Just a short ride today – we knew we would be riding in the rain and fog and while we didn’t want to take a day off, our bodies appreciated less miles. We’ve got just three big climbs left – and one of them is Crown Point in a couple days, the highest point of the entire Tour Aotearoa.
Since it’s kind of a slow “news” day, I wanted to mention a little more about our route, how we know where to, more about the elevation, etc.
Tom is the primary navigator (I just follow and holler when RVs and trucks are approaching from behind). We both have helmet mirrors (photo above) that show us what is approaching from behind. We haven’t seen one person in New Zealand using them which is surprising given so many narrow, shoulderless roads.
We use these books, written by the Kennet Brothers and there are GPX files that can be downloaded to our Garmin Navigation devices that are mounted in the cockpit of our bikes giving us turn-by-turn instructions.
Makes it soooo easy… included in the booklets are text instructions, an elevation map and a road map with tips on where to stay, buy food, etc.
The books are not always up-to-date so we need to confirm with Google maps and there are traffic warnings in the text. Info on public toilets are included when one prefers using them over the “facilitrees.”🌳🙋🏼♀️
Today we turn away from the coast as our destination is Makarora and you can see we have Haast Pass on our to-do list today. 😂 Life is so simple when living on a bicycle.
We are getting comfortable using kilometers but still confirm distance with miles.
We’ve been using this map since Hokitika which seems like forever ago and we will be using it until Queenstown. Whew!
As far as we can tell, we have about a week of riding left so the horses are getting close to the barn so to speak. Mixed feelings about that but overall senses of gratitude and accomplishment will prevail.☺️
Oh finally in other news (and this is cool) Russ Cook, the first man to run the length of Africa (finished in April 2024) is now running the length of New Zealand – northbound on the Tour Aotearoa route!
We may “run into” him. He started at Bluff where we are finishing.
Click on the image below to view today’s video.
Keep Calm and Pedal On 