Finally - payback time!!!!

After heavy rain yesterday evening and overnight, we woke to leaden skies, wind and spots of rain. Luckily it was a short day (40 miles) and the overall route was downhill (only 2,500ft of ascent), with the added bonus of the wind being at our backs and the clouds clearing by late morning. We were riding a main road, but it had a good cycling shoulder and after about 12 miles much of the traffic turned off to go up over the Crown Ranges, the way we descended into Queenstown.  Our first stop was at a bungee jump site, 50 metre drop, with the option of a water touch. Not for us, although I did offer to give C a go as his birthday present - strangely enough he refused in a rather impolite manner!

We watched for a while, the headed on through the Kawaru Gorge, which would have been a long drag going the other way, but a pleasant descent for us. We stopped for lunch at the Roaring Meg lookout - I was expecting a spectacular waterfall, but in fact 'Roaring Meg' referred to a dancer who was carried across the stream by a group of miners in the gold rush, but made a terrible fuss about it. The second dancer had a creek named 'Gentle Annie' in her memory, so you can figure out she didn't make a fuss.  The weather just got better and better as we approached Cromwell - where we set out from 4 days ago. We thought the artwork (pictured below) was a giant chicken at first, but closer observation shows it is a bunch of fruit - which the area is famous for (allegedly).

Reunited with the car and our non-cycling luggage we did a massive washing run which we were able to hang out in the grounds of the motel. With the strong wind and bright sun it dried in no time and has now been repacked. The photo below is the initial chaos of our arrival! 

So today's puzzle concerns waste bins: 'Two new state of the art Big Belly bins are being trialled in Queenstown.  The solar-powered waste bins are connected to a cloud based asset management system that reports on how full they are and sends alerts when they need to be collected. The Council hope that they will offer the ability to better understand waste levels in real time...........'

Do we really need electronically monitored rubbish bins......????

Ukulele Festivals, Funyaking and much more!

Today was a bit of a non event as far as cycling went. The plan was to head off on unladen bikes and ride to Glenorchy and back - a total distance of about 56 miles. I took the precaution of using some mapping software to check the climb involved after yesterday and we felt 3,200ft was OK. It was only in bed that I realised I had doubled the distance (out and back) but not the ascent and since the route started and ended on the shore of the same lake it meant the total climb was 6,400ft. Given we did around 5,000ft yesterday this simply was never going to happen!  We decided to set off and see how we felt - however when we went to pick up the bikes from the ski room(!!) it was to find I had a soft rear tyre. We couldn't find the problem, so changed the tube and pumped up the old one, which was still hard as a rock when we checked 7 hours later 😡

As a result we didn't get started until 10am and the weather was fairly rubbish - low cloud on the hills, spits and spots of rain and the inevitable headwind. The hills weren't long, but they were relentless, and our hearts weren't really in it so we turned back before lunchtime and came back to explore Queenstown and walk by the lake. In so doing we managed to just get back to the motel, with the food for dinner, when the heavens opened - summer continues apace 😥

Queenstown really isn't our sort of place, but it was interesting to see hundreds of tourists trying to occupy themselves on a dull chilly day. Some were doubtless in the Adult Fun House (don't ask), or the Winery - where at great expense you can sample up to 80 NZ wines, by putting your purchased wine card into a slot by the appropriate wine and choosing how much you want 25ml = a taste, 75ml = half glass and 150 ml = whole glass. The relevant amount is deducted from your card and you carry on until you are either comatose or broke (possibly both).  We had been thinking of doing some kayaking when we get up to Marlborough but it would appear that Kayaking is so last year - now you want to be 'Funyaking', which just sounds too naff to contemplate.

Of course if you don't fancy anything too energetic you can spend the whole of the weekend at a Ukulele  Festival.  Did you appreciate that you can travel the world by searching for ukulele groups on Facebook?  Me neither!  Or how about a horizontal bungee jump (???) through a carpet of ripe cherries  there really is no end to the fun to be had over here.  

Random photos from today, including Chris making up for no pub at lunchtime and us posing with a statue of a Tui bird at Bob's Cove, where you can purchase 'Landscape, Luxury and Lifestyle' - or a holiday cottage to you or I.............

 

We change direction - and so does the wind!

