Cambridge to Te Awamutu to Waitomo to Hamilton and Merry Christmas

Plan C entailed cycling down to the Waitomo Caves. Plan B didn't work out because there was no accommodation available in Raglan due to the time of year - thankful only that we didn't cycle all the way in to find that out.

We spent a quiet Christmas Day cycling into a head wind of 15 knots or so. Odd really that the only day we decide to cycle south, that the headwind follows us. We made an extra effort and packed potatoes on veggie lamb sausages to make bangers and mash for Christmas Dinner. The Holiday Park we stayed at had a nice hot tub which was great for calming the aching muscles.

Boxing Day was spent touring around some of the wonderful caves they have in this area - The Ruakuri Cave was by far our favourite, although extremely pricey after all was said and done.

After checking the forecast, we decided to forgo another rest day to avoid another 20 knot headwind and rain and set off down more beautiful back country roads.

Cambridge to Te Awamutu
Dist. 31.7km
Max 43.6kmh
Avg. 14kmh

Te Awamutu to Waitomo
Dist. 54.3
Max. 42.4kmh
Avg. 14.1kmh

Waitomo to Hamilton
Dist.82.9km
Max. 69.4kmh --<> This is the top speed reached so far :)
Avg 15.8kmh

Ruakuri Cave Stalagmites

Beautiful back country roads

Even the cows have to climb a few hills

Mt Taranaki pic from earlier in the trip

Beep Beep!

Merry Christmas - belated, and Happy New Year!

That concludes our cycling for the North Island, we are hoping to catch a bus with our bikes tomorrow to Wellington to meet up with Dave, Sharon and Travis - all arriving on December 31st! We spent the afternoon between the rain at a great garden in Hamilton - will post pics from Wellington.

kindle update - rotorua to cambridge

bright sunny day causing instant dark tanlines. 300m climb over 15km then 400m descent over next 40km through beaut nz countryside.

dist. 90km

avg 17.2kmh

max 57kmh

highlight finally finding our cyclimg legs

Waitapu to Rotorua and rest day

Tuesday started off smelling sulphurous at the Lady Knox Geyser at the Waiotapu Geothermal wonderland which was a short cycle from where we were staying. Then it was back in the saddle to get to Rotorua which is also in the Geothermal band that runs through NZ.

Pleasant cycle with a gradual climb, and fun descent into Rotorua, which is a very bike friendly city noted by the bike lanes marked out through the town.

Once here, we discovered that the buses we needed to catch for our next leg on the east coast were booked up for the next week. Time for Plan B - we are learning to be flexible.

Instead we decided to take a much needed rest day to check out Rotorua:
1. We checked out a sort of intro to Maori Culture - very cool insight into some of the culture (albeit touristy) - these maoris were surprisingly musically talented and had very scary looking faces esp. when doing the haka. They also cooked our dinner in a hungi  underground.
2. Checked out the thermal pools by the lakes edge and have a soak to rest the aching muscles

Running low on internet credit - will post some pics. Plan B looks like Raglan for Christmas if all goes according to plan.

NZ's only Glockenschpiel - Romeo and Juliet pop out of the windows

Is that rain up ahead?

We caved in and got a caravan to dry all of our clothes

Lake Taupo rest stop

Kerosene Creek - also smelled like a fart

Champagne somethingorother

trying to be fancy

Amazing colors here

Lady Knox getting ready to blow

Kapow!

Best warrior in the village sent to intimidate - looks like he succeeded according to the look on lady's face

Caveman captured deep in thought at the edge of lake Rotorua

Dist: 39.3km
Avg: 14.4 kmh
Max: 42.0kmh
Cycle time: 2'43
Travel time: 815a-130p

All for now - next update coming soon.

kindle update - taupo to waitapu

monica cursing less todayas rain has more of a vancouver drizzle. nice
flat day through quiet farmland. stopped at waitapu geothermal
hotspot. going to see a geyser shoot off tomorrow.
dist. 68.4k
avg. 14.3
max 41
cycle time 4'46
travel time 1030-500
free wireless should be national issue for nz
highlight. soaking in kerosene creek thermal river

kindle update - turangi to taupo

update being sent from free threeg on kindle. terrible keyboard and
ltd punctuation.
torrential rain and headwind. one very large ascent. mostly flat
alongside beautiful lake taupo. having the time of my life. monica
cursing behind me says perhaps not for her.
dist 55.9km
avg 14.9kmh
max 64.9
cycle time 3h46
travel time 1030-340
highlight stoppimg for espresso and licorice at licorice cafe.

