Monday 26th March 2007. Wanaka. New Zealand.

Up and out for breakfast at Relishes Cafe where the menu is overly fancy and the food overly average...However, there is little choice as today is a public holiday and I have come to expect things to be a little pretentious in this town.

Well today its all systems go for me to Skydive Lake Wanaka.

As adrenalin fuels my mind I am told that this is the most spectacular Skydive in New Zealand and that the scenery will fill my soul.

How true.

Our scenic flight was well worth the almost $600 I have paid and as we get to 15,000ft I begin preparing to be first out with my instructor Grant McDonald...a good Scots man!

What a rush as we freefall at 200kph or 180ft per second...take your pick. I love it, and the views across New Zealand's highest snow capped mountains were spectacular including both Mt Cook (some 150km straight ahead of us)and Mt Aspiring.

Here I am freefalling for a full minute amongst the majestic peaks that tower over Mt Aspiring National Park, over glaciers, glistening lakes and rivers.

They say that only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun...well Only mad dogs and Scots men jump out of perfectly good planes in the middle of a beautiful day.

It was exhilarating, I felt like a bird as we glided down and Grant was kind enough to ensure that although we were first out we were last to land...allowing me even more time to enjoy the views spread before me.