, commentary and getting to know each other.

As well as offering walks you’ve probably heard of – the Abel Tasman, the Heaphy Track, Queen Charlotte Sounds – Hiking New Zealand also showcases the paths less trekked. How about exploring the Fox River caves in Paparoa National Park, where you’ll camp out in the wilderness underneath the breathtaking Ballroom Overhang, a large limestone fluviatile cave. Or the picturesque Green Lake in the Fiordland National Park, the site of a 12,000-year-old landslide which may be the largest of its type on Earth (it covers an area of 45 square kilometers and the volume of earth that moved was 23 cubic kilometres). The debris formed the shelf which now holds the Green Lake and nearby Island Lake.

If you’re up for it, Hiking New Zealand offers multi-activity trips like the Secret South Safari, where you’ll kayak in the Milford Sound, view wildlife in the Catlins, cycle the Otago Rail Trail and hike Mt Cook.

Creating new tours is their speciality. This year Hiking New Zealand introduced the Dusky Sound Expedition, where punters are flown into the fiord by helicopter and partake in the gutbusting challenge of a four-day hike back out.

One of Hiking New Zealand’s founding principles is that conservation should benefit from tourism; since the company formed in 1993 they’ve donated over $60,000 towards research on the native Hector’s dolphin, the rarest dolphin in the world."

Check out the new Secret South Video clip

We have just loaded a new Secret South Safari video clip onto our Facebook page. It is great little video that can give everyone a clear idea about the stunning wilderness you are absorbed in on the Secret South Safari.