It blew a hooley last night with things crashing around outside. Very little rain, but lots of branches down and the warm northerly wind changed to a cold west / south west wind to match our change in direction. We started with a 26 mile climb up to the top of the Crown Ranges, the highest surfaced road in New Zealand. It was only really steep for the last few miles, but by then our legs were sapped by the endless upward grind. The wind wasn't too much of a problem on the way up as we were sheltered by the mountains but it was absolutely freezing on the top - this is the area that saw a foot of snow just last Sunday!  We were joined on the top by two young British girls on a working holiday, who were doing a bit of cycling to see the country - we were amazed to see 2 youngsters riding up the pass with fully laden bikes and they were equally amazed to see 2 pensioners doing the same! 

The descent was very steep, twisty and scary, especially as we were now being buffeted by very strong winds and our hands were so cold we were struggling to brake safely. We finally made it down and took a detour via Arrowtown (used to be a gold mining town) for lunch, hot drinks and then, as we warmed up, ice cream. We eventually made it to our accommodation in Queenstown at around 4.00pm having had to battle into a ferocious wind for the last 15 miles. I forgot to mention that on the top of the pass a motorist got out of his car and presented the four of us with a peach each, as he had been so impressed at the fact we had ridden all the way up! 

Queenstown is full of tourists / backpackers and the like and as it was a last minute decision to stay here rather than press on for another 28 miles, we are lucky to be staying in a pretty decent place. We had a fairly lengthy walk to get food, but are now relaxing ready for the next stage tomorrow.

Thought for today - a garage sale in this area last weekend was selling a selection of random items and I am wondering who, if anyone, bought the single ski (???), 200 flys, antique fire dogs or the Agee processor.  And finally does anyone have any suggestions on this advert: Wanted - 4 X Sheets of rib and 4 X bales of pink batts..................the worry almost kept me awake

First rule of cycling:

The wind is always in your face!  It took us a while to get going today as we had to extricate the bikes from the car and get the wheels on, pack the panniers and then sort out where we were leaving the car and the rest of the luggage (on a piece of scrub land behind the motel, hidden from the road and part of the motel property. It wasn't supposed to be a long ride today (more of that later) so we didn't rush around and it was probably 9.45am before we left. I have been doing some rearranging of our plans since we got here and what was originally a 200 mile 3 day bike tour has become a 200 mile 4 day trip. This was when we realised that consecutive 75 mile days taking in the highest sealed road in NZ was somewhat optimistic, especially given the erratic weather.

Anyway the day started sunny and warm, but with a vicious wind from the north / north west - the exact direction we were to be cycling all day.  We had expected a really easy day as the route was essentially flat with only minor undulations.  The problem with this is that there is no respite from the wind howling across the wide valleys!  We made slower progress than expected, but were still only about 8 miles from Wanaka at lunchtime. Perhaps foolishly I suggested an additional loop, which turned out to be extremely difficult to navigate and was still straight into the wind until the last few miles, when we finally got a tailwind (having gone past our destination and turned back). It was only 50 miles in total, but I was blown off the road once when we went round a bend and hit a crosswind, while Chris was virtually blown to a complete standstill. Arriving in Wanaka we realised several things:

It has grown enormously since we were last here on Christmas Eve 2006 and has lost much of its charm - heaving with people and incredibly expensive. We only found one shop selling ice cream and we both refused, on principle, to pay 6 NZD for the smallest cone they sold. For less than 5 NZD we bought 6 chocolate muffins instead to enjoy with a cup of tea at the motel.  The motel itself is fine, much further out of town than I thought it was - but therefore very quiet. We trekked back in to get food for tonight at the supermarket and had to fight our way back uphill into the wind, which is already strengthening to no doubt reach gale force as promised for overnight and tomorrow (headwind forecast again😡).

So what is happening in Wanaka I hear you ask.  Well the main headline in the Wanaka Sun is about the increase in 'Boozy Bike Thefts'.  Apparently bikes are being taken late at night from the bike racks on the lake front, but are then recovered the following day from elsewhere in town. Most owners get their bikes back with the help of Facebook!  The police are rarely informed and over the busy holiday period only had a child's bike and a wheelchair handed in (hard to imagine you wouldn't notice the theft of a wheelchair).

Any croquet experts out there? The Wanaka Croquet Club plays both Golf Croquet and Association Croquet (although presumably not at the same time) - any explanations??  Or how about signing up for a 'Wild Child Adventure Session'?  These are for boys 7-12 and consist of a Parent and Child led 'adventure' no agenda...........????!!!

It clouded up quite early today and as I haven't yet mastered taking pictures of the wind, today's selection is rather restricted. The one below set me thinking - do they have a cow on standby permanently waiting for someone to roll up and milk it or is the fresh milk put in a machine for people to bring their own containers - if the latter how long can it stay in the machine before it is no longer 'Udderly Fresh'.  So many questions.........

