David's Tour Aotearoa

So how was my gear looking back? Bike Giant Trance 29.1  full suspension  - my steed for this trip, also being what I have in the garage. Generally the preferred steeds are either 29 hard tails or gravel bikes.  I was happy with my bike on the trip. I had the suspension locked for most of the trip, although I half opened it on a number of trails such as the Timber Trail and Bridge to Nowhere, and fully opened it on the Mangatapu descent which was a blast. Tyres - 2x  Vittoria Mezcal 2.25   - good reviews for this fast rolling tyre. Tyres worked well and rolled nicely. Only issue was a cut in the rear tyre going into Arapuni, which ultimately caused some ongoing issues right through to the last day **Aero bars  Profile Design Sonic Ergo 43A   - to rest my hands.  Existing handlebars are 35mm which are too big for aeros. So have fitted  BBB bar ends  as bull bars  onto the handlebar. Have used a gel/cork handlebar tape. Seems to work...

The last day! Today's objective was to get to the finish line at Bluff, which I did relatively easily by about 3.00pm. I started early at 6.45am while it was well and truly dark. I was mindful that I had 140km to ride and the forecast was a tad average, although this was to be the first and only day with no climbs. After 15km my back tyre was a tad soft. I had a go at pumping it up, but that only lasted 2km so I replaced the tube. I've not had a lot of fun fixing punctures with this bike. I've done a quite a few over the years but I've struggled to get these tyres both off and back on and today was no exception - and it did take quite a while today to fix. I was really grateful for the tail wind today as it would have been a long hard day otherwise. However, the large number of Sounds 2 Sounds riders I stayed with last night and also passed in the early morning going in the opposite direction were less enthusiastic about what was a head wind for them. Today's ride w...

Fantastic to see the fundraising go past $6,000, a huge thanks! I snuck out early this morning while still dark and biked down to the wharf in order to catch the early staff boat across to Walter Peak Station. The boat ride and the first 50km of today's ride through to the Mavora Lakes were again quite spectacular. The ride took us around the lake before the last noteworthy climb of the Tour up Von Hill, a decent 250m elevation gain grinding climb. From Mavora, the ride was into a south westerly through farmland before migrating to a cycle trail through farmland loosely following the Oreti River through to Mossburn. I'm staying tonight at the Mossburn Railway Hotel. There's a lot of other riders here, mainly doing the Sounds 2 Sounds event from Marlborough Sounds to Milford Sound. Mossburn is one of two small bits where the routes intersect. Tomorrow should be the last day! It will be a big ...

A big thank you to everyone as the Breast Cancer Foundation fundraising is nearing $6,000, currently at $5,793. Today I rode from Wanaka to Queenstown over the Crown Range, passing "Bradrona" on the way, NZ's dedicated bra fence. This fence is being used to also raise valuable funds for the Breast Cancer Foundation. I had earlier left Wanaka in a chilly 6 degrees and farewelled my two friends who were off to chase trout in the McKenzie basin. It had been good to see them - thanks. The climb up the Cardrona Valley is fairly long and for the most part pretty flat with 600m being climbed relatively easily. The last 200m of elevation is a whole lot steeper up to the Pass at 1,076m being the highest Point of the whole Tour Aotearoa. I had to concentrate on the way down the steep descent with the motor vehicle traffic keen to get down a whole quicker than I was prepared to ride. The route veers off towards Arrowtown near the bottom and I was ...

Yesterday started with a fairly flat 50km ride up to the start of the Haast Pass climb.This was going to be a bigger day at approx 150km to Wanaka. It's now noticeably darker in the mornings with sunrise after 7.30am vs 7am st Cape Reinga. It's also noticeably colder in the mornings. After a misty start the weather was spectacularly good and the scenery remains outstanding. I saw a couple of other TA riders for the first time in a few days. I had last seen this couple at the start of the Timber Trail in the middle of the North Island where we had shared accommodation. The Haast Pass is a fantasticly scenic ride and a decent climb. However I was soon wheeling it down the other side to Makarora for coffee. From Makarora I rode alongside Lakes Wanaka and Hawea. I finished the day off with 30kms along the Hawea River and Wanaka Outlet trails to Wanaka arriving about 7pm. Wanaka was buzzing with life, prob boosted by the A...

Today was a glorious day of biking from Haast to Wanaka up the Haast Pass and past Lakes Wanaka and Hawea. Tomorrow's plan is to bike over the Crown Range to Queenstown.

Today was one of those glorious sunny days on the west coast with the bike riding scenic the whole way. I suspect I would be saying something completely different were it wet.... It was a tad chilly when I set off. First task of the day was to bike the 5km up to the glacier lookout for the control photo. True to form the glacier was hidden under cloud. While sure that the cloud would lift, I needed to get moving. Fox Glacier under there somewhere  Apparently what Fox Glacier looks like although probably a bit smaller now Riding was pretty flat today aside from some hill riding around Knights Point, but is pretty much one continuous scenic postcard. Bruce Bay Knights Point  The bike is showing some wear and tear. The drive train is a tad tired so if I do find an open bike shop I'll look to fully replace. My back tyre had also developed a slow leak which I pumped up peroodically. When I got to Haast I decided to press on to reduce ...

Today's ride was largely down SH6 from Ross to Fox a road I'm pretty familiar with. The ride was relatively but not totally flat until Franz, where there's three decent hills before Fox. It was finally a bit warmer today although still not hot. I was back to riding in just one layer once it warmed up, for the first time since Murchison. I've been riding in 2 and even 3 layers over the past few days.  The hills were covered in cloud all day so no sign of the Southern Alps. Tomorrow sees me heading towards Haast. Lake Ianthe.

Today's ride was quite different to yesterday being on the well groomed 130km West Coast Wilderness Trail from Greymouth to Ross. There were large numbers of cyclist on this readily asseessable and spectacular trail. I stopped off at the bike shop in Hokitika for a couple hours of care and attention. New brake pads, replacement spoke, and a service and much tuning of the drive train and the bike was sounding much better. The chain is near the end of it's life so I'll try not to stress it too much from here. From there it's a fantastic ride through the Mahinapua forest, then onto an old train line to Ross. Tonight I'm in a modern unit in the historical Empire Hotel in Ross, another gold mining town. Tomorrow I hit the state highway targeting Fox Glacier. Potentially the remainder tour could play out, noting my plans change on a frequent basis....: Tomorrow ...

I'm sitting here in the sun in Hokitika while my bike is being worked on. Yesterday I spent the first 90 minutes in Reefton mulling over whether to bike the Big River Track or take the easier and way shorter road wet weather by-pass. Big River is the most by-passed section of the TA but I was keen to ride it if I could. The track already has a lot of obstacles including a slip and giant tree blocking the track, but heavy rain can make the track impassable. It had continued to rain during the night, although the weather was improving while I was considering. I was ultimately aided by a well known local who stopped in the street to chat and advised that if I could get through the first stream at about 11km in (and up) I should be okay.  As it turned out the stream was only up to my knees as predicted and I continued in.  The guide book nicely describes the track as 'A challenging 5–7 hour stage, especially after rain. Mountain bikers love it. Cycle tourists should bypass along H...