Goodwood Photos

Mustangs and spitfires; Rowan Atkinson's Jaguar n.o 7; The Sprite!; the car auction; glam cabs; Dad's army; Stirling Moss in his Sprite; wwet racing conditions!

Turn up for the books!

You'll never guess....

I was called into my team leader's office today to be told that my contract had been extended! I will have at least another few months at Natural England, as I will be covering maternity leave. So very good news.

The only thing is I was quite looking forward to handing over all my casework, and I had told everyone that I was leaving, so it is mildly annoying but I am of course extremely pleased! Apparently, my fellow casework team buddies Alex and Rachel had been begging the Deputy Team Leader Russell to let me stay, and they had made a formal request to keep me, which panned out in the end. Talk about leaving it to the last minute!

On a sad note Kate, the Polish receptionist, and Leigh, my fellow casework team buddy, both left today, which was really sad. But we'll all keep in touch of course.

Nope...

...didn't get it.

My concerns over my lack of experience of community work were well-founded. I can accept that, though what I can't accept, and has really gutted me, is she then went on to say that I came over a bit abrupt and loud and that I should 'bear this in mind for future interviews, to tone it down a bit". I was realy upset by this, but the girls in the office have been great, saying that it is their loss, and that it didn't sound like the kind of job I wanted. It does annoy me when we make the effort to apply and go to the interviews, only to find out what the job is really about, i.e. this one was a general dogsbody and mainly organising events and working with communities. Grrr.

So I will be off to the hospital to work for Mum on Tuesday - it's that or unemployment.

Interviews a-plenty!

Off I went to Dorchester for an interview with the Dorset Wildlife Trust as an Assistant Conservation Officer. The interview itself seemed to go ok, though I don't think I'll get it because they kept asking stuff about organising events, working with community groups etc, which I don't have much experience of. A bit annoying as I actually want this job!

I was quite worried about it this morning as I was still really tired from Saturday night/Sunday morning (bed = 3am!), but my mind seemed to just about function. I had a great night, when they eventually arrived (night began 10.30pm!), eventually ending up in the Chapel, which I hadn't been to for ages.

Another week down

This last week has gone so quickly, I can't believe only one week to go!

Of course this week was marred by poor old Richard Hammond - I do hope he pulls through and gets back on the show.

Earlier in the week I discovered I have an interview on Monday for an ACO post at the Dorset Wildlife Trust, which I really want. Then, after a two hour journey home due to appalling traffic, I discovered I now have another interview on the 2nd of October for the Planning and Policy Officer for the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust. I think I might have bitten off more than I can chew with this one, but as per usual I relish the challenge! I have to do a presentation, which sounds really difficult. Oh well.

And now it appears I am going out tomorrow after all, so once again the weekend will fly by and I will be knackered on Sunday, when I was hoping to go for a nice long walk with Mum and her ramblers. Never mind!

Absolutely knackered

What a weekend! It all started at Alex's on Friday evening. Together with Leigh, it was to celebrate our time with English Nature, and say goodbye to both of us from Alex. An excellent evening, which ended at approx 2am after selecting random German words out of the dictionary to use as insults. Quite amusing!

The next morning I drove back home, feeling very tired, but to try and get ready for the evening. It is Jo's birthday today, so last night we all went out in Salisbury again and had a great time, though I feel very old now - a few years ago I'm sure I wouldn't feel this tired! Happy Birthday Jo!

Anyway, today is recovery day, and then back to work tomorrow- only two weeks left and I still haven't got a job!!!

Sad news

We received some sad news earlier in the week: Ebin Black, Mum's friend Alison's Dad, died. He had had heart problems for some time and was 86.

We are just so thankful we got to see him in NZ before he went. He had such a brilliant sense of humour and manner with us all, and he will be sorely missed.

Goodwood!

This weekend was so knackering but absolutely amazing!

After my interview on Friday, which went very well (I actually enjoyed it!) I then found out at 6pm that I hadn't got it (not enough experience), which I wasn't too gutted about really. It sounded a bit like a glorified librarian.

Anyway, we drove down to Goodwood for the Revival, which we would attend all weekend. It was brilliant, so entertaining with everyone dressed up (the boys did, but us girls would have got a bit cold and wet as it was disgusting on Saturday!), and with Dad's Army and Glamcabs. So surreal.

We watched so many classic cars racing, being raced by Stirling Moss, Rowan Atkinson (he spun his big Jag), Christian Klien and Johnny Herbert to name but a few. And the air displays of spitfires and Mustangs were spectacular.

I will almost certainly be going again in the future - what an experience!

An interview!

Yes, I have an interview on Friday morning for a job with the Hampshire Widlife Trust. It sounds like quite an exciting job, but the pay is worse than I'm on at the moment, and it is based in Botley. I would not relish the M27 commute every morning! But hey, I'm quite pleased really. Hopefully more interviews to come though.

More time in Auckland and then home

We got the bus and then the ferry from Devonport to take us into the city. Once we'd got our bearings, we set off for the Skytower, marketed as the highest manmade structure in the Southern Hemisphere (quite obviously wrong but hey). After a roundabout route, we located it and headed on up to the observation level. The views were spectacular, of the entire city and the Hauraki Gulf. Really beautiful. Of course there was the obligatory piece of glass to stand on. After watching someone on a controlled plummet from the top (euuggh) we headed up to the highest level for more amazing views. We realised we were running out of time, so we quickly went back down.

The reason for our rush was to catch the ferry from the city to Rangitoto, a 600 year old dormant volcano, which dominated the skyline. Our aim was to reach the summit and get back to catch the last boat back.

It really was like another world. You could see how young it was: the path was basically over old lava flows, which also surrounded you. There wasn't much vegetation apart from Pohutukawa trees (the NZ Xmas tree because it flowers bright red then). The climb was an ordeal, and the party quickly fragmented. However, we all made it in the end, and the reward made it all worth it. Beautiful views of the many islands and the city. We were joined by many cute little silvereye birds, which were exceedingly tame indeed. However, we could not dawdle too long, as there was more to do. We stopped off at the crater on the way back, which was surreal, before heading off for the lava caves. These are formed when the lava cools on the outside, so the walk through pitch blackness consisted of negotiating jagged rocks and an uneven floor. Nevertheless, Mum led the way (!) and it was certainly an adventure!

We then went back down the difficult path to catch the ferry, after completing a short mangrove walk. It was here that we had watched a gannet plunge-dive for fish as we got off the boat, but alas it had moved on when we got back. We then went back to be fed at the Halkyards for a satisfying end to a truly knackering day.

The next day we decided to explore the Waitakere Ranges, which are sub-tropical forested hills a short distance away from the city. However, though the views were amazing, and the forest very pretty, we had already seen quite a lot of forest already! The next destination was the wild west coast beach of Piha. This has beautiful sparkling black sand, and is dominated by Lion Rock - a huge outcrop on the shore. We climbed a lookout for lovely views, but the surf was not great enough for the blowholes to be seen.

Tonight we would not be dining at the Halkyards, but be taken to a restaurant with the Halkyards and the Blacks (Alison's parents). We were told it was a Mongolian BBQ, and didn't quite know what to expect, but it turned out to be absolutely unique and delicious. You basically selected your raw ingredients, including sauce and oil of your choice, which were then fried on a large hot plate. You then added side dishes of rice, salad or noodles. Needless to say we all gorged ourselves, especially as there was so much garlic and seafood! It was also really nice to meet the Blacks again after all these years, not looking a day older, and it was as if we met everyday. A wonderful evening indeed.

