I’ve spoken before about the fabulous job Air New Zealand does with their “Bare Essentials of Safety” safety videos, you know… ones like this one and the ones included in this post here….
Well its 2013 now and time for a new one, starring none other than Bear Grylls. Well worth a watch before you board.
And just in case you can’t find one of the earlier versions…here you go above.
Courtesy of Takeabreak, Nelson has a selection of various publicly browser accessible Webcams scattered around the town.
I was reminded of that whilst viewing the amount of live TCYasi footage on Ustream via the different webcams and iPhones over the last few days. To that end, I noticed its been at least 14 months since I updated you with the Nelson webcam details.
Who knows, if you’re looking to buy a home / or an investment property in Nelson, then this way you can get to check out the yearly seasons beforehand.
Above one looks out at the entrance to “The Cut” where 99.9% of all ships come & go to gain entry/exit to Port Nelson (Open Day coming up don’t forget) , The Haven and the marina.
From high on Princes Drive, this webcam looks out over Nelson Airport, the adjacent Nelson Golf Club, and over Blind Channel towards Rabbit Island centre of shot.
One of New Zealands favourite holiday / honeymoon spots, Kaiteriteri.
The Richmond area was in the later half of last decade nominated as one of New Zealand’s fastest growing suburbs/towns. Sponsored by the Tasman District Council this webcam offers up views of Richmond, the Waimea Plains and the estuarine Waimea Inlet to the right of shot.
Our “world famous in NZ” local beach, Tahunanui Beach is where thousands of Kiwis come to spend their summer holidays. There’s a couple here, this one looks over the beach, with the “Back Beach” off to the left, and the next one below…..
Takes a closer look at the area where the Kite Surfing crowds regularly congregate, and a perfect way for someone to check out the available winds before heading down to the beach.
look for this on the lefthand sidebar to get swift access to the web-cams
If you are after quick access to the top mentioned cams, then I have just updated the webcam links on my left hand sidebar.
UPDATE 9:29pm
- not 100% but I think the links above are “kinda live” …..so if the pics you see are black then that’s whats happening in front of that particular web-cam right now…its dark because………well……its night-time…..??
Yes, even I’ll be the first to admit, over the last year or so we have definitely had our fair share of private jets arriving in little ole Nelson town.
Actually there is a reason for that, because according to the airports website;
Nelson Airport has restricted International Airport status. This was obtained in 2006 in particular to facilitate small private jets.
However some of what I have seen this year ….well I suggest to you would not be classified as “small” private jets.
G550? ( CLICK TO ENLARGE )
Take this above October arrival for example.
mystery visitors to Nelson ( click to enlarge )
With anon passengers…..
However the reason why I am calling plane spotters to help out tonight..
Looks bigger than many I have seen here before – any one have a clue???
UPDATE
Apparently it is the Goodmans new unit. MRC Aviation blog state;
Global Express XRS VH-OCV made a brief visit to Queenstown 21Dec when it arrived from Sydney and departed a short time later for Nelson and then back to Sydney marking the aircraft’s first visit to Nelson. The owners, Goodmans, are from the Nelson region and their previous aircraft of the same markings, a Learjet 60 and Challenger 604 were both frequent visitors to the South Island city.
If you’re charged by exciting experiences in the Big Air, then…. for some unique opportunities, a visit to the Nelson Bays area might be worth including in your future plans.
For all those folk hunting for a home for sale in Nelson or the surrounding Tasman areas, here are yet more great things to do locally….with a tad of adventure throw in.
Or you could put it another way, just like A League and All Whites midfielder Jeremy Brockie, who after his return to Nelson last week from the FIFA World Cup in South Africa, described what he liked about our region to The Nelson Leader thus;
“…. its relaxed and chilled out. And the suns always shining. I love the place.”
the local tidal range is one of the highest in NZ
It could even be debated that we have the most amount of big air in NZ.
How?
Well by the calculation of taking away the stratosphere to sea level air volume and somehow counting it. As we have the highest/widest range of tides 4m odd, then it could be argued that we do in fact have more available air, if only at low tide…..4 more vertical metres of it…
Ok, so what Big Air choices are there?
BMX Track at Tahunanui Beach
You can start small, for example there is some little big air to be had down at the Tahuna BMX track
Skim Boarding Competition at Tahunanui Beach Nelson
also down at the beach at Tahunanui you can try your hand or feet rather at Skim Boarding
The Boulder Bank protects The Nelson Haven, making it a safe spot for Wind devotees
then we start to speed up with Wind Surfing and Kite Boarding / Surfing.
Inside the Boulder Bank
Nelsons two favourite spots are the one above, photographed inside our famous “Boulder Bank” where sports junkies are protected from the open sea
Western End of Tahunanui Beach
and at the far end of Tahunanui Beach,
Wind Devotees just loving it....
adjacent Blind Channel…..although as you see in the below graphic the channel itself is a prohibited area.
