About Deane Parker
Mountain biking was the growth of my independence to the back country, even before I left high school. Scouring maps for rideable trails in the Top of the South Island. Rivers then drew me into another medium, to explore the depths of the multitude of the West Coasts' steep and thundering ribbons of cascading white water.
Starting a family steered me away from professional river running but I was never far from the back country rediscovering the bike and quickly rekindling the passion for back country trails especially in the high country of Canterbury and the Southern Alps.
Packrafts have also become one of my tools of adventure, lightweight white water capable inflatable rafts that can be hiked or biked into remote rivers. These boats make every landscape navigable.
In 2020 Deane was engaged by Quorum Sense as their visual storyteller and video content creator. Deane has captured footage of some of the most innovative farmers and growers in NZ
Adventure Films
This bikepacking film brings you along for a ride on the stunning Kōpiko Aotearoa, an 1,100-kilometer route across New Zealand’s North Island. See the wonderful sights, meet the locals, and share in the physical and mental challenges of this bikepacking adventure.
'Forgotten Highways', a film of adventure and cultural discovery set in the Whanganui District. The film premiered at the 2020 NZ Mountain Film Festival, having received a 'Special Judges Award'. The film is a journey through a challenging landscape following the historical trails to and from one of NZ's most significant rivers (or Awa)
Fluid Trails follows three adventurers as they make their way across Kahurangi National Park, New Zealand via mountain bike and packraft. The park is an ancient place of rare birds, rolling alpine tussock, earthquake shattered peaks and towering podocarp forests. A place of colonialism gold fever and endeavour.
3 adventurers, a film-maker and a photographer set off on a 6 day, 300km unsupported journey, by combining new bikepacking and packrafting technology. The Waiau-toa Odyssey was awarded the Best NZ Made Film for the 2017 New Zealand Mountain Film Festival. More about this Film : waiautoaodyssey.nz
Imagine a route, plot it, visualize it, plan it...embark. In this film that’s what two mates did with an ambitious 5 day loop of central Canterbury including a seldom biked crossing of the Main Divide at Harpers Pass.
Sam Jones, Deane Parker and cameraman Dylan Gerschwitz from @extremekidproductions set off on a trip that had been discussed for years. The loop contained a buffet of trail types from station roads to historic pack tracks to the Te Araroa route to the groomed singletrack of Craigieburn Forest and finally the bitumen of highway 73.
When you’ve pushed, pedaled and carried to the main divide through gale force winds and deep river crossings, Looking Down is Looking Up!