Our final day of the mammoth trip finally dawned. We had planned to spend the morning packing, have lunch, and then spend the afternoon with the Blacks. The packing was not too bad, and after Dad had finished his final touch-ups to the Van (including subtle use of mascara and toothpaste) we walked the short way to Blockhouse Bay for lunch. The weather was gorgeous, very mild indeed, but time was pressing on. We went to the Blacks, where Dad and Alexander went to dispense of the wretched van in all its stinking, rotting glory. Meanwhile, us girls were taken for a delightful walk around the local park, where we saw a Monarch butterfly and the non-native (and regarded as pests) Rosellas (colourful bird from Oz). Alison then came back and took Mum on a tour of all her old haunts, including her old Intermediate School which was about to be knocked down, so she was lucky! We rounded off the evening with a lovely light meal at the Blacks, before Alison said goodbye to us at the airport.

We found our flight was delayed by an hour, and the shops had closed in the terminal, so there was not much to do. Once on the flight to Singapore, it became clear that we would not get any sleep, thanks to the constantly-chanting Islamic clerics behind us. Arriving in Singapore, the delay had cost us our showers so we were very annoyed indeed. The flight to the UK was long, and a day flight, so of course no sleep. However, the views of Asia and the Middle-East were amazing.

Arriving back in the UK, we were struck by the dryness of the grass, and the heat was simply unbelievable for us! The journey back home was a struggle to stay awake, but it was the end, finally, of all the planning and amazing experiences of the journey of a lifetime. I want to go back!!!

More photos of NZ

Rangitoto Island, Mangapahoe natural bridge, the lava caves on Rangitoto, Taranaki from Ruapehu, Tongariro and Ngauruhoe, a tree fern, the single-person bridge in the Kauaeranga Valley, Mum and Alison on the beach, Hokianga Harbour, Piha, Father of the Forest kauri tree.

Paihia to Auckland

Picking up where we left off, we journeyed across the top of Northland to the Waipoua Kauri Forest. It was here that we did several short walks to see the enormous kauri trees, which are a type of pine apparently. First up was the God of the Forest, which is the largest kauri and estimated at about 1500 years old. It was just amazing to see a tree completely fill your view! Nothing prepares you for it.

We also saw the second largest kauri (Father of the Forest), festoones with epiphytes and even wider, though not as tall, the Four Sisters (four kauri growing very close together) and the Yakas (7th largest kauri). Once we had seen all those, we drove onto the Trounson Kauri Park, which is much smaller but less touristy. We had a good amble round the trail, though none of the kauri were as old as the ones we had already seen. This park is a mainland island of forest in a sea of agricultural land, with intensive eradication of pests ongoing. This makes it a stronghold for many native birds including kiwi.

Once we had found the nearby campsite, we had a very short time indeed to eat before our nightime guided walk through the park. It was a beautiful starry night, and as soon as we had stepped onto the front lawn at the entrance to the park, our guide from the campsite - who was very knowledgeable - said she had already seen a kiwi! Well, as you can imagine, I was almost exploding with anticipation. We heard a female's hoarse grating cries, but didn't see any kiwis for a while. We all stood in the cold being silent, whilst Dad muttered about the amazing stars - priorities please! Then our first glimpse of a young male foraging on the lawn. They are so strange, looking a bit like rabbits from behind, but with a peculiar scuttling walk. Once the red-filtered (so as to diminish the disturbance) was shone on him, he quickly scarpered, but the quivering of the bushes told us he was close. We kept hearing the cracking of twigs, and then our guide said the kiwi was hiding under the bush! Needless to say, we were all amazed, and had the encounter on film!

Moving on by the trail we had traversed through the day, we were soon introduced to a large eel, which the guide had been feeding for eight years! The streams were all teaming with life, including koura, which are the native crayfish, and whose eyes glow a bright orange when a torch is shone on them. We soon encountered another two kiwi, with one large female just passing right by the boardwalk at extremely close range, seemingly oblivious to our presence. We were also shown the glowworms, which was magical, and kept hearing the screeching calls of male kiwi throughout the walk. Finally, we came across the cave wetas. These are large crickets that can jump up to 3m! They have extremely long antennae and love rotten wood, of which there was plenty about. I was fascinated, but other members of the party kept their distance!

Following the drive back to the campsite, the guide showed us her own colony of glowworms occupying the vegetated banks next to the river - so beautiful, and in greater numbers than in the park, though obviously not to Waitomo standards!

The next day we drove back down the coast to Auckland. On the way we passed by the Hokianga Harbour, which has huge expanses of white sandy beaches, and vegetated sand dunes so high they look like cliffs. We arrived at our friends the Halkyards in time for a delicious lunch and an afternoon of reminiscing. We saw 'their' beautiful beach, our first glimpses of the Sky Tower and Rangitoto Island, which we would visit the next day, and the docks where Mum departed all those years ago.

Thames to Paihia

Our journey then continued through Auckland to Warkworth. Here we had a quick stop off to do the Dome Walkway, which was a walk up the Dome hill through native forest, including our first sighting of the Nikau palm, the world's most southerly growing palm. It was a lovely, if knackering walk, with beautiful views over the valley, and past really interesting ferns and epiphytes. We continued on to Whangarei, where we had a quick peak at the picturesque falls there, before settling down for the night.

The next day we drove the short distance to Paihia, where we would be having a boat trip. After checking it was going ahead (it was) we headed off to the Haruru Falls Mangrove walk, which was supposed to be a boardwalk through, guess what, mangroves. Well, we didn't have time for all of the walk, and the part we did do wasn't through the mangroves. However, the views of the estuary were nice and the trees were quite gnarled and interesting. Via the Waitangi Treaty House car park, for a photo (again to say we'd been there!) we headed back to Paihia. This is the main port of call for exploring the Bay of Islands, with its myriad islands and coves. It was a very balmy day, but we could see the bad weather coming in, so hoped we'd miss it whilst at sea.

The aim of this trip was to explore the Bay, see bottlenose dolphins and hopefully go through the Hole in the Rock, a rock arch out at sea. We soon encountered the dolphins, which were very obliging and allowed those swimming (not us) a good experience, though with a whole boatful of people gawping at you, it wasn't nearly as 'intimate' as our Akaroa experience.

Just as that had finished, and mindful that this time of year was the best to see orca, the skipper said another boat had seen a pod kill a baby dolphin. Off we sped, and sure enough, there were the orcas! I have never felt so amazed to be in the presence of such enormous creatures in such proximity. It was a small pod of females, with a calf visible among them. They stayed with us for ages, and were very curious, swimming right under the boat. Needless to say, we have numerous pictures! With the weather closing in, and waves too big for the Hole in the Rock, we headed back to shore and then back to the campsite.

Before we left the campsite the next day, we walked the extremely short distance to the Haruru Falls, where the river falls over an old lava flow. They were very pretty I guess.
Once the customary 'ooohhhs' and 'aaahhhs' had been done, we continued north west to the great Kauri forests of Waipoua and Trounson.