From windy Wellington to the quaint town of Stratford (Dec 12th - 17th)

When I first mentioned that Pete and I were planning on cycling NZ there were two things that everyone familiar with NZ said, first that it's very hilly and second that it's also very windy.  Well now that we've spent the last few days cycling around I can attest to the fact that it is indeed VERY hilly and windy but also very beautiful.


After a wonderful stay in Wellington with Gary, we made our way by train to Ohakune.

Is it a greenpeace boat or a pirate ship?

Cable car which takes you to your front door

At Gary's home, before we set off for the train

The journey took about 4.5hrs and it was a great way to see the countryside and get an introduction into this beautiful place we are calling home for the next two months.  We rolled through lots of tiny towns and green pastures with lots of sheep and cows.  If I ever start to eat meat again, it will have to be here!  The animals must taste good based on their very yummy diet of natural grass and fresh air.  Pete has tried to befriend some of the calves but has been unsuccessful so far as they are very timid animals.  

Dinner or maybe a wool sweater instead...

The route we were completing on the first day took us from Ohakune to Ranana.  It started as a very lovely cycle on paved roads with lots of cows, sheep and no traffic.  I must mention that cows and sheep seem to be very curious animals and when we cycle by them they tend to look up and stare at us.  They don't do this for cars that come down the road, just bicycles.  During good moments of cycling I think that they are saying 'Welcome to NZ, you're going to have a great day of cycling!' and during the bad moments of cycling I think that they are laughing at us and saying 'Are you crazy, this place has hills and climbs that will kill you!!'.  We hit our first climb of the day and it didn't quite kill me but it sure did take my breath away, not only due to the elevation gain but also because of the view from the top.

Mount Ruapehu in the background

We cycled on and encountered a horrible dirt/gravel road.  The rocks were large, very loose and just kept coming.  Although the scenery was lovely, the cycle was anything but lovely.  There were lots of  ups and downs which both required lots of concentration to ensure that we didn't slip out and fall.  Pete was able to capture some pictures of me cycling up some of these horrible sections and I was able one of Pete ahead of me.

Monica climbing up

Pete climbing up

There are quite a few pictures of me climbing up hills and of Pete's back.  Pete's quicker than I am and when he gets to the top he captures my very humbling struggle up the hill.  I in turn am able to take some of his back as he cycles on ahead.  

Although I can't say that I would ever do this route again, the scenery and the views did make it all worth while and I would recommend, with heavy caution, that anyone cycling NZ do this route.

Whanganui River

We spent the night camping in Ranana and the next day made our way to Kai Iwi.  We continued to cycle next to the Whanganui River with the road returning to beautiful tarmac.  There was one very large climb today that on paper didn't seem like it should be very difficult but in reality was pretty tough.  It was a 200m elevation gain over 2.5km, but the best part was the 2km downhill ride after the climb!  The views from the top also made up for the difficult climb.  Needless to say my granny gears and I have become the closest of friends and we see each other multiple times every day!

Seriously, another hill!

View from the top, note that we started the climb by the river!

We spent the night in a great campsite in Kai lwi beach that even had a large flat screen TV, which we vegged in front of in a comatose state.

Kai lwi beach

Our third day of cycling included lots of ups and downs (have you picked up on the pattern yet!) and was on one of the highways, with a fairly comfortable shoulder to ride on.  There was a small section (7km) of road that was made up of sticky mud which gripped onto the tires and wouldn't let go, but the rest was on lovely tarmac.  I've never really felt any emotion towards what type of material a road is made up of, but now I can honestly say that I'm in love with tarred roads and yes, I would marry it if I could :)

Lovely green pastures

We had a rest day scheduled in Stratford (Dec 16th) and we were going to cycle the 'Lost Highway' today.  However, torrential rain and wind have kept us in Stratford for one more day.  We did try to cycle out but after 1.5km, into a very strong westerly, we were soaking wet and I couldn't see how I could continue for another 40km!  Due to time constraints and the weather we are now taking a bus to Turangi, keep your fingers crossed for us as the bus driver has the right to refuse bicycles.  If this happens we lose the money for our ticket completely and have to rebook!  If all goes well we will be in Turangi tomorrow and back on our bikes Sunday.  

