Woof! What a day! Straight up and straight down and it was steep. It was mostly hike-a-bike up, over and down ratched chunky rocks but…
It was a gorgeous day with bluebird skies. Though the sun was out all day, the temps were cool. And there weren’t any biting horse flies (hardly any on this tour at all!)
In fact, since New Zealand doesn’t have snakes or large land mammals, there was no need to worry about cougars tracking me when slogging uphill with a 55 pound loaded bike or sitting down to picnic by Mr. Snakey Snake.
The saddle is almost eight miles up, all off road, and winds up one side and down the other.
My rear brakes totally gave out halfway down the decent – nothing left of them. Tom had to replace the rear brake pads and adjust the front ones halfway down.
We ate so very little today and spent so much energy pushing loaded bikes uphill and then wrestling with them to get down without letting them get away from us.
We cruised into Nelson (great little town), checked into our campsite and then walked almost a mile (sans loaded bikes) into town for the biggest sandos we could find.
Easier tracks coming tomorrow and we’re chasing Amelia, Sarah and a new friend that has joined them for the South Island. Will we catch them?
Today we left the North Island by ferry, crossing Cook Strait. It was a dicey bike ride on a semi dark rainy morning and we switched ferry companies at the last minute so it was a little helter shelter finding the terminal, but we made it!
We LOVED Wellington for its tasty food, craft breweries, laid back vibe and waterfront area. Tom scored stellar accommodations at an extremely low rate using Trip Advisor. We had an actual apartment with a washer/dryer combo, a full kitchen and living room and it was near the Wellington waterfront. Because the weather in Picton was forecasted to be stormy, we stayed an extra day and completed our self-guided walking brewery tour (7 in all!).
The ferry ride was very rough due to high winds. Lots of white bags in use 🤮. People trying to walk around on the ferry looking like THEY just finished a seven brewery tour in Wellington this morning.🤣
Sitting near the stern, sucking on ice chips and head down did the trick for many.
Once we arrived in Picton, the gateway to the South Island, we had a beautiful ride to Pelorus Bridge by way of Havelock which happens to be the best place to get green mussels.
We opted for ice cream instead but are sure the greenshell mussels are worth the hype.
We can tell already, the South Island is different. It’s vast and open. And it’s just lovely.
Tomorrow, we have just one thing on the agenda – get to Nelson. And this is the only obstacle in our way.
As tough as the gusty, wicked wind was yesterday, Wellington welcomed us with a calm, warm, sunny downhill ride.
Although Auckland is larger, Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand and the ending point of the North Island. We are half way finished with the TA!
What should we expect on the South Island? Everyone tells us it’s much less populated with spectacular scenery that includes fjords, glaciers and the Southern Alps. There is far less agriculture and grazing (going to miss the little four legged fluffball sheep).
Finally we think it will be colder as it’s early autumn here and we expect more rain.
The TA route guided us safely into Wellington on cycleways and we celebrated the finish of the North Island at Panhead Brewery with a celebratory bevvie.
So we are taking the day off tomorrow to resupply, rest, get a new water filter, file taxes and catch up with the bigs. And I’m sure we will scout a little more of the South Island as well while taking in a couple more local breweries.
We are so very grateful for this opportunity and lift our family, friends and neighbors up in prayer at the beginning of each day.
The day started out with bagels and a friendly local festival and it ended up with the most gosh awful wind gusts we may have ever experienced.
The fair in Martinborough was a surprise and a place to score some good eats before we tackled the Remutaka climb on the old rail trail. This is the last climb on the North Island for us. We figured we had two easy days of cycling into Wellington so we took our time wandering around the festival.
However, just outside of Martinborough the most bizarre wind kicked up. It would blow head on and then gust sideways, never giving us any warning which way it was going to take us.
The frame bags on our bikes act like a sail so we we really get pushed around during strong side winds, even with all the weight we are carrying. She blew and she blew and she did not give up.
I think this is all I want to say about this day, except that the wind continued to beat us down well into the night. By morning, she was calm.
A day that we thought was going to be a cake walk ended up being a lot harder than expected and we have that persistent wicked wind to thank for it.
When we first committed to riding the TA, I thought great! We’ll be visiting the land of the kiwis.🥝
True/not true. Yes, kiwi fruit are grown commercially in NZ but actually grow wild in China, not NZ. Is that how people from NZ got their nickname.
