rhys 0 #1 June 3, 2010 Today I did a first descent into a magic place called Okarito. The purpose of the jump was to show locals and the department of conservation that the noise pollution would be low and accuracy is not a problem. In the near future we will be operating there frequently. The secinic shots were taken on the way to altitude, choice aye! We operate out of Franz Josef anyway so the mountain shots although beautiful are the norm for us, the beach jump is something quite special tacked on top. Beaches, rainforest, lakes, glaciers and mountains. WOW! Franz Josef Glacier is one of only 3 in the world that descends into Rainforest. One other is in our regon (fox glacier) and the third is in Argentina. Okarito gets 50-60% less rainfall than Franz Josef so there was operational resons in there also. It was absolutely fantastic. The passenger is Henry our new packer, it was his first ever skydive and he lives in Okarito.Does anyone else have any first descent stories?"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
piisfish 140 #2 June 3, 2010 and in which country would that be ? looks nice. what plane are you jumping from ? do you accept americans ? scissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
trig78 0 #3 June 3, 2010 Okarito sounds Japaneese so it must be there. NZ is really beautifull. Can't wait to go there. Soon hopefully. facebook.com/trig78 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rhys 0 #4 June 3, 2010 Quote and in which country would that be ? looks nice. what plane are you jumping from ? do you accept americans ? Laugh As mentioned by trig78, we are in New Zealand. On the west coast of the South Island to be precise. It sure is nice. Everyone is welcome, but at this stage we can only allow b license and above to jump here due to our landing areas. We will be advertising shortly for staff once our numbers increase to a point where I am certain the lucky candidate will earn a decent income. I have only been here 2 weeks and we have only been operating under our new certifectate for 5 days. We have been busier than I expected and it is the slowest month of the year right now... There are 3 Pilatus porters sitting there waiting for us to be busy enough to use one or more of them, at this stage we are using a C180 (single loads, plenty of slots going!!) and there is also the choice out of a few C185's for us to use once I get another instructor in. We are the first DZ in the country to use commercially serviced aircraft also. We are also working towards carbon neutral by planting out native trees and re-establishing cleared land into native bush. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rhys 0 #5 June 3, 2010 QuoteOkarito sounds Japaneese so it must be there. [Crazy] Okarito is a Maori name, interestingly enough the Maori are mongoloids as they migrated from Asia about 1000+ years ago. They are the same bloodline as Hawaiian aborigionals and thier language is identical in some cases. Quote NZ is really beautifull. Can't wait to go there. Soon hopefully. Ka aumihi atu te tangata whenua ki nga manuhiri. We welcome you here"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
airtwardo 7 #6 June 3, 2010 Looks like the place to Ski, SCUBA & Skydive all in one afternoon! ~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jumpwally 0 #7 June 3, 2010 Hey,,Don't forget " a bj on the beach " too !!! smile, be nice, enjoy life FB # - 1083 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
councilman24 37 #8 June 3, 2010 But not in that order. I'm old for my age. Terry Urban D-8631 FAA DPRE Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rhys 0 #9 June 3, 2010 QuoteLooks like the place to Ski, SCUBA & Skydive all in one afternoon! CoolWink You could do that, There are plenty of other activities in the area including 4X helecopter scenic companies and a Ski Plane comapany ( that we are in conjunction with ), horse trekking, Fishing (great fishing) surfing (if you are brave enough to handle masive cold surf), mountain biking... It is a little adventure heven,"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
format 1 #10 June 3, 2010 I feel sick... pfff.. very very sick Please do not continue description What goes around, comes later. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
strop45 0 #11 June 4, 2010 Looking Good Kia Kaha Wayne The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits." -- Albert Einstein Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Staso 0 #12 June 4, 2010 i hiked to Fox glacier with my wife last November and then we flew around mt Cook on a helicopter - it was awesome. we landed on a snow field with a good view of the mt Cook in the background. New Zealand is a very cool country and we really enjoyed our time there. and here is a picture of another "lotsa ice" from a different side of the world - north col of mt Everest. -- it's not about defying gravity; it's how hard you can abuse it. speed skydiving it is ... Speed Skydiving Forum Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
format 1 #13 June 4, 2010 That's much better - I envy less What goes around, comes later. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rhys 0 #14 June 10, 2010 Suerly somebody has a first descent theay can share with us? every landing area has a first jump into it and there must be some good stories that go long with them... ?"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