How things change

The pictures say it all really. After rain, wind and temperatures barely in double figures yesterday we woke to full sun and a clear blue sky this morning. We drove up to Mount Cook village and set off up the Hooker Valley Track to the glacial lake at the foot of Mount Cook - along with what appeared to be hundreds of other people making the most of what was the first clear day for a while.  It would have been lovely if it had been quieter, but I don't suppose it ever is on a good day. I'll let the photos tell the story of the day. We got back to the car park in time for lunch and then set off for Kea Point, which is not as popular and therefore a lot quieter. It is further from Mount Cook but gives great views of Mount Sefton.  It was really hot and I was grateful for my Tilly Hat (which makes me look a trifle mad so doesn't feature in the photos). We were wearing too much as it warmed up, but so were a lot of others, worried about the strength of the sun coming off the snow and glaciers. 

At the end of the walk we drove to Cromwell, which is the jumping off point for the next cycling section starting tomorrow. Lovely motel and they are letting us leave the car for the three nights we are away. Currently packing panniers and checking the weather forecast.  Thought you might like a little local colour from The Cromwell and District News:

 'Free spirit swings into Cromwell'

Jennifer Graham-McNab has a habit of swinging into Cromwell every now and then. Spending her time as a free spirit (is that some sort of new job description?) the colourful and interesting Jennifer stopped in at The Tin Goose cafe and offered her talents to locals.  She read tarot cards and a small crystal ball (cheapskate)  and was accompanied by Esther, a happy and friendly Bichon Frise toy poodle. Jennifer nestled herself into the local cafe and offered her gift of intuitive channel King to those customers interested - apparently she knew from a young age that she was intuitively blessed.

The article rambles on but tells us that she now faces the task of creating her own political party. Please send your name suggestions to me - note that 'The Raving Loony Party' is already taken.

Enjoy the pics!

A few pictures from yesterday

Rain, snow and gale force winds

No matter how cold iSummer still seems to be missing round here. Today 12 inches of snow fell on the mountain range we are cycling across on Wednesday, a summer storm hit Auckland knocking out power to thousands and we had heavy rain overnight and this morning, with a high temperature at the coast of 12 degrees and 10 degrees where we are up near Mount Cook. Surely it has to get better sometime!  Luckily we didn't have much planned for today and had a bit of a lie-in and leisurely start - not leaving the motel until 10.00am. It was only around 100 miles or less up to Twizel and although we stopped at a couple of viewpoints there wasn't much to see until later this afternoon. We stopped in Twizel to have lunch and found an amazing shop - selling everything from bike spares, garden fertiliser and fishing rods to bedroom slippers and children's toys. Anyone from Bristol - it was like Mogfords to the power of 10.

Anyway we arrived an hour before the shop shut (it being Sunday) and Chris managed to get a replacement bike saddle for the one that collapsed yesterday. It is now fitted and will be given a stern test with a 4 day outing starting Tuesday.  We checked in to our fairly basic accommodation in a holiday park at 2.00pm, then walked back into the village for coffee and cakes in the Twizel Bakery Cafe. With a window seat we had a good view of the world going by and made the drinks last longer than was strictly necessary.  Then off for an hour's walk round the town (a village in UK terms but a veritable town here). It is actually quite a depressing place - once you are away from the centre you just pass row after row of virtually identical pre-fabricated bungalows with no distinguishing features. I assume many of them are holiday homes.

Anyway, by our standards, a quiet day so some observations after 2 weeks here:

There are a lot of different biting insects in NZ - I have been bitten by most of them already!

Food portions are enormous but there is relatively little obesity.

Rugby is the national obsession - every primary school, park or piece of scrubland has at least one goalpost for kicking practice. Most young lads carry a rugby ball around whereas in the UK it would be a football.

Drivers are almost universally law-abiding with regard to the speed limits (max 100kph on open roads) and the roads are littered with safety messages.

Very few dogs around - probably because they are not allowed in so many outdoor areas, National Parks etc

No matter how cold / wet it is the Kiwis know that this is summer, so wear shorts and T shirts at all times

And finally, from the Twizel update: we sadly missed the Frisbee Golf tournament this afternoon, but might try the 'Supine Pigeon' (allegedly a yoga position but anything is possible). There is also a fascinating advert for 'Spider Proofing' and one for the sale of 'Salmon Balls' - assuming you can afford these delights after paying for some continuous kerb laying........

No pictures tonight as we have limited WiFi access - will remedy tomorrow