Maps at the location clearly outline where to go or not
The designated zone at the western end of our equally famous Tahunanui Beach is very popular because of its “just minutes” access from practically any part of Nelson / Stoke.
....schools in...
No problems if you haven’t done this before there are many companies locally that will show you how to do it right.
Time to get a bit more speed up…..
see http://www.trademe.co.nz/Sports/Other/auction-315163588.htm
Land Yachts / Sand Yachts along with a newer trend / updated design to these land based yachts has arrived in the form of the Blokart. Here above is an example of one doing a really bad job of trying to fit into the garage, perhaps that’s why its Golden Bay owner is selling it on Trademe.
In the process…… introducing the term “Blokarting“ to the sporting world.
This nimble machine was invented right here in NZ, at Papamoa, near Tauranga in the Bay of Plenty.
In fact, by all accounts, it looks like its more popular overseas than here in NZ where it started life.
PHOTO SOURCE - http://kitebuggy.co.nz
A while back you could usually spot these sporty land yacht devices on the mudflats /sand estuary areas at the head of the Haven, the Wakapuaka Sand Flats, however with the advent of other business and local government use, many are now seen towards the western end of Rabbit Island on the long uninterrupted stretches of sand there. Neale Park is another favourite too, wind here is no doubt good because this is the site of Nelsons Annual Kite Festival.
Here’s a photo story of a locals direct experience of Rabbit Island.
Now to add some elevation to the mix……
Hang-Gliding / Para-Gliding
Regular readers here will already know about this as I have written about it a few times before.
Just such a fabulous natural setting....
The main reason is that courtesy of some very high hills behind Stoke, the Barnicoat Rangephotographed above.
With the aid of the general topography of the Nelson region, and because of it, we are blessed with some of what I believe is New Zealands best hang gliding / para gliding launch spots – reached from the top of Marsden Valley. (Note: there isn’t any vehicular access here as the track gates are usually locked, although obviously the local Para Gliding club has a key and access)
Certainly some of the most accessible anyway, being just a short distance from town, and then an additional short 4 wheel drive trip to the hilltop.
I believe that these two fantastic photos from Paul Nankivell actually do the spot more justice.
what a vista!
Firstly the view out towards Nelson and the Boulder Bank from a flier whose has just launched off the top of Barnicoat, and secondly……
(PHOTO CREDIT - Paul Nankivell )
the just fantastic view off the launch pad site looking out in a north westerly direction. Directly below is the peninsula of Monaco, and upper photo is the Eastern end of Rabbit Island with Blind Channel separating them. This second shot clearly indicates the altitude too.
Parachuting
In the old days as a kid growing up in Nelson back in the 1970′s it was a common summer event to see Parachutists gliding above, eventually landing down at the Nelson Airport. However as what is want to happen these days, Nelson Airport just got too busy and they stopped the local club from using it as a landing place. Now the only spot is over in Motueka, a leisurely 30 minute drive from Richmond. (in fact some places like Skydive offer free pickups anywhere in Nelson/Tasman)
Skydive seem to be the biggest.
According to that stats on this page at dropzone.com, who say they have the most comprehensive database of skydiving locations worldwide, Skydives Abel Tasman / Motueka Airport based parachuting operation is ranked 5th in the whole wide world.
“Skywire” – the Fasssssst Flying Fox (up to 100 km/h)
The World's longest flying fox adventure - in Nelson!
Just for something a little different but still getting you out into the AIR, perhaps you should try it when next in Nelson.
Their website states….. “You soar like a bird for over 3km, up to 150m above beautiful native forest.”
Helicopter rides & lessons – you know what these are so I don’t need to explain.
Or you can just go for the biggest big air of them all…….
Stunt Plane
When you see this sort of claim……you know something special is round the corner ….
Described by the operators “…………possibly STILL New Zealand’s best kept secret”.
And after reading a comment like that above I think you can see why?
"Thats right - you can fly it ......."
Check out the video here…..
And this is not just any little Stunt Plane – this is a “ridgy didge” genuine open cockpit Pitts Special.
After taking the geographical, topographical and all “other”graphical things into account, they all do indeed point to our region as the one part of NZ blessed with “perfect” weather. So there definitely is accuracy in the following statement from their website;
Motueka is at the Northern tip of the South Island of New Zealand and therefore has some of the best weather and flying conditions in New Zealand. No wonder it’s become a Mecca for sport Aviation enthusiasts from around the world.
Fassster still….
To top it off when you see something like this popping its nose around a corner…….
coming soon....I hope
and you hear / see the cute little blue thing screaming across the skies, you can’t but hope that CAA and everyone else will soon let this little beauty take up flying passengers.
Aero Vodochody L-39C Albatros
Although if what the chap at the recent Air New Zealand new $14m Hangar day hinted at - is anything to go by, you might just have to save up for a flight on something like this.