Waitomo to Thames

Journeying on from Waitomo, we crossed to Rotorua, just to say we'd been there (!) before heading north to a beach near Maketu. It took us a while to find this small beach, which we accessed via a small path across a field, down beside the cliffs. The reason for finding this exact beach was that in 1973 this was where my Mum's brother died, so it was a rather sombre occasion. This mood was disrupted somewhat by the sudden loud honking calls of a fur seal along on the rocks. We had a good look around the rocks, finding humungous examples washed up of the shells of the green-lipped mussel.

We moved on up the coast to the base of the Coromandel Peninsula. This is supposed to be beautiful and unspoilt, clothed in forest and with numerous coves. Unfortunately, the rain descended and the windy coastal roads proved destinctly view-free. We made a quick stop at Whitianga, before moving on to Coromandel township itself. Here we consoled ourselves we a delicious lunch with much seafood!

We headed on back down the coast to Thames, where we took the turn off for the Kauaeranga Valley. We had A Plan. This consisted of locating a suitable Department of Conservation campsite (very basic, but all we needed was water) before heading off for some walks in this remote region. The road was narrow, windy and quite dangerous, with numerous small concrete bridges across streams. We found a campsite, and a cursory glance around found no water. Nevertheless, we decided to go on a quick walk (we only had time for one due to the lack of time and daylight!) before beginning the true search.

We walked through boggy ground, diverted through tricky forest and rocks due to flooding, and found ourselves at a swing bridge. We had encountered these frequently, but this one said: "Maximum load: One person", which made us a bit worried. In the driving rain, with less grip than usual, coupled with being suspended over the Kauaeranga River, which we watched through the holes in the side of the bridge (which weren't supposed to be there btw!), we all eventually arrived on the other side. It was then a short stroll to the Billy Goat Landing, where, through the murk, a large waterfall could be seen in the distance. It must have been huge, but that was the closest we got.

We walked back, and in the increasingly boggy conditions began the - as it would turn out- futile search for water. None was found, and now completely sodden, we headed back down the road to Thames. This was in the dark and the narrow concrete bridges could not be seen in time. They were also frequently situated on sharp corners, with one notable occasion involving Dad doing an extremely sharp turn to avoid falling into the river. One wheel caught the side of the bridge, and we settled back on the road with a jolt, accompanied by many cries out indeed! So the Roses nearly dammed a river - a first.

Arriving back in Thames we finally found the campsite located a short distance away. Tomorrow we would begin the journey to Northland.

Taupo to Waitomo

The next day we carried on up the road to another two thermal areas. The first was WaiOTapu, which has the amazing Lady Knox geyser. The staff member pours a packet of soup flakes into the vent every morning, which breaks down the surface tension of the water, leading to an eruption. It was very spectacular, and slightly comic with it spewing soap bubbles before the main eruption. It erupts to about 10m.

We then explored the main area, with lots of furiously bubbling and extremely stinky mudpools - the worst were called the Devil's Inkpots. There were also some lovely rock formations, caused by despoits of minerals from the waters. The highlight of the area is the Champagne Pool, which is a huge hot pool (boiling in fact) ringed with beautiful hues from minerals and bacteria. Once we had finished, we carried on down the road to an extensive mud pool, which really was huge. Once we had had lunch we moved onto Waimangu Volcanic Valley. This was only formed in 1800-and something, when Mount Tarawera erupted. The eruption completely destroyed the famous pink and white terraces, and created whole new lakes and geysers. There was the world's largest geyser at Waimangu, but it last erupted decades ago. Whilst the formations weren't as spectacular as WaiOtapu, steam could be seen to be issuing from everywhere, including high up on mountain tops, so it was a very atmospheric area to walk through. We decided to do the hiking trail through it, which climbed for stupendous views over the area affected by the eruption. Once we had finished there we headed back down to Taupo to stay the night.

Climbing the slopes near active volcanoes was the highlight of the next day, which we spent in Tongariro National Park. The journey there was quite long, but very scenic via the Desert Road, with beautiful views of the snowy volcanoes of Tongariro, Ruapehu and Ngauruhoe. We had a quick detour from the road to see the Tree Trunk Gorge, where the Mangawhero river is channelled through a narrow fissure far below. We started up the Ohakune Mountain Road to begin our walks. Unfortunately, the journey had taken longer than expected so we only had time for one walk. We chose to do the one to Waitonga falls, which was very strenuous. We climbed above the snow line, through thick forest, before emerging out onto the alpine boggy area with stunning views of Ruapehu. On our way up we could also see Mount Taranaki, which was many kilometres away so must have been huge! We were so lucky with the weather, which remained gloriously fine for ample photographic opportunities. The falls themselves would have been beautiful by UK standards, but they were ok by NZ standards! Once we were back on the road, we continued up to see the Mangawhero Falls, which plummet dramatically over an old lava flow. We continued on our way, reluctant to leave this beautiful park behind. We camped at Taramanui before moving onto Waitomo the next day.

We reached Waitomo in good time to begin our tour of the area. First up was the Waitomo glow worm caves, world famous and used by Saint David Attenborough in Life in the Undergrowth - we trod on hallowed ground!!!!! It was magical, with millions of tiny blue lights just above your head, before emerging out on the river into daylight.

Next we journeyed down the road to Ruakuri Natural tunnel. Here we walked along boardwalks that seemed to defy gravity by their positions stuck onto vertical rock faces. We walked over the Waitomo Stream (more of a river), and through small natural tunnels to our goal, where the river runs through a large tunnel out into the open. The region is known for its karst limestone, so the ground is literally a network of caves and rivers, with amazing rock formations. It cerainly was a brilliant walk, and with lots of glow worms along the way, we decided to come back later when it was dark to try and rival our caves experience.

Further along the road we came to Marokopa Falls, where via a slightly strenuous walk, we came out to an amazing sight. The now larger river plummets over a rock face, and is surrounded by lush rainforest. One of the most different falls we came across.

Going back along the road to Waitomo, where we would camp, we came to PiriPiri Caves, which are free to access via a short walk through native forest. Whilst we had brought a torch and wore our walking boots, the descent to the floor, where you can walk through to a room to see large fossil oysters, proved exceedingly treacherous, so we hastily abandoned that!

Our final port of call along the road was the Mangapahoe Natural Bridge. This was much like the Natural Tunnel in how it was formed, namely an underground river had had part of its roof collapse, only leaving one part to form a bridge. Walking under the bridge through the gorge was very scenic, again with glow worms present though not yet alight. We then set off on a short diversion through fields back to the carpark. These fields contained large limestone boulders with the fossilised oysters making up the bulk of them. These were huge, about the size, if not larger, than a hand!

We journeyed back to Ruakuri, but alas it was not dark enough for the glow worms, so we continued on back to the campsite in Waitomo.

Windy Wellington to Taupo

Well this was one of the rainy days! Wellington is renowned for its wind, and it didn't disappoint. Our first point of call was Otari-Wilton's bush. This is one of the few remnants of untouched native bush in the area, and it was very pretty. Part of it was a manicured botanic garden, with lots of native plants on show in neat flower beds - a bit too tame for us. We headed off on one of the walks around the wilder parts of the reserve. It was a lovely place, though you still didn't get the sense of wildness you got in the forests of the South Island. We finished exploring the area, and then made the decision that the leaking motorhome was getting so bad that we should take it into the depot north of the city. This ate into our time - we only had one day to see the city!

