Author: Grant ‘Axe’ Rawlinson
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The icing on the cake?
“It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them.” This wonderful quote by Ernest Hemingway sums up my feelings towards the last 6 days of cycling as we peddled our way down through the beautiful South Island of…
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Hard yakka: Cycling Picton to Rangiora
Day 11 of Peak to Peak was the morning after the Cook Strait crossing. After 45 minutes of wild partying the night before then going to bed at 8PM we both felt a little seedy the next morning as we jumped on the bikes and headed south. It was a beautiful day, and we were…
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A sleeping giant: Kayaking the Cook Strait
Well here we are in Picton in the South Island of New Zealand after one of the most special days of my life yesterday. We managed to paddle all the way across the Cook Strait from Makara beach in Wellington, in through the notoriously difficult Tory Channel entrance, and onwards to Picton in a 10h 10m effort. This is a…
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The calm before the storm
Hello from windy Makara beach at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand! We arrived here yesterday after 2 days and 215km of biking from Whanganui town. The biking was fairly easy as we had a tail wind most of the way! It rained like hell on the 1st day cycling, to a…
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Fair Flying Down State Highway 1!!
The guys are well on their way, having arrived and cleaned up in Whanganui, now on their bikes heading further South, already 110km down State Highway 1 at Levin as I write. Stages 1 and 2 successful, all on schedule running relatively smoothly!!! Stage 3 the cycling is going so quickly when following progress on their SPOT.…
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Peak to Peak – A Great Start!
Hello everyone, we have some updates for you on the teams progress. They have already covered a lot of ground since meeting together in Auckland; Day 1 being the successful ascent of Mount Ruapehu – (Tahurangi). At 2797m , this New Zealand’s North Islands highest mountain and one of the world’s most active volcanos and it is…
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Peak to Peak 2013 – 7 days till kick off
It’s exactly 7 days to go until the official start of ‘Peak to Peak 2013’. The final few days before any expedition are always frantic times. Packing, last-minute equipment preparations and acquisitions, tidying up with work related things so I still have a job when I return (thanks boss for the leave:-)) and spending time…
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Peak to Peak 2013 – Meet the team!
‘Peak to Peak 2013’ is not about doing an expedition with a huge budget and a lot of support. In-fact we have made a conscious effort to do away with support vehicles and vessels and instead focus on selecting a small team of super-experienced people to get the job done. It’s an interesting exercise in…
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House hunting in Iskander: A seakayaking microadventure in search of a home
If you are struggling to convince your wife or partner to join you on a microadventure, I have a solution for you. Recently, together with my wife Stephanie we paddled 27km along the coast of Southern Malaysia. This is the longest one-day trip we have undertaken so far in our Seaeagle FastTrack inflatable kayak (christened…
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A journey to the end of Asia – Kayaking Tanjung Piai
In 2005 I attempted to walk to the very end of the mainland South American continent. The most Southern Point of mainland South America is known as ‘Cabo Froward‘ and access involves a challenging 5 – 6 day walk along an unmarked trail following the rugged Patagonian coastline. The trek must be carried out completely…
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A Changi Airport transit stop microadventure – beach, beer and boats!
“What can we do with a 5 hour stop-over in Changi airport?” This was the question my friend Bevan asked me last week on while in transit through Singapore’s ultra-efficient Changi airport. Bevan is a kiwi mate of mine whom I know from University days. He is currently based in Sydney but had previously spent…
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Experience the worlds most beautiful walk – the Annapurna circuit in 3D
I hope you enjoy my latest creation. A 3D fly through of the Annapurna circuit in Nepal, showing the highlights along the way. I walked 8 days of this circuit in 2012 – you can read more of the trip report here: https://axeoneverest.com/2012/04/05/an-8-day-walk-in-the-annapurna/ It truly is a breath taking, awe inspiring, majestic and beautiful part…
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The next adventure! Peak to Peak 2013 by crampons, kayaks and bicycles!
The what? ‘ Peak to Peak 2013’ is an attempt at a 1300km traverse from the highest point of the North Island of New Zealand (Tahurangi/Mt Ruapehu) to the highest point in the South Island of New Zealand (Aoraki/Mt Cook). The journey to be undertaken completely by human power and will include climbing, kayaking and…
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Dodging Giants: A sea kayaking microadventure to Pulau Jong
Singapore has around 60 Islands, most are natural, some are man-made and some no longer exist. (See the complete list here). Today with my wife Stephanie, we decided to head out to explore a tiny little uninhabited island known as ‘Pulau Jong’. This island is also referred to as ‘Junk Island’ or ‘Hamburger Island’. …
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Crocodile Hunting in Singapore: A sea kayaking microadventure from Kranji to Sungei Boloh
It was reported in the Straits Times in June 2013 that as many as ten saltwater crocodiles are now living in the north-west coast of Singapore. They live predominantly in an area known as the ‘Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve’. When this information was released (read the report here) it surprised a number of people. It…
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Sleeping with rats: An overnight microadventure to the Sisters Islands
For all those men out there who are wishing for more physical contact or intimacy with their wives or partners, I have the solution for you. Take your partner on a microadventure to sleep on a deserted island infested with rats. I did this with my wife and she never strayed more than 0.5m from…
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A geocaching microadventure
I recently embarked on a fun morning excursion. It took me to a place I had never before visited, was a challenge, cost nothing but time, gave me some exercise and I completed it in 1.5 hours in the morning – before I went to work! Adding to the enjoyment was the fact my parents…
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It’s time to climb K2!
I have been spending hours working on climbing K2 recently – the worlds 2nd tallest mountain. June/July, August are the months to climb K2, so I thought I better make use of the conditions. Attached here is the results – in just over 7 minutes. Enjoy!
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Sea kayaking Selatar Island – the divorce machine sails solo
The skipper of the Divorce Machine was unavailable for selection this morning, so I made the first solo excursion. I am currently in training to paddle across a potentially dangerous stretch of water as part of my next expedition coming up in December. So as well as microadventuring, my weekend paddles also serve as training…
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The worst haze ever in Singapore
While New Zealand receives a hammering from the worst ever storms in 45 years, here in Singapore we receive a hammering from the worst ever storm of a different kind. A storm of smoke caused by humankind has enveloped the tiny Island in a thick pall known as the ‘Haze’. Haze is caused apparently by…
Grant 'Axe' Rawlinson 