According to a first hand pilots report here, “while at climb power settings and low altitude, the IA-25 turbofan burns about 330 gallons per hour (GPH), but this rapidly decreases to less than 140 GPH in cruise at 18,000 feet.” (Just in case you’re curious, In Kiwi numbers thats 1249 litres p/hr down to about 530 litres per hour.)
That’s what I think the chap why trying to hint at – because of a fuel burn rate like that it won’t be the cheapest aerial flight you’ve ever been on. Owner Mr Caudwell, said its top speed was 750kmh.
Overall I guess this potential future jet trip can’t really be classified in the true spirit of BIG AIR ……… because you will be enclosed in a cockpit,
……and therefore not really being about to experience the big air rush it could provide, in other words feeling the BIG AIR in your face……….then again at 700kph unenclosed might be a tad unsafe I suggest.
So you can clearly see there is quite some AIR activities in our region, pretty good place for a work conference if you ask me too.
Local employment prospects received a shot in the arm with the recent opening of Air Nelson’s (Air New Zealand link partner) $14m new hangar. The fact that it is now there (in a pretty unmistakeably way) and that there existed plenty of technical expertise already here, aided Air Nelson in landing the contract to maintain Mt Cook Airlines 11 strong fleet of ATR72 aircraft.
Championing for the ATR72 work last year, Grant Kerr, General Manager Air Nelson was reported back in Dec 2009 (Flightpath Issue #25 December 2009) as saying;
That work would include maintenance on a total of 52 (Ed – combined numbers of different airframes) aircraft, and would expand options for Nelson travellers by incorporating the ATR into scheduled passenger services…… expansion into the maintenance of the ATR fleet could add about another $10 million annually to the local economy.
That’s good news for local Nelson Real Estate, because the addition of 30 high paying technology jobs will more than likely mean new candidates, many fresh to town, who will want to buy a house in Nelson.
Don’t get me wrong on the real estate front here, it just might not quite dawn on them to begin with.
“It was just work in Nelson, after all.”
However after living here for 6 months or a year, even more so if there are school age children involved, then, like many before them, they will definitely want to get out of renting and look to purchasing a Nelson property.
And why wouldn’t they?
Nelson Bays capital appreciation is right up there with the best in the country, that’s why.
Even if they did move on in 5 or 10 years it would make sense to have a property that could be rented out, while still having a healthy asset growing….a nest egg for the future.
Major Work comes to Port Nelson
Visitors to Port Nelson over the last 6 months would have seen a couple of large unusual arrivals, the first being the InterIslander ferry, “Arahua” and just lately (still here in fact) the large purse-seiner “Cape Ferrat.” The main reason they are here?
Don’t forget we are the largest fishing port in Australasia, and that usually means lots of boats that require maintenance.
What should be called the Nelson Marine / Maritime Engineering Hub that has developed at the Port is why. The co-operation / project management / synergy of so many different maritime/marine services/suppliers and tradesmen located in the same geographical area aids tremendously in accomplishing any major marine work swiftly and efficiently.
The potential client base is vast. Aircraft owners will hop from Australia to get the service they want. Nelson Airport already has restricted Point of First Arrival certification allowing border clearance for overseas aircraft to fly direct to Nelson for servicing.
Safe to say big jets aren’t something that I think we can do, the runways not long enough to start with, but most everything else, in the words of a certain builder called Bob, “we can do it.”
Nelsons Airport (which was granted that restricted International Airport status in 2006) is the nations 4th busiest, with an aircraft movement on average, of every 4 ½ minutes during scheduled operational hours. Approximately 1.2 million people use the Nelson Airport terminal every year, and surprisingly out of that, nearly 50 percent of travellers through the airport are business people.
Many business folk commute to Wellington or Auckland for the work week, and then for rest, relaxation and family life. returning to NZ’s sunshine capital for the weekend.
Rob Burdekin, far right, talking with Nelson Mayor Kerry Marshall and other dignitaries
Rob Burdekin, Air Nelson Technical Manager just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to let Wellington know;
“….. Government’s focus for aviation was too centred on places such as the Waikato. To be honest, if you look at the money that’s involved, you’d find this region’s bigger. We’d like to see some of that focus and support.”
You tell ‘em Rob.
UPDATE 18th AUGUST 2010
The Nelson Mail report on Monday (Page 4) that PM John Key told them;
“……. the new hangar was important to the region as it would develop a lot of jobs and would help tourism.”
‘‘It certainly makes the airport stronger,’’ Mr Key said.
‘‘Having invested so much in engineering means that you’re going to see support for local air services, but primarily this is all about engineering jobs. The plan is to be able to service all of the turboprop planes here and free up Christchurch totally for jets. That’s good”
Maybe those words from the Air Nelson Technical Manager didn’t fall on deaf ears?