After dropping the motorhome off at the depot to get the leaks fixed - where we got a courtesy car - we headed off into the city where, struggling to find somewhere to park, and secretly thankful we didn't have the motorhome, we found our way to a foodcourt for a quick spot of lunch. The main reason for coming into the city was for a bit of 'tack' shopping (holiday naff trinkets and souvenirs) and a ride on the cable car for good views. We found the cable-car, which was more like a tram being pulled up a hill, so not that impressive. The views from the top would have been lovely, I'm sure, were it not for the rain and the wind! We had a quick wander around the botanic gardens, found the silly human sundial (you are the prong to cast the shadow) before going back down to the car. Our next attempt at doing something in the rain was a visit to the Karori Wildlife Sanctuary. This was supposed to be beautiful, as they are restocking the Victorian reservoir with native species you don't get to see - or hear - elsewhere. Alas, we were running out of time and, as you had to pay, it was felt that this did not justify a visit when you wouldn't be able to hear the birds because of the endless rain. After a quick shop we headed back to the campsite.

The next day marked the beginning of the reminiscing by Mum to her old haunts. She originally lived in Napier, so we headed off for there. Most of this town was destroyed by an earthquake in the 1930s, so all the buildings are in the Art deco style - very picturesque. We soon found Mum's old house and had a quick explore of the town, whilst searching for a bottle of saline for my lenses of all things!

We had hoped to do some wine tasting the next day, as the Hawke's Bay region where Napier is situated is well known for this. We did feel that 9am was a bit early for this, so alas we passed the winetasting by. After an entertaining lunch stop in a layby with a marauding hissing duck (de-quacked!), we soon arrived at Taupo.

As we were ahead of time, we decided to do more of the attractions of the area. Taupo, next to Lake Taupo (the eruption crater of the largest volcano in the world, and the largest lake in NZ) is in the heart of the geothermal region. The first thermal area we visited was Orakei Korako Thermal Wonderland, which you get to via a boat trip across a dammed section of the Waikato river. It was certainly like the world of Skaro from Dr Who, with steam everywhere (I think these places are most atmospheric in winter - more steam!) and very smelly indeed! We were particularly amused by the naming of one feature - Diamond Geyser!

Once we had toured all the features, we paid a visit to the aw-inspiring Huka Falls. Though the Waikato only falls by 8m, the sheer volume of water - where this mighty river is squeezed into a narrow fissure - is breathtaking. There is simply nothing like it in the UK! That night we camped at Golden Springs, on our way to some more thermal areas which we would explore tomorrow. The campsite even had its own hot spring, and steam could be seen issuing from the side of the road, and between trees. A magical area indeed!

Part 3: Queenstown to Wellington

Driving on from Manapouri we soon arrived at Queenstown, where we caught a gondola (cable car) to the top of Mount Bruce. This afforded us with amazing views over the surrounding mountains, including the Remarkables where part of Lord of the Rings was filmed. Whilst watching the bungy-jumping, we headed off on a chair-lift to the top of the luge run. Now, this wasn't your tea-tray style luge, don't worry, just a plastic kart with steering and interesting brakes! We all went on the scenic run, which had a passing place so you could stop and take photos. This was windy and steep enough for us - heaven knows what the advanced run was like! It was absolutely brilliant though, and we all enjoyed Queenstown immensely.

We camped at Wanaka, which was reached over an extremely scenic mountain pass through the Cardrona valley and various other ski fields. Wanaka did have a ski-town-type feel to it, and seemed very full of pretentious young skiers with their silly hats!

The next day was one of our few rainy ones, with very poor visibility. This was quite annoying as it meant we didn't get to see Mount Cook or any of the other Alps that day. We were heading for the glaciers, and walked right up to the terminus of Fox Glacier - very impressive. Unfortunately, we did not have enough time to walk to the terminus of Franz Josef Glacier, but we did climb to a lookout, which would have had amazing views if it wasn't for the rain. We carried on up to HariHari where we stayed the night.

The next day was our longest journey yet. We travelled through Arthur's Pass National Park, via the route of that name. It was glorious, with fresh snow, and as it was a Sunday, the place was teeming with kids playing, including skating on a frozen lake - amazing! The views were once again, breathtaking and seemed to go on forever. Arriving on the other side, near Christchurch, the original plan was to camp at nearby Rangiora. However, we had made such good time over the pass that we decided to press on to Kaikoura. As it was Alexander's birthday (for those of you who don't know, my brother) it meant he spent the entire day driving, but we made up for it by having one of the best meals of the holiday in a really posh restaurant. It consisted of seafood for us (steak for him) including the famous Kaikoura crayfish- mouthwatering.

One of the highlights of the holiday followed the next day, with a trip to watch the famous sperm whales. Before this, we headed off to the peninsula, which had beautiful misty views of the mountains through the rising sun, and we were able to watch a seal very close up (the bulk of the colony, some 20 seals, was clearly visible on rocks further out to sea). The rock formations were really interesting, and it was bustling with life - both people and wildlife! After a quick lunch we headed off onto the boat. I had been warned that it was a bit commercialised, but WhaleWatchKaikoura was very well done I thought, with comprehensive and mostly accurate presentations (never travel with scientists!). It wasn't soon before we had seen our first whale, and we watched it for quite some time, again extremely close to the boat. In the end we saw 3 different whales, one of them twice, as well as albatross and loads more seals. They then said did we want to see some dolphins? They weren't kidding - approximately 500 cavorting dusky dolphins were the spectacle that greeted us when we reached the top deck. They were all around the boat, coming really close, and being generally very silly and playful. We watched them for ages, and I could have watched them all day, but alas we ran out of time. We finished off the day with some shopping - the perfect day!

Reluctantly leaving the town behind, we headed off to Picton where we caught our ferry, which travelled through rain and the murk, affording us with dreary views of otherwise spectacular coastline. We landed in Wellington, where we were over halfway through our holiday already!

Buy the next issue of BBC Wildlife...

...I'm in the ask the experts section! Obviously asking a question, not an expert, but still really cool, especially as they have used my photo too.

Also....

I'm in the current issue of Private Eye! They wrote an appalling article about badger culling which was so unscientific I just had to respond. I missed the issue 1162 where my orginal letter was printed I think (must order back issue), along with a load of others - it obviously got a big response. Now someone has come back and disputed all of the anti-cull responses. I think they were trying to be a bit tongue-in-cheek with putting MEnvSci after my name, probably saying that I thought I knew everything having a degree. I am a bit annoyed actually, but it is just like the Fox hunting debate all over again - you can't change either side's opinion. So I must be content to let it go. I know he is wrong, but what can you do? At least I know 95% of the country think the way I do, not that that's very scientific or anything!

More photos

Matai falls, curio Bay, Hector's dolphin, Dunedin sunset, Underwater observatory, Mollymawks, icicles on the Routeburn track.

Photos so far

Mirror lakes, Lake Te Anau panorama, Akaroa harbour panorama, Mollymawk, swimming with dolphins!, Purakaunui falls, spotted shag sunset, yellow-eyed penguins!

The next installment: Rainforests, penguins and fjords

Next up was the Catlins, a region of remote coastline and rainforest, teeming with wildlife and dramatic scenery.

