wpmcq

[wpmcq]

New Zealand Trip Wrapup

For multiple reasons, I decided to change my flight to Houston from Monday, March 16th to Saturday, March 14th. The number of countries that are locking down seems to be increasing day by day and I did not want to get stuck in New Zealand for another month. Also, I had completed my ride from Cape Reinga to Bluff and wanted to get back to the states to see my family.

Cape Reinga -- February 6th, 2020

Bluff -- March 11th, 2020

How many miles did I ride?

January -- 142 miles (230 km)

February -- 1,414 miles (2,276 km)

March -- 646 miles (1,040 km)

Total -- 2,202 miles (3,546 km)

This is like riding my bike from my house in Austin to my old house in Seattle or from Paris to Barcelona to Florence.

With all this riding I don't think I lost any weight. There is so much food available and I needed to eat a ton of food to maintain my energy. The food available most easily in New Zealand is not very healthy. They love their fried foods and the takeaway shops that sell them.

Accommodation

The accommodation was probably the most difficult aspect of the trip. Almost every day I had to search online to find a place to camp or find a room to sleep in. Camping spots seemed to be harder to find on the South Island than the North. 

The worst place I stayed in was probably in Matamata, home of the Hobbiton set, called O'Reilly's Motel. I paid $189 NZ for a 2 bedroom place infested with ants decorated in a cringy green color. It seemed to be the last place in town and I had ridden 8 to 9 hrs that day.

The best place was Miranda Hot Springs. I had a good camping spot and they had a hot springs pool that was nice and warm. The showers were good and they sold beer at the check-in desk. There was also a food trailer where this super nice guy made me a delicious fish burger.

Best day

Queenstown to Winton

I had stayed in a nice Airbnb for two nights and was well-rested. The morning was beautiful, light clouds and blue sky. I coasted down to the TSS Earnslaw dock for a ferry ride on a beautiful old boat with amazing views. Once I rolled off the TSS Earnslaw at Walter’s Peak Landing I had a beautiful 100km ride to Mossburn on all gravel roads. There was one point during the ride when I was traveling over 40kph for 10 straight km. After taking a short break in Mossburn I continued onto Winton for a total of 172km. I had a great sandwich at a Subway and the last room at an old hotel.

Worst day

Winton to Invercargill

Cold, rainy, windy. I had planned on riding all the way to Bluff on this day but could not continue as I was drenched and could not warm up no matter how hard I rode. It was in the 40′s and I had a heavy headwind. I do not like riding in the cold and ended up having to ride 8km outside of Invercargill to find a place to stay.

Final Thoughts

I enjoyed my ride down New Zealand. The country is very beautiful and the route I took had some amazing rides. At no point did I feel like giving up although I did alter my route a couple of times when I felt like my body was tired.

Black Beauty, my bike, performed amazingly. I did not have a single flat or mechanical issue the entire ride. I had my chain and cassette changed in Wellington but that was planned and happened on an off day. Probably the only thing I would have changed on my bike would have been the size of the front chainring. Every other bike I saw along the route had a much smaller chainring than me. I had a 42 tooth chainring and most other people had a 32 to 35 tooth. Because of my large chainring, I had to work extra hard to make it up hills and mountains. On a positive note, I now have super strong legs.

[wpmcq]

Invercargill

Friday, March 13th, 2020

My most important task today was finding a box for my bike. If I could not find a box I would be unable to get my bike back home. Because of the number of riders to Bluff Air New Zealand had completely run out.

I walked down to The Batch Cafe and had a veggie omelet, orange/date scone, and latte. I then headed over to Wensley's Cycles to pick up one of the 30 boxes they were having shipped from their Christchurch store. When I asked for a box the guy looked at me and said, "Let me take a look." After a few minutes, he came out with the very last box. Whew!!

I hauled the box back to the Airbnb, 3km away. Luckily it was not raining otherwise it would have been ruined.

After securing the box I walked back downtown to check out the town of Invercargill. There were construction crews demolishing a large area of old buildings in downtown.

