The Latest Bicycle Touring News from DownTheRoad.org

February 2, 3 Punakaiki- It is a rainy day a good day to work since we have so many things in the works I am glad to get some of it off our plate.  We are in the process of the final edits for our second book and working on two other projects that are demanding our attention right now.

We realized that it was Sunday morning and not a good time to ride into Greymouth because the stores would be closed. We are still traveling with Isidro, he needs to visit a travel agent and we need to go to a bike shop and buy a couple of tires.  Tim’s rear tire is worn down and my rear tire needs replacing too. So we decided to stay here rather than in Greymouth where it is more expensive.

February 4 Punakaiki to Greymouth (south beach) 49 km It was a cloudy gray day but the scenery was stunning, the coast line is rocky and the sea is turquoise. The temperature is perfect for riding and with Tim, Isidro and I taking turns at the front we were in Greymouth by 12:30 pm.  We went grocery shopping first and then to the bike shop where we had a choice of three different tires because our wheels were 26 inch.  This is the very reason we ride 26 inch, we also do dirt road too but the ease of buying tires is a big factor.  We met a German couple at the camp ground and they also needed a tire but he needed 28 inch or I assume 700c and he had to order his tire. He was riding back to town to see if the tire was in when we left the campground. What a bummer.

This is what happens to a tire when the brake pad rubs on the tire, I had to buy a new one in Greymouth.

It took us more than a hour to find an internet cafe that would allow us to connect our laptop and it was at the strangest place, the railroad station. They have wireless and it works well.  We were about to finish sending some important documents and our time ran out, you would think that it would be easy to reconnect again but for some reason we could not get log back in.  It was quitting time too.  To make a long story short, I explained (as calmly as I could, I can get a bit hipper) the importance of sending our email and the women working behind the counter went out of her way to help us and it was after quitting time too.  With the email sent I could rest at ease.  Unfortunately during all this we managed to loose Isidro, bummer he was really fun to ride with.

February 5 Greymouth to Ross 62 km.  After changing a couple of tires we were on the road again. We had a great tailwind and was flying along at 27 km an hour.  It was great until we had to cross a bridge/ railroad bridge where the track went down the middle and we had to ride to one side. It doesn’t sound to bad but the bridge was an old wooden one and there were gaps big enough to suck a tire in between the planks in some places and the wind was hollowing from the side and cars were driving only a few feet behind me.  Yikes!! Lets just say I was hyperventilating a bit by the time I got off that bridge. And par for the course we had to cross a second bridge, only it wasn’t so bad the second time.  It seems that I always have to confront my fears more than once on this trip, it a tunnel freaks me out I have to ride through 3 of them, if a bridge freaks me out I have to ride over 2 of them.  I have always found the second one to be easier than the first so it only goes to show that fear is in my mind and I can make things worse than they really are.

This means the bridge has railroad tracks across it.

About a kilometer before Hokitika the wind did a 180 and it was now in our face.  While riding around Hokitika we found Isidro and we were riding together again..  The next 30 kilometers to Ross the headwind was fierce.  When we arrived in Ross the old Hotel had camping for $7.50 per person and we could not pass up a kitchen and a hot shower.

February 6 Ross to Little River 66 km Another beautiful day, sunny and no wind.  I was tired all day and when we hit the climb 10 kilometers past Hari Hari I was struggling.  By the top of the climb I was feeling better, the scenery is stunning and the Southern Alps to the west are getting higher and we can see Mt. Cook or Mt. Tasman in the distance.  We stopped in Hari Hari for lunch and watched another cyclist ride in the opposite direction.  The books recommend riding south to north because of the prevailing winds being from the southwest but so far we have only had half a day of head winds.  I think February may be the best month to ride here because it is the driest month.

Tim and Cindie and their bikes, photo by Isidro.

We free camped near the little river, we had a beautiful view of the river and were far enough away from the road to get away from the traffic noise, although traffic is light here. The logging and milk trucks seemed to disappear at Hokitika.

We all went to bed around sunset, about 9:30 pm and an hour and half later, Isidro wakes us up. He said, “There is some animal out side my tent and I don’t know what it is.

February 7 Little River to Franz Joseph Glacier (town) 45 km We rode to the glacier rather quickly, found a camp site and then walked up to the glacier. I must be getting in shape because that would have wiped me out in the past.

Franz Joseph Glacier.

We met the bike mechanic from Auckland and he told us about a new bike shop in Auckland called bike central. bikecentral.co.nz It is suppose to be a place where bike tourists can leave their bikes, take a shower, buy gear, get mechanical stuff done.

February 8 Franz Joseph Glacier to Bruce Bay 72 km This morning I discovered that I had left my water bottle at the glacier, oh I was really sad about that, I have carried that water bottle since I bought it in China over two years ago, well I guess it is about time for a new one.  Still it made me sad, and at the same time I realized how long I hold on to things, a long time if I can.

Our original plan was to ride to Fox Glacier a short 26 km away but over three long climbs, the third and final climb was steep at the beginning. Tim is carrying a lot more weight then I am and he motored up the hill way ahead of me, I just but my head down and grinded through the steep part.  It is really good to see that Tim is riding more like himself, strong and with energy, now I can give him more of my weight actually he volunteered to take more when I was slower on the climb, Thanks Tim.

By now we have seen many couples on the road and time and time again the guy is out front by a kilometer and the girlfriend/partner/friend is behind and struggling.  It doesn’t take much to even out the load and ride together but for some reason it doesn’t happen.  I even saw a guy wait up for his girl and as soon as she arrived he was pedaling again, hey ya yahoo, she didn’t even get a rest. Talk about taking the fun out of it.  It really makes me value Tim all the more, we work like a team, he carries the weight, I draft, and I cook.  We are both happy.