First up was Purakaunui falls, which was very beautiful and the first of many waterfalls to come! We had great fun playing around with the shutter speed on my camera, and captured the almost perfect shot. After a short walk to another falls (the Matai falls), where we were amazed at the biodiversity and structural diversity of these gorgeous rainforests, we stopped for lunch before moving onto Lake Wilkie, a small tranquil lake in the depths of the forest. We were introduced to the first of many native birds, which were extremely curious - fantails, silvereye, bellbirds and tui. A couple of scenic lookouts later we arrived at the Curio Bay campground, surrounded on all sides by wild coastline. We tagged along behind a tour party for a guided walk of the bay, with excellent views of the world's rarest penguins the yellow-eyed, and of a fossilised forest.

The next day we headed through Invercargill up to Te Anau, which would be the starting point for our trip down the Milford Road to Milford Sound. It was a gloomy day and we did think there might be snow on the road, which would have meant it would have been closed. But the next day dawned bright and clear for our exploration of the Fiordland National Park. The mountains were certainly dramatic with all that snow, whilst the road was clear and not so hard going as we had thought, seeing as though we had to carry snow chains (which were never used).

Our first stop was a gentle stroll around Lake Mistletoe, moving onto another small waterfall before the beautiful Mirror Lakes, with fantastic reflections of the mountains. The road followed the Eglington River valley until we turned off for the start of the walk from the Divide to Key Summit. The walk was hard going, very steep in places but exceptionally beautiful and part of the Routeburn track. We did not have enough time for the full summit walk, but contented ourselves with a walk above the snow line and snow-ball fights on the way back down!!

Next up was the Homer Tunnel - a roughly hewn tunnel, very narrow in places and with dramatic icicles lit up in our headlights periodically. Our last stop before our campsite was the Chasm, with dramatic rock formations where the river rushed through. At our campsite we were told that there would be no power, as the generator was on the blink. At the same time, a large bird was mysteriously spotted which turned out to be the world's only alpine parrot, the Kea! We were very pleased to see this, and thought it was very cute and many photos were taken. However, it turned out to be the only one we would see.

The morning dawned for our trip on the Milford Sound, and we were blessed with blue skies. We had fabulous views of the alpine scenery, with highlights being the Bowen Falls, Fairy Falls, and a seal on Seal Rock - aptly named in the singular not the plural! We stopped off at the Underwater Observatory, which was amazing. We were able to see delicate corals, mussels, anemones and a mindboggling array of fish, all living in the top few meters of the cold waters of the Sound.

Once we had finished our trip, we drove back along the Milford Road to reach Manapouri for our stop at the campground. Tomorrow we would move onto Queenstown and Wanaka.

I am back!

Here is volume one of my travels in NZ!

We had an absolutely brilliant time, saw loads of wildlife and amazing scenery.

The flights there weren't too bad, but we were so knackered when we got off in Christchurch that we weren't much company when my half-sister came round for the evening. We had a cabin for the night, but were a bit taken aback by the cold. It was 30 degrees in Singapore but -2 in Christchurch!

We picked up the motorhome the next day, which was humungous but had ample storage for all the stuff we had brought. We spent the rest of the day stocking up in supplies and walking around Christchurch in the gloom with Eleanor. That evening we went round to Eleanors' boyfriend's parents for dinner, but again weren't much company, the jet lag still a factor!

The next day we went to the beautiful French colonial town of Akaroa, which was sited in a gorgeous location. It was here that we would hopefully swim with the Hector's dolphins, which are tiny and an endemic species. Us girls got kitted up and once on the boat we soon found interesting wildlife in the form of several Mollymawks, which are a species of albatross and were very curious indeed. We also saw a blue penguin and a seal, but so far no dolphins. With the waters a bit choppier outside the harbour, Mum started to feel cold and very ill, but was just about hanging on. Eventually, after about an hour and a half we found three dolphins who immediately swum up to the boat. Because we had to wait to see if the dolphins were sufficiently interested in us, we had to wait to swim. By this stage Mum had decided not to do it, and with the cold and only three dolphins, Steph decided not to go in. I, however, was determined to do it, and was quite surprised how warm it actually was (read: not freezing). I couldn't see anything under the water, but apparently they were swimming all around me. I could see glimpses of dorsal fins, so that was enough for me.

Moving on from Christchurch, we headed off to Oamaru to see little blue penguins in the evening! They are so cute, but you will have to take my word for it as photography was not allowed.

The next day we dropped Eleanor off in Dunedin 'International Airport' (very small indeed!) before heading off to see the fur seals, a spotted shag colony and even a Royal Albatross!

We then moved on down for a tour of the Catlins, which I will detail in my next update!

What a week

I cannot believe where the time has gone. Tomorrow we all fly out to NZ. The house is in a state of hyper-excitement, with bags being packed, people trying to remember things that are often forgotten (like taking library books back!) and me saying nothing much more than "we're going swimming with dolphins"!

So this week I have been quite busy. I went on my first solo site meeting on Thursday about some overhead line being laid underground through a part of the Forest. It was good to be out on my own, and to have something to say, but I feel my boss made a big deal about it, saying I must get out on my own at some stage. I don't know what all the fuss is about, it's nothing amazing!

Then that evening I met up with Caroline for the last time before she goes back on her ship. We had a nice long chat over good food, and have made plans for 8 months in advance when she gets back.

Then last night I went out with Hayley, James and Catherine to a few bars which was really nice. We chatted for ages as we hadn't seen each other for a while. The sad thing is I get back the day before Hayley goes to Finland, so we won't be able to see each other until mid-August.

So that's what's happened in the last week and you probably won't hear from me for ages (I don't think we'll have time for internet access) so bye for now!

2 WEEKS TO GO!

Yes, the time is drawing ever nearer, and my excitement can hardly be contained!

Anyway, work continues apace. The Springwatch event on the Common was great fun, with a really nice atmosphere. Apart from the odd question (how can I get a toad for our garden?) it just consisted of handing out leaflets.

This weekend has just flown by - Saturday was a scorcher, and I went to Portsmouth to meet Hannah and Bonnie from PGL, which was really nice, though by the time we got to the beach I had to head back to the station!

Yesterday Mum and I went to Avon Heath Country Park, where we sweatily-trudged our way around the park, seeing buzzards, dragonflies (including the gold-ringed dragonfly, spectacular!) and a slowworm getting eaten alive by ants - nice. After a slight wrong turn (adding an hour to our journey, and along a route contrary to my suggestions - parents, honestly!) we finally made it back to the carpark, completely knackered.

Another week gone by

We at English Nature were quite lucky in that we had an additional day off on Tuesday for the Queen's birthday, or something like that. So my week was very short, and consisted of very little time doing casework in the office. I had a meeting looking at a landslip that had closed a road (because half of the road had fallen down the slope) and another the following morning about a footbridge, so it was quite a varied week.

Last night after work we all went to Rachel's house for food and a good chat. It was really nice to meet loads of new people and get to know some of the ones in the office a bit more.

And tomorrow I am going to be on the EN stall at the Springwatch event on Southampton Common, so come along and get your free leaflets!

Eurovision

Another classical comic highlight of the year! Absolutely hilarious, as was old Terry's commentary. Highlights for me were:

1. The Terry's chocolate orange
2. Lithuania and Harry Hill going mad!
3. Lordi of course, with the Mummy keyboardist my personal favourite - completely and utterly mad, so glad it won. the video is even funnier - featuring zombie cheerleaders with pom-poms!
4. It was amazing!
5. Germans singing a Country song??????!!!!! Bizarre, so Eurovision!

