Back to Where it All Began (+ Some Exciting News!) | Godley Head Walking Track

[@chrisyoung4384]

Looks like beautiful day for a walk, welcome back and welcome to the South.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Thanks Chris, it was such a STUNNER of a day, I got really lucky for the middle of winter!

[@parisrose5766]

normally I'm all about me... welcome back.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

😍😆

[@coniston3106]

really miss those frosty winter mornings while taking the bus to sumner and walking all the way to godley head through taylor's mistake walkpath. it's just so special walking alone and watching the sunrise. thanks for this video :)

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

That sounds idyllic, you're welcome. Glad it brought back some memories for you!

[@EagleEyeNZ]

Welcome back Michelle. Excellent video.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Yay! Thank you!

[@Syncop8rNZ]

Ahh my old stomping ground... I fully recommend Mark Pickering's little paperback books on tracks in the area.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Excellent, i'll see if I can find them! I had no idea how many tracks there are around the peninsula, so look forward to exploring them!

[@Syncop8rNZ]

@@LongWhiteGypsy There's one on the Port Hills (green), Banks Peninsula (orange), a yellow one and a blue one, one is for walks around the foothills, the other night be picnic spots. They used to be in the main bookstores there.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

@@Syncop8rNZ Awesome, thank you! I think I actually might have seen them in my local Paper Plus the other day, so I will check them out!

[@Takirua66]

Yyyyyyyyyaaaaaaayyyyyy she's back, life is good now

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

😁 😂

[@Gareth223338]

Welcome to Canterbury and back to KZbin, Can't wait to see where you get to.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Thank you Gareth, looking forward to exploring!

[@boostedshuttle2231]

One of my local tracks, love this one. Great to see you doing it.

[@boostedshuttle2231]

Welcome to chch as well. Alot to hike around hear. The crater rim walkway is a must. Take a tent and it's a good ova nighter for ta training. About 56km.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Yes I've been hearing some really good things about this track, I'm looking forward to hopefully trying it out when the weather warms up a bit!

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Thank you! Not my first time, but definitely pretty spectacular nonetheless :)

[@saranga4]

Looks stunning

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

It was such a great day for it!

[@nigelcole299]

Welcome to Christchurch; my hometown. I've been following your videos for a while and plan on doing the Te Araroa in November. Thanks for all of your wonderful videos and it is good to have you back!

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Hey Nigel, yes it's really great to be back after such a long absence. Congrats on your plans to do the TA! You're making me jealous... I'd love to be getting back out there again this year. Please feel free to hit me up anytime if you'd like to catch up for a chat before you go :)

[@pj3635]

Great to see you back

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

It's so good to be back

[@jarrodbaker2902]

Great to see you back!

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Great to be back Jarrod!

[@robertdean1579]

Awesome video, thank you! That trail is on my list for next year.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

You're gonna love it!

[@richardzajkowski3834]

Thanks - really enjoy your videos

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Awesome, thank you so much!

[@gymrat2647]

Welcome back missed watching your videos from this past year.That’s exciting news about moving from Taupo to Christchurch

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Thank you! It's good to be back 😃

[@carryingcathy]

Hi Michelle! I was the one who recognized you when you were filming this. I didn't quite realize you were on a hiatus as I'm not on social media a whole lot. Great to see you are doing what you love still. Hope I'll see you around Ōtautahi again sometime!

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Oh, awesome to hear from you! I hope you enjoyed the rest of your walk that day Cathy! Yes I've been on a bit of a break for the last year or so, just had some things going on. Getting to it as much as I can these days, but I'm back to 40 hour work weeks now which is making it hard. Yes, hopefully will see you out there! I'm always after suggestions, so feel free to let me know your favs :)

[@scorpiodesign6990]

Great to see you're "back in action"! For some reason subscribing to your newsletter didn't work for me, at least I haven't received any confirmation email. Not sure what I'm doing wrong...

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Thank you! You're not the first person to say you're having issues. If you have some time, would you mind sending a screenshot of what you're seeing at your end to me at longwhitegypsy at gmail dot com? That will help me try to fix the problem. In the meantime, use this link to sign up: eepurl.com/gHv-tT

[@paulhardiman4602]

Great to see you back and hear all your exciting news.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Thanks Paul. It was certainly about time to share it with the 'rest' of the world!

[@b.griffin317]

Welcome back.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

It's great to be back!

[@OutdoorsmanDave]

Welcome back, nicely compiled, like you I’m taking a break from posting too, creative block & exhaustion. Enjoy Te Lka a Maui.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Yeah I think every now and again the burnout just has to win out. Look forward to seeing some new content from you when the time comes!

[@FreewheelingKiwi]

Hi Michelle, another great video, thanks for sharing this lovely walk and what a fabulous winter’s day you had!

