New Zealand Heliboarding 2008

So, Heresy and an associate (at best, scoundrel more accurately), headed off over the dutch for a but of Nuew Zulland ey bro!

We got to sunny Christchurch to a delightfully mild Friday and spent time getting over the always exciting Canterbury plains with it's dearth of sheep and other miscellaneous livestock to the Methven.

Apparently Mt Hutt had so much snow they "didn't know what to do with it eh bro!" (we're being serious), so, because they had "too much" snow, the mountain was Shutt. Ha, ha. See how we did that?

Anyway, here are some photos of the transit.



In New Zealand, cows are hilarious and drive on the road. Ha, ha. Cows 1, humans 0. However, most humans eat you, cows (not me though). Cows 1, Humans 100.


View from our back window around 6AM Saturday 23rd August.


In the background, our most-excellent French avionics is being fuelled up.

View towards Powder-Dragon central, over the homestead.


Heresy's first time in a heli. Choice! I am well position to photograph any Orcs.


This is Jim, he was our guide, and was a man of most salubrious mountain-guiding skills. Lord Jim Mountbatten: Adventurer. This was Rob, our pilot. Also an hilarious individual of French avionics-owning vintage. Good on you Rob.
Mike, Gavin, Keith. Keith's first day riding for the season? Not pov lifted Perisher. Just punching out some backcountry heli turns. Good on you Keith, good on you.
Ze first run through ze alpine. Gott in Himmel!


Truly majestic.

My retinas are shocked. Shocked.

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Not much to be said. Truly magnificent.

Hmm, where to land, where to land. How about over there, Rob? Hmm, good idea, let me do that up. Hmm, on that knife edge ridge, Rob? Sure Tim, it's choice!



Jim decided to turn the epic notch up a bit here.


Like, to 60 degrees. This sure was steep. Beginners are shocked.

Gavin lays a nice relaxed turn. Gavin's not shocked.
Lovely.


This was super fun this one. The high res shot shows mostly tight tracks to allow the following groups some lines. Nnnnope, I'm going wide for that drop.

We landed where Jim is. Maybe 8 ft wide ridge. Jim thought digging a quick landing spot for the chopper would be choice. I think for the benefit of the next group he was right. Good on you Jim, good on you.


Chopper over bowl.

If I had a girlfriend I am sure she would have given this jumper to St Vinnies as it's pov. Almost as pov as Mike's exposure in this. Retinas and Aperture settings are shocked.

Heresy aims to have one of these, in Lamborghini black, French avionics, with a white shield on the side (I'm not joking).

Reflections.

This opened into a nice little coulouir. Good on us. Then into a bowl.



I like pulling silly faces. Lucky it wasn't windy or I'd be permanently silly. So my mum says. Mothers are shocked.






Me where I belong. Front seat. With my machine gun. Tk Tk Tk, whatever gets in our way (this is an in-joke for my brother). I certainly look at home though, don't I.

View down valley as we head home.





Just punching out some cliff top clay shooting. Clay targets are shocked.

Beer time.


Our sincere thanks go to Methven Wilderness Heliskiing for this trip, we had a fantastic day and will be back.

Thanks to Jim who was an excellent guide and a good natured guy.

Rob with his most-sick heli skills and advice on the excellent investment that is French avionics.

This was an amazing experience to be on a peak in the middle of nowhere, virtually on the roof of a country and looking at two oceans, in a windless clear sky and doing turns with good people.

If you can afford it, do it. Life is finite, soak it up.