Anyway, back to work tomorrow, after an expensive weekend. My brother and sister were home for the comic event, and he persuaded me to buy a digital SLR (NIkion D50) which I am so looking forward to playing around with later on! well, we need good pictures for New Zealand don't we?......

Tick tock

I feel like my life is ticking away too quickly - where has the time gone? Already it has been almost 4 weeks since I started the job, and I'm really enjoying it. I've been out doing a condition assessment on a SSSI on hanger woodland (on a very steep slope), which was an adventure, seeing as though you felt the soil move every time you did. A single slip would have sent me sliding down an almost- vertical drop through nettles! But the bluebells and wild garlic were glorious.

Speaking of which, Iwent to Garston Woods a couple of weeks ago which was just solid blue and white from the above flowers, just magical.

Besides the job, the social life has taken a bit of a nose dive. Nothing can compare to the heady days of PGL! Though, my friend Caz is back from her cruise ship job, so hopefully a few meals in Prezzo before she goes back. The group of friends I usually go out with are having a few domestics, whilst one has managed to fall off his sister's horse and is now on crutches: all events postponed indefinitely! And of course there's eurovision this weekend to look forward to, nil points?

I think I have just about managed to stay in touch with uni, school and PGL mates, which is a major achievement. Long may it continue!

The end of my first week

Well I made it through my first week, and I have to say that is just keeps getting better and better. Together, Leigh and I have managed to get through most of the casework, so that we can get to go out and do site visits more.

It's so nice to be working in a place where everyone has pretty much the same views on the environment, and you can have some really informed discussions about things. Today I was discussing fishing lakes and the impacts on SSSI rivers, which was really interesting, and there is the possibility that Leigh and I can go out and learn a bit more about fisheries with experts.

I'm also learning lots more in depth stuff about legislation and what landowners can and can't do, so it's all very useful!

First day at work

Well today marked a new beginning of my life, with my first proper job (PGL doesn't really count!).

It went ok, the people are really nice and the work sounds interesting, though I do have concerns about the routine nature of it, but we'll see. I would like to be outdoors more, but I can't have it all, and the experience will be brilliant on my CV. It is most definitely going to be better than PGL though!

However, I was very bad and looked up stuff about my Dad's cancer, and of course that made it all worse, with talk about survival rates and symptoms, so I shall just try to forget about it all. It was going to be such a good year as well.

Last PGL photos

Nikki, Abi and Stacey; The star photo: Hannah comatose!; leaving PGL; Diana and Vicky; DaveDawnBonnieVicky; This doesn't really need an explanation!; DaveMattScottAndy.

Leaving

My first post as an ex-member of PGL!

We went out the night before, firstly for a meal at the Sloop and then for a night out in Sandown at Bogey's, where a good time was had by all. Indeed, somebody made it even better for me - how time flies when you are having fun!

We got back to the centre at about 2am, where we then proceeded to finish off my alcohol, before Hannah and I set off on a drunken stagger around the centre. She then collapsed on my bed, and had very little response at all, so we were quite worried. I do have some brilliant photos of the occasion, which will be displayed for all to see very shortly!

So the next day, after only 3 hours sleep (got to bed at 5am!) I got packed and then got a call from my Dad saying that he had bone cancer, though very early stage and not needing treatment, though he is under observation every two months. It came as a bit of a shock, I guess you don't think these things will happen to you. My roommate Niki was very understanding, especially as her Mum has had cancer for a while.

So anyway, a few people turned up to say goodbye, most of the ones that mattered anyway! I will miss them all loads, especially karaoke on Thursdays.

Did you know, Andromeda is actually a galaxy AND a constellation? Just thought you should know.....

Photos and last 24 hours!

It is so strange to be saying that this time tomorrow I will be leaving Little Canada for good! Everyone was really nice about it last night, when there was Karaoke in the bar (as per usual), with lots of songs dedicated to me. I also sang loads with people and Matt and I sung Satisfaction (though he made me laugh so much with his dancing that I didn't really sing that much!).

Anyway, here are some photos of my easter hols and more PGL friends (The Needles; Mottistone Down; Emma and I; Emma, Nicole, Nick, Kathryn, Paula, Me; Matt despondent at Whitecliff Bay; Helen; Helen and I drunk at the Balcony).

Easter hols

I've just got back from my regular family hols at Easter, this time to the........IoW!!!!!!

As PGL couldn't give me any more notice than a week about whether I could have the time off, we had to book somewhere, so ended up going there. It was actually a really nice trip, with lots of short walks and looking at the coastal scenery, but all-in-all I would rather have gone somewhere else! The experience was also slightly marred by the fact that Heinrich (our motorhome) had no heating or hot water, so no showers, meaning we had to wash our hair in buckets of water heated up on the hob!!!!! We went to the following places: Sandown beach and Bembridge Down, Mottistone Down, Parkhurst Forest, Firestone Copse, The Needles, Yarmouth, St Boniface Down. Photos to follow!

Anyway, I'm looking forward to my last night (meal at The Sloop, followed by a night out at Bogeys in Sandown). Before all this merriment I have to get through a couple of days of pointless field studies (the teachers do everything, even the intro talks and evening IT followups, so we are only there during field work to ensure all is safe) and then a whole day of site work, which is equally pointless!

Final leaving date

Right, now I've basically said to PGL that I am leaving whether they like it or not. All they can do is ask me to pay any training costs, which I would have to do anyway, so I am now leaving on the 22nd. This means that I can have a big night out the previous night (payday, Hannah's birthday, me leaving) and really go out with a bang.

I really can't wait to leave though!

Some more photos

Clockwise from top left: Bonnie; Nikki and me with new hair (I had mine straightened); Vicky's birthday party crew; Esta, me and Niki.

Update on leaving

Right, I've had a chat to try and cut my notice period down, but unfortunately, due to a very busy week then, they probably won't be able to. The next training course (TC3) come down on the 16th of April, so if they get enough they might be able to let me go. So I may end up staying until the beginning of May. This has an up side because then I will get to do more field studies sessions.

Anyway, boring day today, just had a lifeguard session with an older youth group, where I narrowly missed going into the pool!

I had karaoke again last night, where as usual I sang loads of songs, though they were mostly ballads this time (not on my own obviously!).

So much has happened!

Sorry for the lack of contact, but the internet has not been working for about a month!

So, developments:

Did some field studies sessions on my own offsite, which went really well, even though one of my students lost one of the digital cameras! Was very pleased at how much they learnt, especially as they were 14 year olds. So I have now done 3 sessions on my own the entire time I have been here (obviously lots of normal activity sessions too).

AJ left to go to another centre in France, and so far I can't say I miss him! Robbie left though, and I have to say I cried when he left (for a sailing PGL centre in France) so I will miss him loads: we sung Love Shack together during Karaoke (where I am a regular)!

Bonnie and Hannah have been sent to a Pontins centre (Camber sands in Sussex) for two weeks, which is annoying.

I am going on holiday with my family for a week over Easter to the fun location of..... the Isle of Wight!

