The biggest part of any bike-packing trip, Ross says, is the organisation and logistics. Whether doing the 85km Old Ghost Road in New Zealand or the 386km Annapurna circuit in Nepal, being organised is key. For this trip there was the added complication of a youth uprising and political unrest in Nepal about a month before, resulting in the New Zealand government issuing a no travel warning. They packed up their bikes with their sleeping bags, clothes for both hot and extremely cold weather and water. Their hotel, hot water and rest were welcome before they dismantled their bikes for the trip back to Kathmandu.

Either way, both sides will be hoping to at least get some cricket after an annoying spell of wash-outs. The Volts (six points) are guaranteed to earn the Ford Trophy wooden spoon but, after six losses and three no-results, they should be highly motivated to avoid a winless campaign. Auckland (16) have had a moderate season with three wins, five losses and one abandonment. Auckland seamer Simon Keene will be thirsting for action after returning from injury against Northern Districts on Friday and taking a wicket with his second ball before the rain came. After the Queenstown game, Otago have 11 days to prepare for the first of their four remaining Plunket Shield games.

Dunedin’s only Mad Butcher store will close before the end of the month. PHOTO: GREGOR RICHARDSONDunedin's Mad Butcher store is to close after a fruitless year-long hunt for new premises. Mad Butcher had been looking for somewhere else to go, but nothing had been available. "We’ve been looking for close to a year to try and find something else in South Dunedin. He said the zoning was wrong in South Dunedin for a shop like the Mad Butcher, but he wanted to stay in the area.

The Rev Erin Pendreigh, of Balclutha, pictured with the Rev Andrew Harrex, of Lawrence, at her induction in Balclutha last week as the New Zealand Presbyterian Church’s assembly executive secretary. PHOTO: SUPPLIEDBalclutha minister the Rev Erin Pendreigh has made history. She is the first woman to be appointed assembly executive secretary of the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand - a role described as equivalent to a CEO. She was inducted at a special event at the Balclutha Presbyterian Church last week. She said she was looking forward to the challenging role, which involved supporting 400 churches around New Zealand.

Sri Lanka's Kusal Mendis launches Adam Zampa through the leg side while chasing down Australia's 181. Photo: Getty ImagesPathum Nissanka made an unbeaten century as Sri Lanka chased down a target of 182 to beat Australia by eight wickets and reach the Twenty20 World Cup's Super Eight stage on Monday, leaving their opponents on the brink of a humiliating early exit. We watch the Zimbabwe-Ireland game with hope, but we are disappointed," Australia captain Mitchell Marsh said. With Sri Lanka needing 61 to win in the last six overs, Nissanka hit Stoinis for two fours and a six to score 20 runs off the over, easing the pressure. After many years, making it into the next round," said Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka, referring to his team's exit from the group stage in 2024.

Foote later wrote "Tender Mercies," a 1983 film for which Duvall won the Academy Award for best actor as a washed-up country singer. Another was for Best Supporting Actor for Coppola's "The Godfather," playing Tom Hagen, consigliere to the Corleone Mafia family. Duvall appeared in the second "Godfather" film but rejected the third because he considered the salary offer inadequate. Duvall also was nominated for Oscars for "The Great Santini," "The Apostle," "A Civil Action" and "The Judge" in 2014. He won an Emmy for the television mini-series "Broken Trail," appeared opposite John Wayne in "True Grit," and picked up an Emmy nomination for the mini-series "Lonesome Dove."

Photo: Dunedin City CouncilA vandal who targeted four of Dunedin’s public toilets destroyed ‘‘anything not made of steel and bolted down’’, meaning the Dunedin City Council was $5000 out of pocket for repairs.Over the past weekend, public toilets at the North Ground, outside Gardens New World, in North Rd, and at Marlow Park were damaged. The council said that while toilets were quite robust, whoever was responsible smashed ‘‘anything not made of steel and bolted down’’. Council property services group manager Anna Nilsen said identifying the culprit was going to be difficult as there was no CCTV footage in the areas. The toilets will be closed while the damage is fixed. - Allied Media

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Summer numbers had been good in Queenstown and investment confidence was climbing. Photo: ODT filesQueenstown has moved past pre-Covid tourism numbers and continues to be a key driver of the country’s tourism recovery. Destination Queenstown and Lake Wānaka Tourism chief executive Mat Woods said Queenstown was ahead of other areas. "While international holiday arrivals grew by an encouraging 6% nationally last year, Queenstown Lakes outpaced that trend with 11% growth." International visitor numbers were rising and they were from all corners of the globe.

“Many of these developments have few or no onsite car parks, as this approach produced a higher yielding investment than one with adequate car parking. This has led to parking and traffic congestion in the suburbs,” said Brealey. “The major investment in the City Rail Link provides an opportunity to concentrate housing intensification around station nodes and mitigate against the pitfalls of parking and traffic congestion. Councils are in charge of managing on-street parking,” Bishop said. Photo / Mark MitchellIn 2020, the previous Labour Government directed councils to abolish minimum car parking requirements in urban areas as part of a new National Policy Statement on Urban Development.

"That’s how I got evicted from Dunedin Hospital," Mr Campos said. Now recuperating at Clutha Health First, in Balclutha, Mr Campos said he expected to be able to walk within weeks. Mr Campos, a welder, discovered his passion for paragliding shortly after arriving in New Zealand two years ago. Mr Campos soars over Wanaka after his ascent of Roy’s Peak in December. "I’d just proved I had the skills to basically climb a mountain without setting foot on the ground and I was stoked," Mr Campos said.

University of Otago students are back in Dunedin and getting their bearings about town at the students association’s Tent City. Students lined up at a variety of stalls for local businesses and recreational activities. Otago Daily Times photographer Peter McIntosh was there to capture some moments yesterday.

US news anchor Savannah Guthrie (left) with her mother Nancy Guthrie (right). After reviewing the video, the FBI believes the suspect is male, medium build and between 175-177cm in height. They need the public’s help right now.”Newsweek reported the FBI had received nearly 20,000 tips since Guthrie was reported missing on February 1. A Californian man was arrested for sending a fake ransom text to Guthrie’s family and appeared in court February 12. According to the criminal complaint, Callella is alleged to have texted Guthrie’s daughter and husband regarding a ransom.

Lesley Brooks, 46, died in the triple fatal crash along SH1 near Taihape in December 2024. About 7.30am on the day of the crash, Capper, Brooks, Shaw and Coady rode their motorcycles from the campsite to Taihape for breakfast. Photo / SuppliedCapper lived with the daily reminder of Thompson’s offending, Judge Marinovich said. No personal mitigating factorsIn sentencing him, he found Thompson’s level of culpability was high. Judge Marinovich also did not accept that Thompson had shown any genuine remorse.

PHOTO: GREGOR RICHARDSONA suburban cafe proposed for a historic Dunedin corner store has passed its first test after being decried by a neighbour as a magnet for anti-social behaviour. "The proposed cafe will provide an amenity accessible to the local community in an area that is not particularly well served for shops or cafes." Addressing Ms Baldwin’s concerns about anti-social behaviour, Ms O’Dea said the cafe would be oriented towards Russell St, where it was sunniest. When it came to odours, these were "inherently subjective and vary depending on individual sensitivity, frequency and duration of exposure", Ms O’Dea said. "The proposed use as a cafe enhances the heritage streetscape character by restoring an active community function to the building and City Rise.