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Wasn't it awesome?! A bit wet and boggy (that's the last time I do a hike in my light coloured sneakers lol) but totally worth it! Hope your prep is going well :)

[@FreewheelingKiwi]

@@LongWhiteGypsy Getting there though I don’t know if I’ll be as organised as you were with food 😅

[@DuncWilson]

Thanks for posting this awesome look at this fantastic track and area. It took me back to my one time there. I was cycling the coastline of NZ and was headed uphill, hoping to spend the night over in Lyttelton. By the time I had reached the top, however, my freehub had packed up from all the beaches and salt. I couldn't cycle my bike! Fortunately, a friend's aunt, at that time a complete stranger, drove up from town to rescue me. We bundled my bike into the boot of her car and headed back to their place, where they happened to be hosting a fascinating dinner party that night! Bike was fixed and two days later, I was dropped back up there to carry on! I'm convinced it doesn't always go right for a reason...

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Thank you so much Dunc, I've been following your adventures for a while, so it's nice to see you also following along here. As to your comment, I think you're definitely right... there is ALWAYS a good reason why things don't go right, and on an expedition like yours it's always the things that go wrong (more than the things that go right) that make the adventure. I particularly enjoyed your stories from your recent sailing trip to Fiji - that will be an adventure I attempt only once I've replaced my stomach with an iron one!

[@pamtodd1525]

Welcome back. I love watching your videos especially from here in Perth, WA where the rolling green hills just aren't the same as NZ. Thankyou for sharing 🙂

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

You're so welcome, and thank you! 😍

[@tonyknight811]

Glad to see you're back. Looking forward to more exciting adventures...!

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Thanks Tony, I'm certainly looking forward to sharing them as well!

[@whalenz]

South Island Best Island. I lived in Hamilton for 19 odd years I guess. Came down here to CHCH just over 2 years ago, and love it. Hopefully this move brings you a lot of joy. Haven't made it along the bottom of the hill, I've been up the top geocaching quite a few times. Looking forward to following along on more adventures :)

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Yep I have to agree with you there! I didn't realise there was so much to explore, even just around banks Peninsula.

[@jeffh5220]

I was so happy when this popped into my subscription page! Good to see you back Michelle. Sometimes a move is a good way to change the dynamic, enjoy Christchurch.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

I totally agree! Let's hope this move keeps on giving (I'm sure it will!)

[@Khaleesi_Tess]

Got a big smile on my face when I got the notification for this video 😄 A really beautiful walk (with your characteristic skill at capturing the escence on camera), and a fascinating little piece of history with Scott's hut. It sounds like you've got some awesome plans set up and I'm really looking forward to seeing what you share (and the inspo the newsletter will hopefully give me to get out in nature more myself). Christchurch is such a lovely place, I hope the recent move has been good for you and that the offline side of all that is going well too.

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Thank you so much Tess! I'm so glad you enjoyed it 🤗

[@GeorgeBeck100]

So glad your back !!!

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Haha, me too George!

[@goldenscales]

Well done, Gypsy! I once lived in Nth. Canterbury for a couple years, maybe one day I'll be able to return to hike some of those tracks!

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Yes I'm returning after a 10 year hiatus, but this time with a tramping mindset. So I'm looking forward to getting to know the area all over again from an outdoors-y perspective!

[@jacksonlone1]

Hey Michelle, so happy to see your making videos again. I've just finished watching your Te Araroa North Island series. Felt like I was there with you each step of the way. I'm hoping to do the Te Araroa in the future - currently I'm a Kiwi living in Australia with a 7 month old boy, so no big hikes any time soon! In the past I've thru hiked the Pennine Way (268 miles) from England to Scotland, then I carried on up the west coast of Scotland, following the West Highland Way (96 miles), climbing over the highest mountain in the UK, Ben Nevis. That following summer I hiked the Camino de Santiago and carried on following the Camino Portuguese in reverse to Porto, tallying up 48 days on pilgrimage. In NZ I was fortunate enough to live close to the Ruahine range, so every weekend I was up there. Can't wait to see what hikes you decide to do in the South Island. You should check out the Heaphy Track, such a rewarding and diverse trail, and not too challenging, either. But anyway, have fun out there!

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Wow!!! Sounds like you're a pretty experienced hiker, so great to hear about all these adventures! So many of those trails you've listed are also on my bucket list for one day! I was actually booked onto the Heaphy Track over the summer season a couple of years ago, but had to cancel due to some bad weather. It's been part-closed ever since, only recently reopened again but I will get to it at some point when I can score some time off work!

[@coltonjcosby]

I will receive any email from you any day of the week :)

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

Thanks CJ!

[@danialwilson8217]

Dub Dub Dub in New Zealand

[@LongWhiteGypsy]

😁