After eating lunch and getting some more oranges at the grocery store I headed back to the Airbnb to break down my bike and pack it up. While at the grocery store I took pictures of the fully stocked section of toilet paper. People are not hoarding anything here yet because of the coronavirus covid-19.

I decided to remove the handlebars, forks, and both wheels to minimize the size of the box. I was able to get the bike, all my bike bags, a tent, helmet, bike shoes, and tools into a pretty small box. The box weighed 22.6 kilos, just below the max of 23 kilos (50 lbs).

While I was packing the bike the Airbnb host, Eva, came out and after talking to her for a while she offered to take me and my bike box to the airport. This was great as I was about to call taxi companies and shuttle services to get me there.

After putting my bike box in the back of the host's truck I walked down to a sports bar for a BLT, fries, and Tiger IPA.

Tomorrow I fly to Auckland in the morning.

[wpmcq]

Otatara to Invercargill

Thursday, March 12th, 2020

I did not have far to go today on my bike as Invercargill is only 15km away. I woke at 7am and had muesli with blueberries/peaches, an orange, and 3 slices of toast. After reading my book and packing I headed out at 9:45am. I had to wait until 3pm to check-in at the Airbnb so I had plenty of time.

I rode down this beautifully wooded road on Sandy Point next to the holiday park. I turned around at the end of the sealed road and retraced my ride back to the main road. Next stop a morning latte at Ziff's Cafe. While I was drinking my latte and reading the weather turn and started to rain.

I climbed on my bike and rode through the cold rain to the Invercargill airport to check on the status of the bike boxes. Still no boxes. I read my book until the rain stopped then headed into Invercargill to ask a bike shop about boxes and search for a book to read.

It tells you something about a town of 60,000 people and not a single good book store. Oh well, they have The Batch Cafe and that definitely makes up for the lack of book stores. I had another amazing dish. Mushrooms on a piece of crispy ciabatta with bacon on top with a rocket salad.

I hung out at The Batch Cafe until 3:45pm reading and chatting with a guy about my ride and other places to visit in New Zealand. I rode over to the Airbnb and immediately took a nice warm shower and then started a load of laundry.

I walked to a grocery store to get supplies for packing up my bike and some fruit to eat today and tomorrow as well as a bottle of multivitamins.

[wpmcq]

Otatara to Bluff and Back

Wednesday, March 11th, 2020

Woke at 6am to a cold room. I unplugged the heater when I went to bed so I wouldn't get too hot. I had a good breakfast for my ride down to Bluff. Muesli with blueberries, an orange, and toast.

I headed out at about 9am. The ride was going to be about 50/50 trail and road. It was chilly the entire way down to Bluff but not wet so it was fine.

The road was not the best because of all the big trucks going down to the port in Bluff. On the other hand, there was more trail than I expected.

I rode through Bluff and at the end of highway 1 is Stirling Point. There is a pole with a bunch of different signs pointing toward cities around the world and how far away they are. After taking some pictures I climbed back on my bike and pedaled away.

After having a latte and scrambled eggs with toast at the only open cafe in Bluff I rode back to my room 40km away. I did stop at the 4 square for a couple of beers.

For lunch, I fried up a couple of eggs and made toast. After lunch, I cleaned my bike and lubed up the chain.

After a nap I made dinner. I had rice risotto with avocado, peanuts, spinach, and egg. It was delicious but I think I ate a little too much.

Tomorrow I ride to Invercargill and stay in an Airbnb for 2 days. I will fly to Auckland on Saturday morning.

[wpmcq]

Winton to Holiday Park a little West of Otatara

Tuesday, March 10th, 2020

I woke at 6am to the sound of trucks driving through water outside my window. I looked through the shades and it was dark and rainy. I started packing up and doing my normal morning routine. I rolled out the back of the hotel at 8:15am with my rain jacket on over my long sleeve merino wool shirt.

It was raining and cold. I found a nice cafe called Adagio where I ordered a latte and scrambled eggs with toast. While I was eating, the proprietor chatted me up about my cycling. Before I left he gave me a beer to open when I finish my tour in Bluff.

I zipped up and headed toward Invercargill. The rain was coming down pretty hard and soon I was drenched. By the time I made it to Invercargill I was cold to the bone. I decided to stop at the library to warm up but some shady stuff was going on with the bicycles so I headed over to The Batch Cafe.