Oh, and I now have a new job, starting in hopefully a couple of weeks (if I can sort out my notice period which should be 4 weeks). I received a call during a session which I called back - it was from English nature in Lyndhurst. Some of you may remember that I went for a couple of interviews for Assistant Conservation officer jobs, neither of which I got. However, someone has gone on maternity leave and so I have been offered the post, fulltime ending at the end of September, which I am really excited about. Obviously, it will be sad to leave here, as I have made some really briliant friends, and was starting to mwiden my group of friends even further by setting up a swimming club with my new buddy Diana (who also might be leaving for another centre). But it pays more, I can live at home and have nice food, I can get more experience in the field I want to have a career in, so the benefits outweigh the costs. It's not that far away from the centre, so I can still pop down to say hello, seeing as though I would be working normal hours once again!

So, yes, not many more sessions and I am gone!

I passed!

If any of you want to be boisterous in a pool when I am around, I now have the authority to tell you off, for today I passed my lifeguard and first aid at work assessments! We all did, thankfully, and I am so proud of myself, especially the pool work, where I did struggle on a couple of bits.

Anyway, day off tomorrow to recover and then back to normal sessions, having missed the field studies schools that have just been in. Never mind.

BTW the top photo is of Gareth (now gone to another centre near london) and Matt (fellow field studies instructor, hilarious). The bottom one is (left to right): Nikki (blonde, shared a room with her during training), Stacey (lying down, shared training room with her), Niki (lesbian, living with her now), Bonnie (also lesbian, going out with Hannah), Hannah (lesbian, going out with Bonnie - absolutely hilarious, probably my best friend here so far, though Nikki and Stacey come close!).

Some photos...

Of my experience so far!

Yes, I know...

Sorry I haven't updated for a while- very busy as usual.

So I've been doing lots of quads and aeroball lately, waiting for the next field studies school to come in. But I signed up for a lifeguard course, which is actually running at the same time.

We started it yesterday, and it's very interesting and useful, though very hard work and as I can't wear my lenses in the pool (no goggles allowed) it is an interesting experience!

We get assessed on Tuesday, then we are qualified for 3 years, which is quite cool.

Anyway, not much else to report!

Chavs and night duty

Sorry I haven't updated you for a while, but I had typed out my update and then the internet crashed, so I am having to write it out all over again!

Anyway.

Yes, I have been very busy seeing to lots of older kids recently. there have been two major incidents that are worth mentioning:

1. Bishop Luffa chav kids: This school group of 200 consisted almost entirely of chavs, which made it almost impossible to instruct certain sessions. I had several sessions with them, almost all of which were fine apart from my two problem solving sessions, which is a shame, as this is one of my favourite sessions. They were having none of it, and would not stop messing around, even though I tried to be calm, funny and shouty. In the end I pulled the session from the naughty kids, who went to sit by the teacher for half an hour looking bored, watching the good kids having fun solving the problems.

2. The Night Duty incident: Everyone, once in a while, needs to complete night duty, which involves patrolling set areas of the chalets to keep the noise down. One night recently, Hannah and I were patrolling the 16 yr olds, who were having a little rave in their room, which we didn't think was that loud at all. However, up comes my favourite person AJ with another guy called Jonesy, who were patroling over the other side of the site. They muscled in, shouted at the kids like teachers, got laughed at, then threatened to take their stereo away. It was so overboard, and it was a shame as the kids were actually really nice. Anyway, we thought that was all until the teachers came up, having been dragged up from the bar by, you've guessed it, AJ. They were very disappointed in us saying "I thought you'd come and get us if there were any problems" which made us look really stupid and unprofessional. We complained to management, and he did apologise, saying that he was wrong to do what he did, without telling us or asking anyone else. He's still an idiot though!

I had to have the day off sick yesterday, as I have a really really bad cold and chesty cough, and was very dizzy, which would have been very dangerous if I was instructing quads! I am now feeling much better, and no longer keeping people awake coughing in my sleep!

Training course two are now here (well, they've been here for about a week now) and it was weird today because Vicky and I had to partially train them on quads (really just their taster session). Alysia's boyfriend is with them and seems really nice.

Oh, two people were sacked yesterday for their attitudes towards the instructors and the company, which came as a big surprise. It will be sad without Phil, though I haven't the foggiest who Luke is so I obviously won't miss him!

Exams

On Friday the field studies trainees like myself had a 2.5 hr exam, and an instructor exam, which we all passed with flying colours. So now we can teach this to kids, and be responsible for them offsite. Hmmmm......

Yesterday I had normal activities, which is mostly quads and very muddy. The kids were nice though (yes, you read it correctly!).

Today is my day off, which I needed really badly. The Friday night was Vicky's 23rd birthday, which was in the style of a children's party with jelly (albeit vodka!), cake, party bags, pass the parcel and musical bumps. We all consumed copious amounts of alcohol, so most of us had an early night last night!

Anyway, I might walk into Cowes today, if it stops raining long enough!

Wet

Yesterday was stream ecology, which was really cool, though knackering as it involved much walking and carrying of equipment. We were sampling the River Medina from source to mouth, and all was fine until the last site, where it was severely deep! Several people got very wet wading across taking readings, and I was not one of them thank God!!!

And today we did coastal stuff, where it was extremely cold and wet, and involved much throwing of stones into the water, because at heart we are all children.

Tomorrow is our final day of training and then the assessment starts, with an exam on Friday lasting about 2 hours, which we are all gutted about!

Anyway, that is my life at the moment. Oh, and I didn't get a Valentine, for a bit of variety!!!

My day off and other stuff

Yesterday was my day off and my parents came down, which was really nice. We had a nice meal (much better food than the slop they serve most days here).

I started my second week of training today, where the highlight was rockpooling- I love this so much, and tomorrow we are doing stream ecology, which I think I love even more, so as you can imagine I am having a brilliant time!

My only grumble is that most of the returners are rather sullen and unenthusiastic, and the bar has no atmosphere at all, as there are very few bubbly people like myself. We are hoping that the newbies from the next training courses will be much louder (in a nice way) and that the season will pick up, but so far I can't understand how the returners came back, when they quite obviously couldn't care less about what they're doing. I think it's a shame.

My first experience with kids

Yes, they have arrived!

As I am qualified in quad bikes, I have spent most of the week taking those sessions, and have surprised myself at how good I have been (i.e. the kids were still alive at the end!!). The returners, who I have shadowed for a few sessions, and who I have shared my quad sessions with, have mostly been nice, though some I was not impressed with. The first session I shadowed was archery and the kids were really bored at the end of it. I also had an evening ents (you usually get one a week) of a night hike with 2 returners (one we have nicknamed Lumpface) and one newbie called Hannah (not the annoying one). We obviously wanted to do the hike together (you have two instructors on a night hike) but they weren't having it, so of course I had to put my foot down. They conceded, obviously weren't happy, and we had a brilliant night hike! We then had DI duty (night duty, ensuring all kids are in bed and quiet), which went ok, though a few kids were acting up, so by the end of that day we were knackered.

Before the season started on Monday, we went out to a pub for a meal and an evening of dancing on the tables - it really was a site to behold, with everyone up there, almost concussing themselves with the low ceilings and beams.

On Thursday, the night before most of the kids left, was a disco where some staff were on duty. We weren't but decided to go along anyway, and had a great time making fools of ourselves. We then went back to the 'Library' (the onsite bar) for karaoke where I sang with several people and rounded off the evening nicely.