Nope! Apparently there’s a bird, the kiwi, endemic to New Zealand, primarily the South Island. The kiwi is nocturnal, flightless and rarely seen, but beloved by all, particularly the Māori and it is New Zealand’s national bird. Something else to know about the kiwi?
Early in the 20th century in World War I, New Zealand soldiers were commonly referred to as “kiwis” by the Allies and the nickname stuck!
More about today’s ride. 🚵🏻♂️
It was our longest yet, and included the most ratchet part of the TA (for us). It was uphill, little shoulder, headwind, and HEAVY two way truck traffic. Apparently there is a road closure elsewhere which caused a traffic diversion that doubled traffic out of Palmerston North. Ouch! Just to give you an idea, see the video below.
Perhaps when you were younger and you faced a decision you thought, “would would my parents want me to do?” Can’t say I did this all the time but I tried. Instead, we were thinking, “What would our kids want us to do?”
We got off our bikes and walked through the roughest patches while communicating “big trucks back”. Our rear view mirrors are indispensable.
We cranked the middle of the day with a steady pace and arrived in Masterton in time to meet up with Amelia and Sarah for some town food.
At our campsite, there are several cyclists, who like us, are on their last push to Wellington. We met Katrina (from Scotland) on the ferry from Pouto Point. Every time I meet someone from Scotland, I ask if they know the McVeys, our son-in-law’s family. 🤣
Ummm that would be like meeting someone from South Carolina and asking them if they know one particular family. 🤣
We got some rain last night and the tent was soaked on the outside. Actually it’s soaked most every morning we camp because it’s so dewy and damp. That makes for a heavier front end on Tom’s bike. Each night when we get to our campsite, we set it out to dry before settling in for the night.
And since we camped at higher elevation last night, it was colder and foggier than most mornings. The fog and clouds made for a magical feeling as we began our day of cycling. Ya we just climbed all the way up from that road down there.
Tom’s ribs on his right side are still pretty sore from his fall on the Mangapurua decent. Not sure how he’s lugging that wet tent up and down the hills everyday but he’s rockin’ it.
Before we knew it we had 30 miles in and it was time for a snack break.
And we picked a spot under a magnificent tree, one that’s stood guard over a lush valley for at least a hundred years.
Since it was Thursday here in NZ, and our traditional date night, we ventured into town for date night and were on the hunt for a local brewery. Mission accomplished.
As we entered the camping holiday park, we decided to opt for a cheapo cabin instead of tenting outside or staying in the upscale cabins. We hung the tent and fly out to dry on the clothes line and had our nightly route rap for tomorrow, selecting tomorrow’s stopping point.
So you know what that means… Tom gets to pack up and carry a DRY tent tomorrow.😊
This is biiiigggg sheep country we are riding through today. I’m not sure if I enjoy watching the joy of the sheepdoggos happily doing what they are trained to do, watching the little four legged fluff balls do what they do best (either graze or move to greener pastures) or watch the expertise of the sheep wranglers.
I have little knowledge about this line of work but someday would really like to learn more.
Today was also Tom’s first ice cream! He’s wayyyy behind schedule in that effort. Look for that to change soon.
Bumped up the mileage and elevation a bit today, too.
In just a few days we will arrive in New Zealand’s capital city, Wellington, take a day off and then catch a ferry to the South Island across Cook Straight. We will be over half done with the Tour Aotearoa.
From what we’ve heard from northbounders, it’s very different from the North Island. We’re going to miss counting sheep as we peddle by, but Welly, we have our eyes on ewe!👀
We are on the Tour Aotearoa route proper but it stitches together some of the best bicycle routes in the country. Right now we are on the Mountain to the Sea Track and have crossed the island once again and are on the west side. Click on the Route Tracker above to see our progress day by day.
Easy day of riding on tarmac with lots of rollers to keep us honest and a hint of a tail wind to keep us happy.
We stopped in Whanganui for some resupply, a new sleeping pad for Tom and his has been flat since the second day and his seat bag busted. So off to the retail stores we went.
Topped the day off with a great dinner in town and a comfty motel stay.