It was in a better neighborhood and was starting to get crowded for lunch. I ordered a seafood chowder, orange scone, and latte. I found a very comfortable chair to sit and eat my lunch and warm-up.

All the food was delicious, I even ordered a blueberry muffin after finishing off everything. Because I have four days before my flight back to Auckland I decided to finish in Bluff tomorrow. The weather forecast looked sunny for tomorrow and there was still no improvement today.

I found a holiday park about 8km East outside of town. I climbed on my bike and headed toward the holiday park.

I stopped at the airport to check if they had any bike boxes available and how the process would work Saturday morning. Turns out they were completely out of boxes but provided me a number to call to check later in the week if more had arrived.

After delaying some more at the airport I continued my cold and wet ride. I stopped at a 4 square grocery store and bought groceries for 2 days since there were not many restaurants available by the holiday park. Milk, pasta mix, rice mix, avocado, apple, orange, peach, 1 beer, loaf bread, cookies, blueberries, muesli, bag spinach, 6 eggs, and butter.

After getting my room. Comfortable room with a double bed, bunk beds, table, and two chairs. I unloaded my bike and then made dinner at 4:30pm. I had the pasta mix with spinach and 2 fried eggs with toast.

I read Ben-Hur for the remainder of the day and watched the weather improve and the sun comes out. There must be a shooting range nearby because I heard gunshots all afternoon.

[wpmcq]

Left, Trashed, and Lost

Over the last month and a half, I have left stuff I no longer felt I needed and others might use. I have trashed things I did not think should be used. I have lost things during my rides or from not keeping track of everything.

Left

Kickstand: I think I used it once at my first campsite. You just lay your bike on the ground or lean against something. Left in Wellington.

Green cup: I used this a few times but did not provide much value and had to clean it every time I used it. Left in Harihari.

Chain and Cassette: While in Wellington I had my chain measured for stretch and it was so stretched I had to change the chain and the cassette. Left in Wellington.

Trashed

Blue resistance band: I brought this so I could stretch out. What was I thinking I never stretch. Never used it. Trashed in Wellington.

Half jar of Peanut butter: It became rancid because water got inside the jar. Trashed in Winton.

Lost

Waterproof Custom Bike Cover: Maryellen sewed this for me. I used it multiple times for security at some of the places I stayed and to keep my bike and all the bags dry while I was in my tent. It was strapped to my seat bag and I lost it while riding on a very bumpy gravel road between Tapawera and Murchison.

Multitool: I only had used the knife on the multitool so not a critical loss but I liked this multitool. Lost between Walter Peak Landing and Mossburn.

Soap container and soap bag: I had a small travel size plastic bottle full of liquid soap. Left in Whangarei. I then started keeping bars of soap in a Ziploc. Left in Hokitika.

[wpmcq]

Queenstown to Winton

Monday, March 9th, 2020

I slept great and woke up at 7am ready to go. After doing some packing I went downstairs at 8am for another great breakfast and some good conversation with the Airbnb host, Penny. She is a local elected district manager so she has a lot of opinions about how things should work.

After breakfast, I finalized my packing and put on my cycling gear. After loading up my bike I rode down the hill to the dock. I needed to be there to put my bike on the boat around 9:30am. After putting my bike on board I bought a latte.

I was taking the TSS Earnslaw, an old steamboat, to Walter Peak Landing. The boat was very nice and actually ran on coal-fired steam boilers. You could watch them shovel coal and see the steam engine run.

There were not many passengers so there was plenty of space to wander around and check out the boat and see the amazing landscape. The weather was perfect and the lake calm. After about 45 minutes we arrived in Walter Peak Landing and I rolled my bike off the boat.

After applying some sunburn lotion I headed toward Mossburn, 103km away, on the Around The Mountains Trail. The views of the landscape were stunning on this ride, mountains, lakes, and crystal clear rivers.

The last major hill was on this ride, Von Hill, and then it was down or flat to Bluff. From Walter Peak Landing to the bottom of Von Hill it was a pretty fast ride. Von Hill only took about 45 minutes of climbing to complete.