We (Tim, Isidro and I) yes, we are still riding with that crazy Spaniard, arrived at Fox glacier and took a look at the weather forecast. The forecast was sunny for Friday (today) and Saturday and rain on Sunday.  We decided to push on and get closer to Haast and ride there tomorrow.  It is a very remote stretch ahead with very small towns and lots of wilderness.  I must say the riding has been stunning, beautiful views of the southern alps and we are riding through the national forests so there is no clear cutting, something I find very ugly.

We rode to Bruce Bay, a beautiful spot on the ocean but the moment we arrived we were attacked by sand flies, the worst ever, nothing like turning a great place to mush.  We were in our tent and sleeping as the sun went down at 9:30 pm.  We saw about 8 touring cyclists on the road today.

Two peas in a pod, Tim and Cindie.

February 9 Bruce Bay to Haast Township (town) 80 km It was a mad dash to eat breakfast and get packed, the sand flies were eating us alive even with bug repellent, aghhhh.  The riding however was fantastic, we are in a rain forest and I am glad the sun is out, even the culverts on the side of the road are lined in moss. The different colors of green is amazing.  As long as we keep moving we enjoy the scenery, no stopping is the rule.

We arrive in Haast at mid day and visit the Haast Visitor center where we learned there is camping 3 km up the road. The center is full of info on the area and had a lot of nice maps.

A stop at the grocery store before the motor camp and we were all happy to eat ice cream.  We set up out tent at the motor camp, $30 (24 US), it was more than what was quoted in the campground book, this should be up to date, all the others were.  I think this is a bit expensive to camp but we have no choice.

For us it is time to go back to the States, the US dollar has dropped more than 12% since we arrived here in September and I fully expect it to drop some more.  It means a lot of freedom camping, which is pretty easy in New Zealand.

February 10 - 11 Haast Township We needed a few days off the bike and the weather was bad as well. We have stayed in many campgrounds in our travels and the owners of this one have been among the grumpiest.  We were sitting in the guest/kitchen area, it was pouring rain outside, I saw the manager/owner walk over to two young girls and ask them if they were staying another night.  It was about 10:30 am, they said no we are waiting for the bus. His reaction was something like this, everyone else has left before 10 am and you should too, if you are not gone in 5 minutes I will charge you for another night. The poor girl almost choked on her breakfast.  Grant it he was right but wow he really drilled the poor things.  I do believe dealing with tourists can be trying at times but on the other hand some people are not cut out to deal with the public either. At least 10 touring cyclists have passed through today, the most I have ever seen in one place.

February 12 Haast Township to Pleasant Flat Campground 49 km It was a stunning ride through the Haast River valley. My problems with my sinuses (it may be an infection or allergies) have slowed me down today.  It was nice to take our time and stop at Roaring Billy falls and walk around.  We saw at least 4 touring cyclists today with all manner of bags. One fella was riding a bike with his backpack on, ouch! he looked like his upper arms were about to give out.

Traffic is light and the scenery beautiful.

At Pleasant Flat Isidro decided to ride to Makarora, on the other side of the Haast Pass and 30 km away. Pleasant Flat was so lovely we decided to stay the night.

This little bird came to visit our campsite.

February 13 Pleasant Flat Campground to Albert town Campground 96 km  Our plan was to ride to Boundary Creek, about 50 km away and spend the night there. The next 14 km was up and to the Haast pass, the road was steep for the first two kilometers starting at the Gates to Haast, boy did I suffer, my sinuses pounded but as the grade of the road declined so did the heavy breathing, imagine that.  We were over the pass in no time and gliding down to Makarora where we had lunch, the cafe was very expensive.

Coming into the valley I had a bit of Deju Vu, I had been here 14 years earlier, the first time I was fishing and we (not me) caught some very large trout in this river.  I would have never guessed that I would have returned on a bike. Wow.  The area is stunning as ever.

We arrived at boundary creek at 1 pm and I was still wanting to ride. We had a great tailwind, the wind was from the north and that always brings bad weather. So after reading our bike book, I talked Tim into riding on.  The book was not as accurate as, we had thought, where it said it was flat it was hilly, so we had two good climbs left, one at the neck between lake Wanaka and Lake Hawea and the other further up the road to a lookout.  Needless to say it slowed us down but Oh the scenery is stunning. Glacial lakes surrounded by mountain peaks.

We rode on until the Albert town campground, a cheaper option for camping.  We could have easily ridden into Wanaka but it was cheaper to stay here and cook the remaining food we were carrying.

February 14 Albert town Campground to Wanaka 6 km We woke to two little kittens in our camp, someone had dumped them off at the campground the night before. How sad.  Luckily for them a lady in a camper was happy to feed them although she could not take them home.  She said she would call the council and get them to the spca.  I can not understand how someone could just dump a couple of kittens, how heartless can you be.

It was a quick ride into Wanaka even with the head wind. We went to the campground and set up for a few days stay.

Tim and Isidro

February 15 - 19 Wanaka. Woke to see snow pretty low on the mountains, hey isn’t it summer time.  The evening was cold, very cold.  Working away on the second book, the final push.  People in the campground look at us funny because we are on a computer, we really are not like tourists like everyone else we are working tourists.

View from the park in Wanaka, it snowed last night and it is the middle of summer here.

Read all of Cindie’s South Island #1 New Zealand Journal Here

See index of all (several years) Cindie’s Journals here