There are so many stories to share about this full day: finishing the climb to the Mangapurua Trig, the sketchy decent, making it to the jet boat at Mangapurua Landing and the just-in-time arrival of Sarah and Amelia to the Landing but the one I give the most space in my mind to is the Western Vally Settlers and their story.
Not gonna lie… the view from the Mangapurua Trig was spectacular (and if you don’t know what a “trig” is look it up, ‘cause I had to.🤣 The teacher in me wants you to remember.)😊
Looks like the descent would be an enjoyable ride downhill. Nope! It was a bit of a sloppy mud mess in places and we were in a hurry to get to the landing. Both of us went down once.
We managed to get to the landing to meet the jet boat with an hour to spare.
However, we’d been in contact with our friends Sarah and Amelia and knew they were trying to make the same boat we were but they started way back in Whakahoro (near the Blue Duck where we ate lunch yesterday) and had the entire climb to make before 3:30pm. There were six very narrow bridges they had to take their panniers off their bikes in order to pass, the mud, the dismount areas. Plus who doesn’t want to stop to take pics? But with 20 minutes to spare, these two rolled in to cheers at the Landing.
The jet boat ride itself was, well… unforgettable. Captain Ken basically maneuvered his boat up to the landing, which was nothing more than a big ole rock, and loaded our bikes on the back. He asked if anyone had ever ridden on a jet boat (Tom and I were a “no”) and then he began to advise us of the safety protocols on board and let us know “don’t worry; I’ve got this. Well he sure did!
He gunned the throttle so hard the bow of the boat went straight up in the air and I was sure the bikes on the back of the boat were at the bottom of the Whanganui River.
The views were spectacular, the ride, thrilling and the river history Ken shared was fascinating. The Whanganui River has been a water roadway for centuries and he pointed out evidence of this when pausing the trip downstream.
Lest we forget, however, the people who used this river to eke out a life with their families and friends in the Western Mangapurua Valley.
Post WWI, the New Zealand government granted returning servicemen large tracts of land to be settled. Many chose to do so on the promise a bridge would be built to improve access to roads and the Whanganui River as this area was remote and largely inaccessible.
The government did indeed build a bridge – and a rather sturdy one that would accommodate needed supplies to the early settlers.
The bridge, now named Bridge to Nowhere, never served its purpose, since settlers eventually abandoned their dreams and left the valley due to forces of nature.
As I rode through the valley seeing only chimneys that remained, old signposts of plots and evidence of clearing in the midst of thick forests, I was thinking of those who lived here, died here, were born here. What might their live have been like putting all they had into making their homestead work. And at what point did they decide they couldn’t anymore after all they had invested? Many still suffered shell shock (now called PTSD) from WWI and when the left, they left everything behind and pretty much penniless.
Lots to think about as we peddled up the hills and through the valleys of abandoned dreams.
Ok long post – but the video is pretty cool today. Click on the image below to view.
I would say the best thing that happened today (besides making it to Mosley’s) 😊 was getting to the Blue Duck Cafe just before it closed. We were HUNGRY and it’s a bit of a food desert out here where we are cycling.
But before we left Taumarunui, (last available cell service for a couple days) we had a decision to make. We needed to get up and over the Mangapurua Trig in order to catch a jet boat at Mangapurua Landing and guesstimate how long it would take so we could make a reservation.
We decided to get a bit of the climb out of the way today, head to Mosley Campground for the night and then catch the jet boat at the Landing at 3:30pm tomorrow. Sooo we were on a time schedule, with elevation, on single track, loaded up with food for a couple days. Off we went!
The countryside seems more beautiful everyday and changes! And today is the first time we’ve seen deer.
The morning’s ride also brought wide open, massive rock walls.
After lunch at the Blue Duck in Whakahoro we began climbing on a very rough 4×4 road. It was tough going for a while but soon we turned onto single track with lots of bridges, twists and turns all the while climbing. Tom would cycle ahead and wait. When the trail got to too technical for me with a loaded bike I just got off it and ran uphill with it. I can run/push sometimes faster than I can ride on single track with obstacles.
It turned out to be great planning on Tom’s part. We got to Mosley’s, laid the tent out to dry (it was still wet from the night before) and made dinner.
Post dinner we set up the tent, crawled inside and dreamed about tackling the rest of the Manapurua climb.
Keep Calm and Pedal On 