After Von Hill, I was flying through this wide valley. I think at one point I was going 40kph for 10km on gravel. After fording some rivers and yelling at cows to get out of the way I made it to a smaller bicycle/hiking-only trail. This trail took me all the way to Mossburn. I could see evidence of all the recent flooding on this trail.

I made it to Mossburn around 4pm and ate a chicken pesto panini, chips, kombucha, custard pie, and ice cream bar. There were some other cyclists there and they convinced me to ride to Winton. The wind is supposed to change tomorrow to a headwind instead of a tailwind. Today would be my longest ride yet, coming in at about 105 miles or 172km.

For the first 30km, I was flying then a light rain started and the wind shifted which slowed me down a little.

It started to get dark in the last 10km of the ride. After rolling into Winton I found a Subway Sandwich place open and scarfed down a large chicken subway, bag of chips, and orange Fanta. After "dinner" I found the recommended hotel, Central Southland Lodge, and got the last room for 75 NZ. I was excited because it was going to rain all night.

Before having a shower I had two beers and chatted with the bartender and some guys running the hotel. After my shower, I was ready for bed but excited because I only have 65km tomorrow to get to Bluff, my final destination.

[wpmcq]

Queenstown Day Off

Sunday, March 8th, 2020

I did not sleep well last night. I realized in the morning that a window was open and kept the room pretty chilly.

I went down for breakfast, provided by the Airbnb host. I had a bowl of muesli with toast. After starting a load of laundry I took my bike down to a bike shop to clean it. They only asked that I bring them some pastries.

I rode back up to the Airbnb to get all my clothes on the drying rack. I walked down to the city center and had a latte at Atlas beers on the waterfront. After wandering around the city for a couple of hours I had a pizza for lunch.

After lunch, I hiked up to the top of the gondola station through the forest. There were some amazing views from the top. I hiked back down the same Tiki Track. It only took a couple of hours for the hike.

After wandering around town for a couple of hours I stopped at the Beech Tree Craft Beer bar for some fries and beer.

I headed back to the Airbnb to prepare for my ride to Mossburn tomorrow.

[wpmcq]

Wanaka to Queenstown

Saturday, March 7th, 2020

I woke at 7:20am, which is pretty late for me recently. I did my normal morning business, packed my bags and threw everything on my bike. I rode down to the main road and found a great place for breakfast. I had a delicious frittata, mushrooms cooked like scalloped potatoes, chickpea salad, fried egg on top of a tomato amazingness, and a latte.

Today was going to be mostly climbing. I had to ride up the highest sealed road in New Zealand. Luckily the first 30km was a gradual ascent followed by 10km of preparatory climbing and final 5km of straight up. I made it to the top at about noon. 1076 meters or 3630 feet at the top.

After taking some pics I headed down towards Queenstown. It was a white knuckle ride. If my breaks failed I would have not made some of the turns.

After about 5km I turned on to a gravel road. Yeah, no cars! I eventually turned off the road on to a 4 wheel track that was pretty rough and steep. After making it down the track I crossed a bridge and rode along a river by Arrowtown.

I was going to be on cycle trail all the way to Queenstown. It was a nice well-maintained trail along a river and lake. As I got closer to Queenstown it got more crowded.

Once I arrived in Queenstown I found my Airbnb and called the host to check-in. After a hot shower and some time visiting with the family on Duo, I walked down to the main part of town.

I wandered around town having a hummus dish at a craft beer bar, taco, bowl of miso ramen, chocolate ice cream cone, and a couple of beers. I walked back to my Airbnb around 8:45pm to organize my stuff and get ready for bed.

[wpmcq]

Haast to Wanaka

Friday, March 6th, 2020

I wanted to get an early start as I was going to ride to Wanaka, 150km away. I woke at 6am and started getting ready. I wanted to roll out at 7:30am.

After eating a few bars for breakfast I left Haast a little after 7:30am. It was pretty dark and cold so I had my rear light flashing and my bright green jacket on.

The first 60km of this ride was up and the last 10km was very steep. The sky was clear and I got some amazing views of the mountains surrounding me. The Haast river was on my left for most of the day. The river is dark blue because of how clear it is.

