Icebergs off South Island

Scratch that - "The listing has been withdrawn by an administrator"!

He's got a new auction up now - a laminated printout of his iceberg auction!

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Antiques-co...n-78238512.htm

[MotherBear]

Now's the time to grab one. ;D

Icebergs now near Timaru
23 November 2006

Fishing boats are reporting icebergs off the Timaru coast.
Two fishing boats - the Nidaro and the Amber Wave - have reported seeing icebergs heading north. Nidaro skipper Blendon Laurie did more than report sightings of icebergs - he got up close enough to take a piece home to show the kids.

An iceberg appeared on the horizon while the boat was about 60 kilometres out from the Timaru coast. "We saw it on the horizon, and weren't sure what it was, but then we saw it was an iceberg."

Mr Laurie estimated the iceberg was about 30 to 45 metres high and a good 45m across. "It's not something you'd like to hit."

Thirty to 40 smaller icebergs - some as big as the 20m Nidaro, were floating along behind the main iceberg. "We got half a mile away from one, we went right in for a look."

The icebergs are moving in a north to north-west direction, heading toward the peninsula, and travelling at about one nautical mile (1.85km) an hour.

National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research oceanographer Mike Williams said that the biggest iceberg sighted off the Timaru coastline was estimated at 45m high, 61m wide and 30m long.

"They're not going to be as spectacular as the ones off Dunedin, but having said that, it is close. It's unprecedented to have them this far up."

The last time icebergs were reported off New Zealand's coast was in the 1930s.
Dr Williams said it was likely those reported off the Dunedin coastline also made their way north to Timaru.

This week's sightings were estimated to be at least 30km to 40km from the coast, but Dr Williams said some of the smaller icebergs might come in closer.

- The Timaru Herald

[MotherBear]

It's getting to be one of those 'How to get the most out of a passing iceberg' things.

Couple's plans for iceberg wedding go for a skate
Friday November 24, 2006

An enterprising couple's plan to get married on an iceberg has hit a large obstacle.

Lawyer Bridget Byers and builder Donald Wyatt, of Dunedin, had their big day all mapped out. They would jump in a helicopter with a marriage celebrant, land on an iceberg off the Otago coast, and get hitched on a floating piece of the Antarctic.

But now the helicopter pilot has said it is too dangerous to land on a berg and Internal Affairs has cast doubt on the legality of the union.

When contacted yesterday, Ms Byers confirmed the plan but said she had been negotiating with a women's magazine and declined any further comment.

However, Southern Lakes Helicopter pilot Richard Hayes, of Te Anau, said the couple had been in touch but the wedding was on hold as he felt it was too dangerous to land on an iceberg. Ice was falling off them all the time and it was hard to find a safe place to land, he said.

In the eyes of the law, the couple might also be on thin ice. Internal Affairs spokeswoman Marguerite Fahy said people had to be within 12 nautical miles of the coast to be legally married. The icebergs are at least double that distance from land.

She said captains of ships sometimes married people at sea but obviously there was no captain of an iceberg.

Clutha mayor Juno Hayes, a licensed marriage celebrant, said he had been contacted about the wedding last Saturday but had heard nothing since.

Civil Aviation Authority communications manager Bill Sommer said they had concerns about a helicopter landing on an iceberg.

There was nothing to stop a person asking a commercial operator to go out and land on the iceberg "but we would hope the commercial operator would talk to us before they go ahead with it", he said. "Helicopters land on glaciers but they are not likely to break in half. The captain is ultimately responsible for the safety of the passengers."

Flights going to the icebergs were not landing on them. Helicopters Otago was not interested in landing on the iceberg and other helicopter companies contacted yesterday said they would not be landing on the icebergs.

- OTAGO DAILY TIMES

[MotherBear]

Icebergs pass on trip up North
Saturday November 25, 2006

The chance of North Islanders seeing an iceberg off their coastline is considered remote, but an expert says those along the South Island coast have already defied the odds.

Icebergs that have become a huge attraction floating up the Otago coast have now been spotted 60km off Timaru, in South Canterbury, which is unprecedented as far as New Zealand records go.

The massive chunks of ice have been creating a sightseeing bonanza for aircraft operators, but just how far north they will get before melting is unclear.

"If they get north of Christchurch, the [ocean] currents are now acting against them and the water is significantly warmer and will start melting them even further," said Mike Williams, an oceanographer with the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research.

