Flying Manta Ray Video

by Erik Olsen on

OK, this is probably not what you were expecting. The video here has nothing to do with the graceful, broad-winged mantas we know and love from diving (notice the diving category is NOT selected).

Instead, what you will see here is yet another breath-takingly extreme sport from Oceania (I specify Oceania here because it seems a great many of these sports – i.e. Bungy Jumping, Zorbing — seem to come from both Australia and New Zealand). Anyhoodle, this video of a new flying behind a boat device is way cool. My guess is that no pilot’s license is required, but steel cojones are.

Tim Cahill Seeks Out an Adrenaline Fix in New Zealand

by Neil Woodburn on

Wow. New Zealand has always been on my list, but after reading a recent article in National Geographic Adventure by Tim Cahill, it has skyrocketed up to the top.

State of Adrenaline focuses on just that; the countless adrenaline-filled activities which await the gutsy traveler.

Cahill flies into Queenstown, which he calls the extreme sports capital of the world, and marvels at how the locals have devised “more commercial ways to kill yourself” than anywhere else on the planet. Cahill then proceeds to go about trying to do so himself.

If you want a flavor of what New Zealand has to offer thrill seekers, take a moment to enjoy Cahill’s adventures as he bungee jumped, kayaked, canyoneered, tramped and trekked his way across the amazing landscape of New Zealand. And yes, he lived to tell about it.

As an extra bonus, photographer Peter McBride accompanied Cahill on the trip and has some amazing photographs of the experience here.

World’s Highest Swings

by Willy Volk on

When I was in Zambia, I tried the Zambezi Gorge Swing, which was probably the scariest — and most fun! — thing I’ve ever done. Essentially, you strap into a chest harness and step off a gorge. Initially, you plummet straight down for 160 feet, but then the ropes catch a line that spans the gorge. Immediately, the rope becomes taught and catches you, allowing you to you swing back and forth, like a pendulum. Nothing in my experience has ever shifted from terror to joy so quickly. I had always thought the Zambezi Gorge Swing was the world’s highest swing, but it’s not. I think it’s the third highest.

The second highest swing appears to be at New Zealand’s Shotover Canyon. With a 200-foot free fall, and a 660-foot arc, swingers enjoy can aerial views of the beautiful Shotover River — assuming, of course, their eyes are open.

Finally, there’s South Africa’s Oribi Gorge Swing. With a 254-foot free fall but only a 330-foot arc, swingers can race water droplets from nearby Lehr’s Falls to the river below.

So what makes for a more fun swing? A longer free fall or a wider arc?

Tragic Shot Missing Kayaker

by Erik Olsen on

A friend of mine sent me this rather tragic shot taken by kayaker Andrew McAuley, a very experienced paddler who went missing in the Tasman Sea back in February. McAuley was attempting to become the first person to take a kayak across the Tasman Sea, and he was very close — just 30 nautical miles — from doing so. He’d paddled for a long time, hard core during the day, and then drifting at night, sleeping for brief periods in his kayak. He’d crossed some 1500 kilometers and was close enough to the South Island of New Zealand to photograph its mountains. He was also able to snap this photograph, the last of himself on his camera, before he disappeared. He apparently sent a distress signal to the New Zealand Coastguard with two clear words: “help” and “sinking”. That was all.

The coast guard found McAuley’s kayak in the water ,but his body has not been found. Sadly, and perhaps irresponsibly, he did not have an immersion suit, which might have helped due to the cold water. But still, they found his camera, and the photo here was the last shot of him. A gruesome self-portrait.

Haven’t Gotten Enough Fish Eyeballs Lately? Hit the Hokitika Wildfoods Festival, March 9-11

by Willy Volk on

Held each year in Hokitika, a tiny city on the West Coast of New Zealand’s South Island, the Hokitika Wildfoods festival is a celebration of the local bushtucker. The emphasis is on novel, tasty, healthy bush food — but the organizers clearly encourage the slightly gross, as well, considering the inclusion of huhu grubs, fish eyeballs, and “dueling possums” (pictured) on the menu.

Of course, food and drink doesn’t wash down well without entertainment, so the organizers have invited everybody from roving blacksmiths to bands. In other words, you’ll be smiling broadly while stuffing your face with Deep Fried Grasshopper, Pigs Eyes in Mac-and-Cheese, Pickled Bugs, BBQ’ed Cow Udders, and Worm Sushi. Don’t worry: if you’ve got a delicate stomach, you can always opt for the Bunny Burgers.

[Via Travel Junkie]