Tag: New Zealand

I remember writing this post almost 12 years ago when returning from Australia. Australia was such a phenomenal experience for my then self to soak in such a different culture in a beautiful place. That trip led to an extended stay in the country cut far too short due to shifting business priorities. I remember… Read more

Today wound up being a free day. I had originally planned to depart on Saturday, thinking I couldn’t get a direct flight from Christchurch back to San Francisco. Plus, that would get me a day early to get life sorted before heading back to work on Monday. However, I discovered United had a direct flight… Read more

I was excited to finally get to Hanmer Springs. They even had dedicated motorcycle parking in the back of the hotel. What a win! I was now realizing that 400 km in a day is no joke here on the South Island of New Zealand. You don’t get any of the high-speed super slab that… Read more

I walked into the hotel room in Franz Joseph and realized it didn’t have any HVAC. I was soaking wet. This was rainforest living at its finest. I did my best laying out all my damp gear and turning on the heat with the bathroom fan, hopefully pulling out moist air from my gear. I… Read more

Of all my travel days, this one gave me the most heartburn. With over 300,000 km (186,000 miles) of seat time on two wheels, I can count on one hand the amount of times I’ve ridden in the rain. California makes it too easy to find sunny days, so why ride when it’s raining? It’s… Read more

I did nothing today; it felt great! All of the locomotion definitely caught up with me. The flight to Sydney. Six and a half good, but intensive days with my team from work was a lot of outbound. Three great, long days on the motorcycle mostly by myself, a bit of a kerfuffle getting settled… Read more

This was the day to hit Milford Sound. No, this is the day for effing Milford effing Sound. It was one of the first landmarks I fell in love with, thinking, “Oh, the places I’ll go!” throughout New Zealand. What attracted me to Milford Sound? Was it the distance? Was it the grandeur of the… Read more

MotoNZ 2025 is now in full swing, and what a ride it has been. This morning, as I pulled open the hotel room shades, I was met with the same jaw-dropping view that had left me in awe the night before. If the lodging the rest of the trip was in the ballpark of this… Read more

I can’t believe it’s finally here. This moment has arrived after weeks of anticipation, excitement, nervousness, and wonder. Michael, the owner of the touring company Paradise Motorcycle Tours, lives on the North Island in Auckland and works with Garth, who is down here in Christchurch. Garth and I reviewed all the paperwork explaining that motorcycling… Read more