Where is Stephen?

Day 61 - A Goanna By Any Other Name

2016-05-17T21:55:00.000-07:00

When I arrived in Australia and saw all the beautiful beaches I knew there was one thing I had to do before I left but up to this point the right opportunity had not presented itself.....until today.

Day 60 - A Day in the Daintree

2016-05-05T08:08:00.000-07:00

After a good night's sleep I woke to the sounds of countless birds all around. One thing I have loved about Australia are all the "exotic" (different from the US) birds and their unique sounds and this (as you can imagine) was intensified in the rainforest. I just laid in my bed and listened to the birds for 10-15 minutes.....it was a great way to start the day!

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Day 59 - Welcome to the Jungle

2016-05-03T10:15:00.002-07:00

Ok, I know I've said this several times in other posts but my day today did begin very early....and not just my definition of early. :-)

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Day 58 - Found Him

2016-05-01T20:39:00.005-07:00

I started my last day at sea with a good breakfast and a cup of coffee on the upper deck looking out over the ocean. I "missed" the 6:30 dive again (darn :-), but was planning to do the other 2 dives before lunch and then heading back to Cairns mid-afternoon.

Day 57 - Where's Nemo

2016-04-27T13:51:00.002-07:00

My day started early (well, early for me), but not as early as it could have. Breakfast was served at 7:30 so I woke up at 7:27. :-) There was an early morning dive at 6:30 (wake time 5:45) but anyone who knows me well would know...."Homie don't play dat" (ok, who remembers that show?).....

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Day 56 - Out to Sea

2016-04-25T21:46:00.002-07:00

After a restless night of sleep I woke early this morning. I packed up, ate breakfast and was out front waiting for the dive bus by 7:30. The bus arrived at 7:45, I climbed aboard and we took off for the dive center.

Day 55 - Cairns

2016-04-23T09:18:00.004-07:00

Today was another transition day. After a week of rest and recovery from my marathon trip around New Zealand I traveled to Cairns Australia to dive the Great Barrier Reef and explore the Daintree Rainforest.

Day 54 - He has Risen

2016-04-20T15:19:00.003-07:00

Today was Easter Sunday. I woke early, ate breakfast, got ready and headed out....

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Day 53 - ....And More Decisions

2016-04-12T06:16:00.002-07:00

It was another good day in Oz.....much the same as the last two....

Day 52 - Decisions....Decisions....

2016-04-12T05:23:00.002-07:00

Today was much the same as yesterday. Alaska and I sat on the deck writing blogs, getting information for next week and bird watching....

Day 51 - Mr. Mom

2016-04-12T04:32:00.000-07:00

I woke today with no place I had to go and no place I had to be.....and it was pretty cool. So I took some time to catch up on emails, FB and read some US news...

Day 50 - Sharks, Koalas and Gandhi....Gandhi?

2016-04-08T22:12:00.002-07:00

The first week I arrived in Australia I visited Sydney (Day 8) and purchased a multi-pass that included 5 attractions around the Sydney area. There was so much to see that first day that I only made it to one of the attractions (Sydney Tower) so I planned to return later in my trip. Well, today was that day.....

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Day 49 - Come and Get It

2016-04-07T22:00:00.001-07:00

For most of the day today I picked up right where I left off yesterday.....just chillin'. :-) Alaska and I sat up a little "office" on the deck and (I) began working to try and catch up on my blog posts....

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Day 48 - Just Chillin'

2016-04-07T21:25:00.001-07:00

Today was a get "somewhat" back to "normal" day (my "normal" for Australia). I took care of a few things back in the states during the early morning (before everything closed in the US and everyone went to sleep), ate lunch, did some reading/research for my trip to Cairns next week and took a run.

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Day 47 - A Day of Rest

2016-04-07T05:34:00.005-07:00

It's Sunday and the only thing I had planned for today was to attend church in the morning and rest and relax around the house in the afternoon. And that's just what I did....

Day 46 - Where'd Everyone Go

2016-04-07T03:42:00.000-07:00

While I was in New Zealand Rick told me that he and the family would be going out of town the weekend I returned. They were traveling about 6 hours south to attend a birthday celebration for a lifelong friend so I tried not to take it personally that they left the day after I returned :-).....

Day 45 - Planes, Trains & Automobiles

2016-04-07T01:30:00.004-07:00

Today was a designated travel day. Although it was a very busy day for me, it was a very "blah" day on the "adventure scale". :-)

Day 44 - Ode to St. Paddy

2016-04-06T20:11:00.000-07:00

I woke this morning in Taupo wishing I had more time to spend here. Taupo (Google, Web) is a gateway town to many outdoor activities and the volcanic national parks to the south. It sits on the banks of Lake Taupo, a volcanic caldera (Wiki). Dave told me the previous evening that the lake is filled with many thermals on the bottom and there is quite a bit of seismic activity in the area.

Day 43 - Mount Doom

2016-04-06T07:16:00.002-07:00

I woke this morning in Owhango New Zealand.....about 10 miles from nowhere NZ. :-) The area is remote with only several national parks and forests surrounding it. Although I was in the middle of nowhere, I was precisely where I meant to be for today's journey.....

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Day 42 - A Good Day in The Shire

2016-03-27T07:03:00.002-07:00

After a good sleep I woke to an empty house (not uncommon at Airbnb). I had made reservations for 11:45 before going to sleep and only had a 45 minute drive, so I leisurely made breakfast, sat on their amazing deck with a great view of Hamilton and ate and took a shower, said goodbye to Rocco (their sweet little dog) and hit the road. I sooo wish I would have had more time to spend with Sue and Garry. They were such great people and I thoroughly enjoyed being around them. I truly hope I have the opportunity to meet with them again someday.

Day 41 - The Land of Rohan

2016-03-27T00:29:00.000-07:00

I woke this morning with a mission and a very strict timeline. My mission, drive to and hike Mt. Sunday...the mountain used in LOTR as Edoras, the capital of Rohan. The strict timeline....be on a plane at Christchurch airport this afternoon at 4:55 to travel to Auckland. So the clock was ticking and I was focused.....

Day 40 - The Southern Cross

2016-03-26T00:38:00.003-07:00

I woke early this morning and looked out my window just before the sun came up over the ocean in Timaru. I was planning for another long day/night as I planned to drive 2:30 hours to the Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park, do some hiking and then return to the Tekapo area to do some star gazing (more on that later). So I was probably looking at another midnight (or later) return...

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Day 39 - Big Birds and Big Men

2016-03-26T00:02:00.000-07:00

I woke this morning ready for a good day. After the past 2.5 days of dealing with the wheel issue I was excited to have a day free from car worries. I had another good chat with my host Morgan while making breakfast and said goodbye to Josh (the black lab) and the foster puppy who they are thinking of calling Pixel (I like that).....

Day 38 - On a Wing and a Prayer

2016-03-25T19:25:00.001-07:00

Today I had one primary objective....make it to Invercargill (safely) and get the rim replaced. Phil at Parts World had told me that the rim should arrive by 10 AM so I woke at 8, made/ate breakfast and had a nice chat with my host Morgan who I did not meet the night before. Morgan was a very interesting young woman. She is a French teacher and very interested in the French culture and France in general.....

Day 37 - The Best Laid Plans

2016-03-25T06:27:00.001-07:00

My day began exactly where it left off with my the quest for a wheel. I got up, made/ate breakfast, checked out and drove back to the garage. David, the guy I had been working with the day before was out on a call and they said he should be back in 10-15 minutes. While I waited I received a call from the guy at Nissan. He told me they could not get the wheel from Auckland before Monday....strike 2....

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