Fall from grace

Well yesterday was an eventful one. I did some more field studies sessions, involving taking river readings, and then looking at trees, which were really cool. Then we went for an evening of rock climbing, which was without ropes but with crash mats, so we had to sign a disclaimer form.

It's just as well we did, because otherwise Seb (our lovely Dutch instructor) would have been in lots of trouble. As it was, my fall and Hannah's fall (another girl in my field studies group who I am having slight difficulties with, because she always has something to say about everything, but anyway) were down to us.

So I climbed my first wall and jumped, though fell so strangely I almost gave myself concussion on the wall. The second time, I thought I had bent my knees enough, but ended up falling backwards and doing my back in. I have never felt pain like it (now I know how you feel Hayley) and went into shock. I was fine for a few minutes then started shaking and getting cold. Meanwhile, Hannah had fallen and jammed her ankle between the mat and the wall, so was in agony. So when the first aiders arrived there was I lying underneath a pile of coats shaking like anything, and Hannah sobbing with an ankle the size of a house. I was pronounced fit, whereas Hannah had very limited movement so was shipped off to the hospital (she later arrived back on site on crutches but only with a sprain).

I expected to wake up this morning feeling so bad, but actually I was ok, and with a breakfast of Ibuprofen I was alright for the day.

Today we went down to the beach to do an environmental impact assessment on a derelict site, and then did offsite scenarios, where I was rubbish at controlling the naughty 'kids'. So today has not been the best, though I am going out tonight to a pub for a meal and a sort of dance, though this might be substantially reduced to my normal standard!

Bugs and beasties

I have now started my field studies training and am reverting back to childhood (which I guess is a good thing!).

Yesterday we did a minibeast safari, which consisted of sampling various sites (e.g. pond, bushes, log pile), which was so cool. And today we went to Sandown to do a quite boring human geography session, which was followed by a great visit to a dinosaur museum and an aborted attempt at fossil hunting (the tide was in - something to remember when we instruct!).

Next week we have various activities and evening entertainment actually with the kids, though I think we are shadowing people and/or being watched by other members of staff, which I'm quite scared about, though I'm sure we'll all be fine.

Oh, and another fun thing, we had to choose our uniform today, so soon we will look great!

I finally have news

Sorry for the extreme delay, but I have been very busy and have not had much time to access the rubbishy internet here.

Anyway, I've completed the basic training course for instructors, and am now about to begin specialist training for the field studies part. I am surprising myself in how well I'm doing actually, but I guess my confidence was always one of my strengths!

I've met some amazing people already, though no guys with any great potential I'm afraid! I was sharing a room with girls Stacey (Welsh, 21) and Nikki (Gloucester, 19) who are hilarious, but I am now sharing a room with another girl called Niki for the rest of the year. She is only 18 (quite a few of that age actually, so I feel quite old!) and a lesbian, but who cares as she's really nice and we get on really well.

I've learnt archery, climbing (including the belaying of the ropes on the ground), low ropes (not the nost exciting thing in the world), quad biking and first aid, so lots of variety.

We have a bar on site, where we spent the evening before our first day off, resulting in me having to snog some fag-breathed chav called Ashley (actually, he's a nice guy) for a bottle of wine. This was later consumed yesterday evening before our second big night out. You see, all trainees came here for ther basic training, but there are loads of centres in the UK and France, so lots of people left this morning. So not only was last night a celebration of our successful completion, but it was also to say goodbye properly. We all went out to Chicago Rocks in Newport, got wrecked, and generally had a brilliant night.

So that's what I have been doing so far. Hopefully, I may be able to keep you updated on any developments regularly! And don't forget I want to know what you're all doing too.....

Well it's goodbye from me

So the day has finally dawned - tomorrow I will depart for the IoW, and at the moment I'm a mixture of being excited and scared. Who knows which will win out in the end?!

I'm really going to miss everyone back on the mainland, though I hope that I will get some visitors of an adult nature, rather than children!

Anyway, most of my packing is done, so I'm now counting the hours until I go off to the land of employment. Wish me luck (I'll probably need it)!

Saying goodbye

Well, my last weekend dawned and I had arranged to go out of with some of my friends in Salisbury, but the crowd of people got rapidly smaller. Some people had already arranged things, and one person let me down right at the last minute. I was rather peed off and a rapid exchange of texts and a phone call resulted in this person sobbing down the phone to me, as they were really offended by my assumption that they had dropped out to go to another club in Bournemouth.

I'm afraid emotional blackmail doesn't work on me, and it seems rather likely that the myriad of excuses thought up by her were a cover for something else, albeit not what I had originally thought. We shall see what emerges.

Anyway, I had a great time without them anyway, with my old friend Claire and her boyfriend Chris (never met him before, but on first impressions: approved!) and Hayley and a couple of her friends. It was really sad saying goodbye at the end of the night, but as Hayley's dad is the captain of one of the IoW ferries, I'm sure she can pop over to say hello!

Oh my God...

...One week to go!

Highlights of 2005

Ok, so 2005 wasn't the most exciting of years but there were definitely some important points:

January: Decided we'd better get a move on organising our trip to NZ!!

February: Went to Garston woods near me and saw loads of hares really close, plus some deer too. Oh, and the carpets of bluebells and wild garlic were also rather pretty!

May: Brownsea Island, where we saw one miserly red squirrel, but I was chuffed all the same, even if it is very expensive!

June: Trip to Kew, thanks to English Nature. Also, results of my degree released (1st class!) and Graduation Ball with Electric Six.

July: Seeing a pair of ravens displaying in the air above Martin Down National Nature Reserve, and surprising a couple of foxes hunting in the long grass there. I also graduated this month, which was somewhat of an anticlimax, but nice to see everyone together for one last time.

August: Volunteering with CBMWC, where I saw seals, bottlenose dolphins, gannets, Manx shearwaters, and a badger!

September: Family holiday to Croatia, where I was seriously impressed with the diversity of fungi in Risnjak National Park, and the beauty of Plitvice Lakes NP.

October: Booked our flights to NZ! Went on the dole (what a waste of time that was).

November: Said goodbye to Margaret, uni friend, who is emigrating to Oz.

December: Graduates Xmas Party, where I bumped into loads of old uni friends. Got offered a job (at long last) on the Isle of Wight (oh well, you can't have it all). Plus, with my new binoculars, was thoroughly amazed to see a roe deer blinking (look, I thought it was amazing!).

So, looking back, I guess it has been quite good actually!

23 today and two weeks to go!

A big thank you to all those who sent birthday cards! Yes, I am now 23 and intending to do very little today.

Yesterday I was very excited as my new laptop came, which I will be taking away with me for photos and music storage. It is so nice, a widescreen Acer, ideal for watching stuff on, though some of my pictures do look slightly hilarious stretched out!

Anyway, haven't got anything exciting planned today, just a family meal out in the evening, and maybe go out on Saturday. Two weeks to go until I start training - where has the time gone?

New Year's Celebrations

For the first time I actually went out into Salisbury. Usually it's some house party or just staying in with Jools, but this year I was dragged out of the house.

It was actually a really good night, though I was surprised that some of the pubs could charge £10 for entry, and even more surprised that some people were paying it! It tipped it down as soon as we got out of the car, thereby doubling the volume of my hair. The result being I looked a right state all night - good old British weather!

On another note, my uni friend Adrienne is now interested in applying for the same job as me, so I may end up working with her sometime this year!