"I would say that the chances of them being spotted from the North Island is flat-out zero. But I have made other predictions like that this week which have been proven wrong," Dr Williams said. "We might get really lucky near Wellington. We might get one car-sized chunk."

In the 1890s icebergs were spotted around the Chatham Islands.

"The problem is going back we are relying on observation from people being in the right place at the right time. Just because we haven't seen them doesn't mean they are not there," Dr Williams said.

At least a dozen icebergs along the South Island coastline are attracting sightseers. One of the latest is a 1km-long berg off Stewart Island, which has the potential to last longer than others because of its size.

Commercial aviation companies in Otago and Southland have been run off their feet over the last two weeks taking tourists to view the spectacular sights. At least one Christchurch helicopter company is looking to join the sightseeing fray. Garden City Helicopters pilot Aaron Regan said the company was "certainly keeping an eye on the situation".

To date, the icebergs have been too far offshore to make it economically worthwhile for Christchurch operators to offer tours. But if the icebergs manage to drift as far north as Banks Peninsula, several companies are believed to be ready to cash in.

Mr Regan said Garden City Helicopters had fielded several inquiries from people keen to make the trip and was taking names and contact numbers. "We're keeping an eye on where they progress to and how far offshore they are."

In Dunedin, Helicopters Otago is making six trips a day - taking seven passengers on each at $500 a seat - to the icebergs using a twin-engined BK117 helicopter and is fully booked until tomorrow. "We're flying until the end of Sunday, as long as the weather allows," company director Ros Gale said.

While the company was not taking bookings beyond tomorrow, Ms Gale said, she was making a list of prospective passengers on a "first-in, first-served" basis "until we see what happens later this week".

Ms Gale said the icebergs were changing continuously as they melted and broke apart. "The photographs coming back are absolutely spectacular - just amazing."

- NZ Herald

[MotherBear]

Scraping the barrel for news today. This is all I could come up with. ? ?:-/

Iceberg show nearly over
1.00pm Sunday November 26, 2006



New Zealand's newest tourist attraction -- the giant icebergs off the South Island's east coast -- may soon be over.

Tourists have been paying up to $500 for helicopter rides out to the icebergs which have been spotted as close as 60km to the mainland.

Icebergs have not been seen this close to New Zealand since 1931.

But the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research oceanographer Dr Mike Williams said yesterday that warmer temperatures were taking their toll on the icebergs which were fast disappearing.

Sightseers yesterday noted huge chunks breaking off the flotilla of icebergs.

- NZPA

[MotherBear]

They're certainly getting their mileage out of these bergs. 8-)

Shear hell as iceberg splits under Shrek
Wednesday November 29, 2006
By Dave Cannan



Two-and-a-half years after being shorn in front of a worldwide television audience, Shrek the celebrity merino wether celebrated his 10th birthday with a shearing on an iceberg 90km off the Otago coast. Accompanied by his Bendigo Station owner John Perriam, Shrek was blade shorn by Jim Barnett of Oamaru on an iceberg about double the size of the Octagon in Dunedin.

But back at Taieri Airport a relieved Mr Perriam conceded the two-hour round trip had not been without its heart-stopping moments. Soon after the team landed, the shearing was interrupted by "the most horrifying noise" as the iceberg began creaking and groaning, as if it was breaking up.

Then a huge chunk of the iceberg broke off and crashed into the sea behind the group. "Yeah, it was pretty scary stuff. I was thinking 'Here we go, we're all going to end up in the drink'," Mr Perriam said.

Otago Daily Times illustrations editor Stephen Jaquiery, who was on the ice with Dunedin freelance cameraman Earl Kingi, immediately radioed helicopter pilot Richard "Hannibal" Hayes.

"I told him to get back as quick as he could to check for any cracks on the iceberg. It felt like the ice was splitting under our feet," said Jaquiery. "It was a very unsettling feeling for a while."

Watching from another helicopter, ODT photographer Peter McIntosh said he could not believe his eyes as a "massive piece" of the iceberg fell off. Down on the iceberg, Mr Barnett, who had just begun to remove Shrek's huge fleece, paused. "I thought, 'Well, I better get stuck in and get it done'."

Mr Perriam is philosophical about any criticism that may come his way. Shrek has raised a lot of money for Cure Kids. "I wanted to raise his profile again and I hope today we've done that."

- OTAGO DAILY TIMES