Sometime in July...

...of next year. I'll ACTUALLY BE ON A PLANE HEADING FOR NEW ZEALAND.

My heart aches for the departure date.

My film contract was extended until end of December. Praise God for financial provision. THANK YOU.

Leaving in January isn't the best idea for me - as my plan does not really allow for safe travels during the winter months for NZ. Most trails are closed from May through July due to winter conditions that are dangerous for trampers.

So I will be tramping through the North Island for the end of their winter, and by the time I hit the south island, all will be well.

I have a year to map out the journey and start saving for the next two expensive purchases - a PLB and a GPS unit (maybe).

By December, I will have the finances set aside 100% for this trip. I hope to find a temp film contract to get me through January through the end of May. Then I will spend the next month and a half storing, visiting, prepping and leaving. :)

Also in this time, i plan to investigate the condition of my knees a little bit further. I do have a really great set of walking poles with shock absorption, but none the less, good knee braces and proper physio (if that can truly exist at a cheaper price than 80$/hr 3-4 times a week) will do me wonders.

On a side health care note - i'd like to say how appauled I am that OHIP has removed physio as a covered medical treatment unless you spend a night in the hospital. No offense - but I didn't ask for my knees to be without fluid and grinding themselves to oblivion with apparently no real solution until basically the bones destroy one another. To me - that's a condition that I didn't really ask for - and it probably should be covered by OHIP in some way.

Dang it.

Oh well - I'm still hoping that training will help develop more muscle protection/support for my knees. :(