Hi, after doing a lot of travel I've finally joined couchsurfing! I'm a creative, adventurous, intellectual sort of guy who works from a home office based in Reefton on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island. I love outdoor activities of all kinds, exercise, philosophical discussions, chess, vegetarian cooking, reading and keeping up to date with as much as I can in the world. I love travel, and especially hiking and climbing in places like Nepal, Morocco, Ecuador, Switzerland. As I live in a small town, I'm always interested in meeting new travellers, sharing stories, learning things and I enjoy being a welcoming host (I think I inherited that from my mother, who ran a bed and breakfast for 7 years in Wellington!) I'm openminded, tolerant, progressive, and would love to meet you.

Here's a podcast of me interviewing Ben, a surfer who stayed with me, it's his podcast, but the he gets interviewed by his hosts! Hence 'anti-pod': https://open.spotify.com/episode/6RGncXpAUefOgSiSsCQQ1I

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

After living in Wellington, NZ for 14 years, I moved to Reefton to make the most of the alpine wilderness of the South Island. I love mountain biking, hiking, climbing, camping, exploring, and all of this is now right on my doorstep. However, Reefton is also a small town (population 1000), and I live alone and work mostly from my home office, so it's fantastic to have frequent visitors to come and stay and share stories. All welcome, especially if you love chess, whisky, sauna or wilderness naturist activities!

Interests

• exercise
• sauna
• chess
• hiking
• camping
• skiing
• philosophy
• mountain biking
• skinny dipping
• naturist
• spa
• nude beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

Authors: J M Coetzee, Kafka, Michael Sandel, Nick Bostrom, etc... technology, ethics, futurism, philosophy, media. Loved 'The Precipice' by Toby Ord, 'Normal People', Especially loved Cixin Liu's 'Three body problem' trilogy. So much great allegory in there about global inability to coordinate on major threats to humanity. Also loved the human stories in 'This is Not a Drill' and it is such an important book.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Ran the 60km Kepler Mountain trail race (never again!)
Hiked and camped completely naked for 2 days (50km+) of the Te Araroa Trail through the Harper Pass route
Changed my mind about what makes a good career and tackled huge risks to humanity instead

Teach, Learn, Share

Do you feel like a hike up Mt Haast? Or a relaxing afternoon in the thermal pools or a cold beer by candlelight in my sauna? Want to see the Waiuta ghost town? Or plunge in the cold clear river?

I'm very interested in the Wim Hof method, if anyone knows much about it, I'd love to share experiences, perhaps try some new training ideas or stretch, meditate or do yoga on a frosty morning.

What I Can Share with Hosts

You can enjoy a large queen-sized private room, my local knowledge of hiking and mountain biking trails, campsites, places to visit, home brewed cider or beer, my mountain bikes, a huge deep bathtub which is fantastic to share and enjoy a glass of wine and conversations about life and the world.

I can offer a ride to nearby locations e.g. Westport, Greymouth, Springs Junction, Murchison (if I'm not working), show you some great secluded deep clear swimming pools in the Inangahua River for skinny dipping and baking dry naked in the sun, share travel stories, philosophical discussion, games of chess or scrabble, cook you a vegetarian curry, share strawberries from my garden, a session on the shakti mat, or oil relaxation massage after a hike or sauna, or by the fire in winter. I've enjoyed so much kindness on travels around the world, and I'm happy to repay all that.

When the weather cooperates, I like to enjoy a naturist lifestyle. So if you are looking for some nakation activities, whether for body positivity, psychological freedom, or connecting with nature, or just some freedom in the wilderness or garden or sauna or around the house then you are very welcome. You are welcome to ask about this lifestyle or look through some of my books related to this and you are welcome to try for yourself when you stay. My home is an open, free, non-judgmental space.
If you're interested, here is a great blog by a woman working on a book about skinny dipping and naturism in the NZ wilderness: https://nakedkate.travel.blog/ and also some information including results of a survey on nude hiking here: https://effortlessoutdoors.com/naked-hiking/
Please note that if you are not comfortable in situations where you may encounter some social nudity (eg sunbathing in the garden, hiking or swimming, morning yoga/coffee in the sun, the sauna, or evening wine by the fire), then you might be more comfortable with another host. For obvious reasons it is difficult to take naturism out into society, so it is nice when the opportunity arises to host open-minded and naturist friendly guests, and of course casting aside clothes is a great equaliser and in my experience encourages openness, sharing and fantastic conversation about life. And it should go without saying, but nudity is never an invitation.

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Austria, Bolivia, Chile, Cook Islands, Denmark, Ecuador, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Italy, Kenya, Mexico, Morocco, Nepal, Netherlands, Peru, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States