15Jan 2020 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#3 Go Skydiving

#3 Go Skydiving

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 10th August 2013 in Wanaka, New Zealand. Our snowboarding trip on the South Island of New Zealand continued through Queenstown and Wanaka after I crossed #14 Ski a “Real” Mountain off my list at Mount Olympus. The Queenstown and Wanaka area is amazing because there are so many adventure sports and activities packed into one little zone. The skiing is seasonal but mountain biking, bungee jumping, skydiving and many other activities are done all year round. I found a good deal on a tandem skydive at Skydive Wanaka, so we made sure to fit that into our plans. I had always wanted to skydive when I lived in Canada and tried to organise it with my friends a couple times, but it never…
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04Dec 2019 by Dave Macleod No Comments
Life Below the Rim: Whitewater Rafting the Grand Canyon

Life Below the Rim: Whitewater Rafting the Grand Canyon

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
While this is a classic bucket list item, it’s not actually from my list. It’s from my mum’s list. In 2017, my mum and I were at a Christmas party for the company I worked for at the time. We were all hanging around the pool and BBQing (yes, that is what we do around Christmas time in NZ) when I overheard my mum and another colleague, Luke, talking about the Grand Canyon. I heard her say “I’ve always wanted to whitewater raft the Grand Canyon” and then the conversation continued. Later that night, when we returned home, I asked my mum about her conversation with Luke. She brushed it off and said, “I think it would be amazing to do but it will never happen”. I said, “Why not?…
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20Nov 2019 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#14 Ski a “Real” Mountain

#14 Ski a “Real” Mountain

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 29th July 2013 at Mount Olympus, Canterbury New Zealand. This may sound like a bit of a weird one coming from a kid who grew up skiing in Canada but I’m from the East Coast, not the West Coast. The West Coast has the beloved Rockies and endless ski resorts with amazing terrain… The East Coast has hills that accumulate snow during the winter months. That’s about it. Needless to say I got bored of skiing on the East Coast by the time I was a teenager but I never managed to get out west to ski real mountains. I had always seen this as something I wanted to accomplish, so naturally it landed on the bucket list. I knew that New Zealand…
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09Oct 2019 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#89 Go Zorbing

#89 Go Zorbing

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 17th June 2013 in Rotorua, New Zealand. If you have been following along with the timeline so far, I have just graduated university and transplanted myself into New Zealand on a one-way ticket. Kyle and I landed in Auckland during the first week of June and spent the first couple days getting bank accounts set up, adjusting to the time zone and searching for a used car. We killed time by checking out some museums and also getting over to Rangitoto Island for a bit of an adventure. Replica of a moa - A large flightless bird that used to roam NZ Giant waka (canoe) Kyle and his emperor penguin friend View of Rangitoto Island from Auckland The volcanic trails of Rangitoto Island…
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28Aug 2019 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#60 Eat Kangaroo Steak

#60 Eat Kangaroo Steak

BUCKET LIST
This bucket list item was completed on 25th January 2013 in Halifax, Nova Scotia Canada. I think it is safe to say that I thought this one was going to be completed in Australia.  However, Halifax could not have been further from Australia. I had been living at my flat on Queen Street for about two years when I crossed this item off my list. The flat was in a great location, only a couple blocks away from my university and right beside a Sobeys Supermarket. I had been shopping at this same supermarket the whole time that I had been living at the flat and never paid attention to what they had in their international food bins. One day I went down to the supermarket with a couple friends,…
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17Jul 2019 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#52 Fire a Military Grade Rifle

#52 Fire a Military Grade Rifle

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 5th January 2013 in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. This was the fourth and final bucket list item I completed during my trip to Las Vegas. In my previous post, #40 Jeep or Buggy Sand Dunes, the story concluded with Kyle and me heading back from ripping up the sand dune outside of Las Vegas. We were still riding the adrenaline high from the dune buggies and had booked in to do some shooting at The Gun Store on the Las Vegas strip. The guys from SunBuggy Fun Rentals were nice enough to drop us off at The Gun Store when they brought us back into town. This was our last day in Las Vegas so we wanted to pack in as much as…
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19Jun 2019 by Dave Macleod No Comments
[#40 Lesson] Take Time to Make Decisions

[#40 Lesson] Take Time to Make Decisions

BUCKET LIST, INFORMATION, LESSON
This life lesson relates to my previous blog #40 Jeep or Buggy Sand Dunes. When asked whether I wanted to do another 30-minute dune buggy experience for half the price, I said no. It was an amazing deal and an amazing opportunity but I was shattered and didn’t think I would be able to endure another 30 minutes. Turns out all I needed was a little break to recover. By the time I changed my mind, we were on our way back to the Las Vegas strip and I missed my chance. This taught me a valuable lesson about not making decisions in the heat of the moment and taking a break to think. I will be honest; this is one of my weaknesses. When someone asks me a question…
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22May 2019 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#40 Jeep or Buggy Sand Dunes

#40 Jeep or Buggy Sand Dunes

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 5th January 2013 in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. In my previous post, #25 Go to the Grand Canyon, the story concluded with Kyle and me enjoying a meal at Hooters after our adventure to the Grand Canyon. Our schedule in Las Vegas was packed full of activities. For many people, Las Vegas can be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. We had no clue if, or when, we were going to make it back so we decided to make the most of it. The following day we had a tour scheduled with SunBuggy Fun Rentals. They were the original dune buggy operator in Las Vegas and offer the best gear and great experiences. They sounded like a good outfit so we figured we were in for…
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10Apr 2019 by Dave Macleod No Comments
[#25 Lesson] Witness Things with Your Own Eyes

[#25 Lesson] Witness Things with Your Own Eyes

BUCKET LIST, LESSON
This life lesson relates to my previous blog post #25 Go to the Grand Canyon. They say a picture is worth 1,000 words. Well, then how many words is seeing something with you own eyes worth? Is it 10,000? Is it 1,000,000? There is no answer. There is no compromise. Nothing compares to seeing something firsthand. Don’t cheat yourself. I had seen hundreds of images of the Grand Canyon before visiting it that day, but when I stood at the edge, I was truly blown away. Photos make it look amazing but to stand there and stare out at the great expanse was something I will remember for the rest of my life. I had a similar experience when I visited the Coliseum in Rome. These are two of the…
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27Mar 2019 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#25 Go to the Grand Canyon

#25 Go to the Grand Canyon

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 4th January 2013 in Arizona, USA. This blog post will pick up where #26 Gamble in Las Vegas left off. After a successful night of gambling we got some sleep for, our much anticipated, next day. When we realised that we would not be playing in the third day of the WSOBP, we went to the concierge at our hotel and booked a rental car. The concierges in Las Vegas are top notch. They are always happy to help out, no matter how crazy the request. A rental car booking was a walk in the park for them. After breakfast, we made our way to the rental car agency to pick up our navy blue, convertible Ford Mustang. It takes about 4.5 hours…
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