I stopped once in the morning to eat some bars for energy and was swarmed by sandflies. My stop was fast, no lingering. After this stop, I started climbing over the Haast pass. After making it to the top of the pass I flew down the other side of the pass.

After eating a late breakfast at the Makarora Country Cafe I headed toward the lakes. I first road past Lake Wanaka then through The Neck and finally past Lake Hawea. The lakes were very large, blue, and clear.

After making it to Lake Hawea township I was finally off highway 6 and back on a gravel bike path. The path took me to Albert Town. Along the way, I saw some kids surfing in the river like in Munich.

Once in Albert Town, the path followed a river and then back to Lake Wanaka. After riding into Wanaka I found a place to stay. This town is very touristic but has nice amenities.

I had pizza for dinner that took a very long time but was delicious. I'm now back at the hostel and preparing for tomorrow.

I ride to Queenstown tomorrow, up and over the highest pass I will ride while in New Zealand.

[wpmcq]

Fox Glacier to Haast

Thursday, March 5th, 2020

I woke about 6am and decided to pack up early and head over to the cafe for breakfast. I chose the Fox Glacier Cafe. It opened at 8 am but was worth it. I ordered bubble & squeak, 3 slices of bacon on 2 fried eggs on a potato/onion cake with toast. I also had a latte and warm blueberry muffin.

After buying a large water bottle, there was a boil notice, from the grocery store I headed out for my ride to Haast. It was going to be a 120km ride but the elevation changes were in my favor.

It was a little chilly but my long sleeve merino wool shirt was perfect. I was flying down the road. I had good wind, nice gradual descent, and good energy.

About 50km into the ride the road popped out of the forest onto Bruce Bay with some amazing views of the surf and coastline.

I finally got to see my first mountain top today. The clouds lifted to the East for just long enough for me to snap a picture.

My first stop was at the 69km mark at Lake Paringa. I think I finally learned today that I can't stop at lakes, the sandflies are terrible because of the water. Sandflies are like flying chiggers or flying fire ants.

My next stop was at Knights Point Lookout. It sits high up on a cliff over the Tasman Sea with incredible views of large rocks in the sea. Just a couple more small hills and fast descents to a flat final 20km ride into Haast.

I was out of water having drunk all 1.5 liters of my water. I stopped at a small grocery store and bought a Powerade, 2 bananas, an apple, an orange, a KitKat bar, and a large water bottle. I ate and drank everything except for the water.

I found a backpacker room, for 75 NZ, at the Haast motor park. The place is very clean and pretty new. After taking a shower I walked down to The Hard Antler for dinner. They had a veggie buffet with a protein. I got pork spare ribs as my protein. I loaded up with the veggie buffet. Salad, pasta salad beet salad, coleslaw, roasted potatoes, and roasted veggies. Nothing fried tonight.

I plan on riding 150km tomorrow so a good dinner and a good bed are perfect.

[wpmcq]

Riding through New Zealand Forest

[wpmcq]

Harihari to Fox Glacier

Wednesday, March 4th, 2020

I slept pretty well in my little backpackers plus. Even though I had my clothes hanging under a heat lamp all night in the bathroom they were not dry.

I walked over to the only cafe in Harihari and had a hot pain au chocolat and latte. I walked back and packed everything back on my bike except for my green mug. I have not used it in a couple of weeks so I'm leaving it in Harihari. In the corridor outside my room, there was a large flying insect that was super cool. Anyway, after loading everything on my bike I cleaned the drive chain and applied lubricant to the chain. I rode out about 9am headed toward Fox Glacier.

The ride was all on highway 6. It started with Hercules mountain which got me warmed up. I got to cuss at a few cars but for the most part, it was a pretty easy ride until the last 12km. The mountains were shrouded in clouds but there were a few beautiful lakes along the way. Because of all the rain, every river I crossed was full and rushing to the ocean.

The last 12km had 3 climbs back to back. By the time I rolled into Fox Glacier my legs were pumped. During this ride, there was a large number of slips. A slip is when a hill or mountain fails. There were some parts of the ride when I did not want to be close to the side of the wall along the highway.