Also note  that WiFi is not as readily available as we thought it would be so keep updated on our location by checking the 'Where Are We' section.

Some more pictures...

Favorite position after a tough climb

Carbo loading

Total cycling distances:

Dec 12th: Ohakune to Ranana - 65km

Dec 13th: Ranana to Kai lwi - 80km

Dec 14th: Kai lwi to Hawera - 82km

Dec 15th Hawera to Stratford - 40km

Wellington is Windy

Looking back on the past week, it is difficult to say where to start. Here are some of the highlights:

Brazil

Noting that:

•  on buses, you not only have to give up your seat to elderly, disabled, women-with-child, but also to overweight people - it made for a funny sign which sadly we didn't get a picture of.
• On Copacobana beach they have digitized displays every few hundred meters that appear to indicate what type of sunscreen you should wear based on what color you are. The day we left, it was 30SPF for white chocolate colored people, and 15SPF for milk chocolate colored people.



Copacobana Beach with Sugar Loaf in the background

• Trying to reason with an Air Canada check-in agent after 44 hours of travel is a pointless exercise. Our plane leaving Sao Paulo had a problem that extended our total travel time from Rio to London to a total of 46 hours. The consolation being that the airline paid for a night in Sao Paulo and Toronto in rooms that were palatial compared to anything else we have stayed in - ever. And no dorm mates to blame the snoring on.

Ontario

Brr

• Rushed, but great visit with family (sorry Nonni)
• Snow
• My first attempt at hanging xmas lights. Monica's mom commented: "Don't worry, I will fix them tomorrow!"

All I have to do is...

Masterpiece

BC

• Quick visits with friends
• Packing
• Packing

NZ

• Someone on our flight being detained, and turned over to the police in Auckland for smoking in the toilet. Really?
• Almost missing our connection through to Wellington having had our tent inspected for bio-hazards, and sprinting from International to Domestic terminals pushing two bike boxes.
• Being amazed that our wonderful Warmshowers host (Gary) was actually at the airport to meet us, despite having been in such a mad rush to pack and get on the plane, that we forgot to email him to let him know we were on our way.

We were treated to a beautiful cycle in from the airport to Gary's house, and spent the morning learning a wealth of information about New Zealand, bike touring, Wellington and more. 

Eager to get  on our bikes, we set off into town to check things out, do a bit of shopping, and figure out how we were going to get up to the east coast.

The fresh breeze we encountered on our way into town soon turned into a 40+ knot gale. The video and pics don't really do it justice. Cycling into the wind was almost futile, and with the wind at your back, you didn't have to pedal at all to get blasted down the winding roads. Monica had to get off her bike at one stage, as her back tire was getting blown out from underneath her as she skidded sideways down the sidewalk.

Wellington approach

Monica likes NZ pie

Just a little windy

Moments before she got blown over by a gust

Let's hope the rest of New Zealand isn't like this! Spot tracker updated - check the "Where Are We" tab.

Ode to My Hostel

O hostel, my hostel, how do I love thee?

Hosting young adults, so drunk their beds they oft' pee.

Snoring, farting, mumbling, 

Like some night-long, out-of-tune symphony.

How can I be so sure

That inspired trumpet solo was not me?

Rio is a happening city! Full of activity, culture and of course about 6 million people. We have been travelling around on the local bus system, which is actually very good (and cheap), and trying to see as much of the city as we can in 3 days. 

Yesterday, we made our way up to the Corocovado, to see the iconic statue of Christ the Redeemer. Riding up a tram packed full off tourists that takes you to the peak of a hill overlooking Rio is well worth the price for the stunning views:

There was some special name for this type of track that I have forgotten.

The Tram rides up through the Tijuca Forest

One of the many views from the top of the Corocovado. This is Ipanema Beach where we are staying

Of course, the main attraction is Christ the Redeemer. Everyone likes to take funny pictures of themselves imitating the statue or pretending to squish the statue in their fingers or windmill-five. We tried to get some funny ones ourselves, but settled for windmill-fiving each other a la Goose and Maverick.

I stand 70 metres high

"I swear, it was this big!"

We also strolled around a  local market on the beach, and today are off to rent bikes to cycle around the city.

Mmm. fish!