IN DETAILW
ithGoProinhand,Kyle‘teKiwi’
Mulindertravelsthelengthand
breadthofNewZealandand
beyondcapturingmany unforgettable sights
anduniquestories.
Onlineandonsocialmediahe’sknown
as‘BareKiwi’,a friendlyguywitha big
personalitygettinginfrontofthecamera
toshowcasehiscountry‘uncovered’and
atitsauthenticbest.Asa recognisedglobal
influencerontheadventuretravelscene,he’s
alsoindemandinternationallywithoneofhis
mostrecentawaytripsbeingtoCalifornia.
Betweenprojects,MotuekaishomeforKyle
andwifeLisa.Bothsharea passionfornature
andoutdooradventure.Oneofthecouple’s
favouriteBareKiwipostsshowsthemoment
whenKyleproposedtoheronemorningat
sunriseona pristinegoldensandbeachin
theAbelTasmanNational Park – during a
weekendofkayaking.
“Itwasa coolmomentcreatedforus
personallyandit cameoutbeautifully,”Kyle
says.“Itwasgoingtogoonmypersonal
pagesbutthenwebothdecidedtoputit out
there.Itwentcrazyviralandended up as
theGoProvideooftheday!”
Kylegrewupona smallsheepfarmin
thelowerNorthIslandbut,asa teenager
begandreamingoflifebeyondthefarm
gate.Hislifechangedforeverafterjoininga
tripontheSpiritofNewZealand.“Itwasan
incredible10-dayexperience.I cameaway
witha newattitudeandanawarenessof the
excitingopportunitiesopentome.”
It pavedthewaytoanadventuretourism
courseinNelsonandhisfirstfull-timejobas
a white water rafting guide on the Buller River.Everysummerforthepast 15 years,he’sworked
asa seakayakguideintheAbelTasman.
TheBareKiwiconceptstartedtoformmore
than 10 yearsagoand,atthattime,theideaof
launchinghisownwebsitecomplementedby
shortonlinevideostohelptravellersgettoknow
therealNewZealandwasprettyground-breaking.
“Ofcourse,thewebsitefellawayasthe
socialmediasideofit snowballed.I’vehadto
learntoevolvewithit andkeeponevolving.”
Insteadofbeingweigheddownwitha lot
ofcameragear,KyledecidedGoProwasthe
bestwaytocapturetheactionwithoutlimiting
hisenjoymentofthemoment.Bonusesof
thelifestylearethewonderfulpeopleand
placeshegetstoencounter.Fromoneweek
tothenext,hemaybeinAkaroaswimming
withdolphinsorexploringicecavesonMt
CookGlacier.It soundslikeonelongholiday
butthereisa lotofworkinvolvedbehindthe
scenes,suchashavingtoeditthefootageand
planeachtravelcampaign.Kyleiscontinually
upskillingwithnewtechnologyandsayshe’s
hadtolearntobeassertiveabouttheworthof
hiswork.Yet,hewouldn’thaveit anyotherway.
“LisaandI flewtoMilfordSoundandback
theotherday.Itwasincredible,andyoufind
yourselfthinking‘isthisreallyhappening?’”
ThroughhisyearsexploringNewZealand,
Kylenaturallyhashisfavouriteplaces
includingtheAbelTasman,Kaikōura,East
Cape(LakeWaikaremoana),MilfordSound
andQueenstown,Taupō,andNorthland.
Thismonthhe’llbeinTaupōasa guest
speakerattheBackpackerYouthAdventure
TourismAssociation(BYATA)conference,
presentingonthe evolution and influence of
social media.Capturing the adventure
WORDSKim NewthPHOTOSKyle Mulinder27