I found Fox Glacier hotel and pod hostel, where I was going to stay tonight. I unloaded a bunch of stuff off my bike and then went for a short ride to the Fox Glacier.

Because of all the slips, the trail up to the glacier was closed. About halfway up I had to park my bike and walk up to a viewing point. I was a little disappointed because the glacier was very far away and I did not have the proper gear to hike another 3 hrs to the glacier.

After walking back to my bike and then riding back to Fox Glacier Township I had a warm shower. I walked into town to find a place to eat. I ended up ordering a spicy pizza that was yummy. No fried foods.

I chilled in my room for 30 minutes then went down to the bar for a beer and to read Ben-Hur and watch some rugby on the TV.

[wpmcq]

Hokitika to Harihari

Tuesday, March 3rd, 2020

It rained on and off throughout the night. I could hear the waves crashing and the rain pelting the tent while I was in my double bed warm and cozy.

I woke at 6:30am and started to get ready for a reasonably short ride, 78 km, made more difficult by the expected rain all day. After eating a provided breakfast of granola with banana, apple, and blueberries I finished packing my bike and headed out.

I went to a cafe called The Gatherer and had a latte while watching the rain outside. I put on my rain jacket and cycled South on the West Coast Wilderness Trail toward Ross where it terminates.

The trail went through some beautiful coastal forests and followed an old train line. It was not raining hard at this point but enough to keep me and my clothes wet.

After getting to Ross I rode on highway 6 until I crossed a bridge then turned right onto a gravel road that paralleled the highway.

After 10km I popped back out onto highway 6 again and would be until Harihari. The road wound through multiple scenic reserves and if not for the cars and rain it would have been an awesome ride. The rain started coming down in buckets at the point.

I made it to a rest area next to Lake Ianthe that had a small shelter with a picnic table where I could dry out and eat something. While I was there a Canadian couple I had met at The Dwellington came over and said hi and we chatted for a little while watching the rain pour down. The had been so much rain the lake was flooding. After 30 minutes under the shelter, I was getting chilly from the cold and not riding so I got back on the highway and road about 20km more to the Harihari Hotel where I had booked a room.

I was drenched and everything on my bike was drenched. The only waterproof bags are my sleeping bag and the bag with my clothes. My frame bag lets in a little moisture but not enough to cause damage.

I unloaded everything from my bike to let it dry out tonight before putting it all back on the bike tomorrow.

After a warm shower, I went to the bar to chill out and drink a couple beers and have dinner. I made a mistake and ordered the fried seafood platter. It was terrible and my stomach started to rumble immediately. I think I will have a light breakfast in the morning and I'm swearing off fried foods.

Tomorrow I ride to Fox glacier.

[wpmcq]

Animal list

This is a list of animals I've seen so far in New Zealand.

Cows, cows, cows. All different kinds. The coolest were these long-haired brown/orange cows.

Bulls and Stags (male with no balls) a few of these looked like they would kick your ass.

Sheep -- White ones, Black ones, Brown ones, Brown and white ones

Red deer -- They farm them for meat.

Alpacas. They are so chill.

Pigs and baby pigs (one was in the middle of the road)

Domestic Goats

Wild Goats

Horses. I've seen workhorses, wild horses, and beautiful powerful racing horses.

Miniature horses

Donkey

Chickens

Black swans

Geese

Ducks

Ostrich in captivity

Emu in captivity

Seagulls

Hawk

Huron

Pukeko

Weka

Lots of little songbirds

Rat. On a gravel road. He looked mangy and did not run when I rode up and stopped to check him out.

Stoat. Small little mustelids. I've seen 5 of these I think. These are enemy number one for New Zealand birds.

Bees. I've been stung twice while riding.

Rabbit. Roadkill and alive.

Possums. Only roadkill

Hedgehogs. Only roadkill but might have heard one while camping in Eketahuna.

Elk. I was riding back from Bluff and hear them bugling in a field. I think they were raising them for meat.

[wpmcq]

New Zealand swimming hole

[wpmcq]

Weka bird

I'm making the noise.