Day 10: Hamilton to Lake Karapiro

Distance: 52.8k
Distance so far: 589.9k
Speed: 17.1k/h
Runkeeper logs: 1 2

Today's ride took me from Hamilton to Lake Karapiro, a little under halfway to Rotorua. Hamilton to Rotorua is a little over 100km, the second half of which is mostly uphill, and I wanted to break that up a bit. Even with the rest, I'm anticipating a fairly tough day tomorrow as I climb the caldera into Rotorua.

I took Lonely Planet's advice and went via the charmingly named Mystery Creek Road, out by the airport, which took me along a route on the other side of the river to State Highway 1 into Cambridge. Following Google Maps' directions to get to the airport took me via a nice path along a lake, too - very pretty early in the morning with mist still clinging to the surface.

The route was pretty flat, with only a couple of hills that required me to gear down - though one of those was pretty intimidatingly steep, coming after a similarly steep downhill and a (thankfully dry) ford. I stopped just outside Cambridge for an excellent breakfast at a rural cafe that also serves as an art gallery for local artists. I got there about 8:30, and although they weren't officially open until 9, they were kind enough to serve me breakfast all the same.

Continuing on through Cambridge, I switched over to the other side of the river and rode the rest of the way, about 20km, on State Highway 1. SH1 was busy, as always, but had a wide shoulder most of the way, as it did yesterday. The ride was fairly short and not particularly unpleasant.

Tonight I'm staying at the Lake Karapiro Lodge, which is somewhat more upscale (and expensive) than the places I've been staying so far. It's very nice, though, with a stunning view of the lake from the top of its hill, which was the only one so far that was so steep I had to get out and push. Accommodation options around here are a bit limited, but one of the reasons I chose to stay here was that the hosts very kindly offered to drop me off at Hobbiton so I could do the tour, and picked me up again afterwards.

Hobbiton is the scene of the movie set used for Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. After LOTR, they tore down most of it, but they rebuilt it for The Hobbit movies, this time using permanent materials, and it's been left up as an attraction. The tour was interesting, though a touch expensive, and since the insides of the hobbit holes are all sets built offsite, it's a strictly outdoors-only tour. Nevertheless, it's a pretty convincing location, and if you were surrounded by hobbits rather than other tourists with cameras, you could just about believe you'd been transported to Middle Earth.

I took lots of photos, but they made us sign a confidentiality agreement beforehand agreeing we wouldn't post them publicly anywhere, at least until after the movies come out. So here's just about the only thing I _can_ show you.

Tomorrow, Rotorua. If you don't hear from me again, it's because I died from exhaustion trying to climb the caldera. Tell my family I love them.

Day 9: Pukekawa to Hamilton

Distance: 70.3k
Distance so far: 537.1k
Speed: 18.7k/h
Runkeeper logs: 1 2

Today's ride was one of the days I had in mind when I set out on this tour. Clear blue skies, moderate temperature, and not a hill in sight (except the one I rode down at the start). Most of the day had me following the Waikato river along country roads, on the opposite side to State Highway 1, though a dismaying few kilometers were unexpectedly on a gravel road, which made things briefly unpleasant. Other than that, the lack of wind and the flat terrain made today's ride a pleasure.

I set off early again at about 7:15, and stopped around 9:15 at Huntly for a very good breakfast and a coffee. Shortly thereafter, my cellphone died - I've been having problems with my solar charging solution - so I had to ride the rest of the way without a cycle computer. That's also why it would be a good idea to distrust the reported speeds in Runkeeper for the second half of my journey.

Continuing south on the quiet side of the river, I made it to Ngaruwahia, where State Highway 1 crosses over to the same side. Rather than swap over to the other side myself, I opted to take my chances with State Highway 1.

Fortunately, this stretch of SH1 has a wide, evenly paved shoulder pretty much the whole way, so although it's busy and noisy, and the speed and frequency of cars and trucks are a bit unnerving, it's fairly safe. The only downside was that the main road was paved with smooth new blacktop, while the shoulder was still chip-and-seal - so the next few kilometers felt like being taunted with the smooth ride that was just out of my reach. Oh well.

Heading into Hamilton was a bit unnerving, as I had to navigate through heavy traffic, but I soon got on to the quieter side-roads, and found my way to my stop for the night fairly easily.

Tomorrow I'm headed towards Rotorua - I'm looking for somewhere to stop halfway along - and possibly a side-trip to see Hobbiton, which is pretty close to the halfway point.

Day 8: Auckland to Pukekawa

Distance: 70k
Distance so far: 467.1k
Speed: 16.1k/h
Runkeeper logs: 1 2

Going from Hamilton to Auckland, I have a number of possible routes, with varying levels of directness, danger, hills, and pleasant scenery. After some consideration, I've decided to break the trip up into 2 days, rather than one marathon day, and take a route away from the main highways - which means slightly more in the way of hills, but an altogether more pleasant ride. It also lets me visit this rather nice sounding hostel that's right along my proposed route.

Another early morning today, as I set off from Auckland, getting started a little before 7AM, hoping to avoid the worst of the suburban traffic. This was in vain, unfortunately, with the roads already pretty busy by the time I got on them. The first 25k or so, as I wended my way first through Auckland's eastern suburbs, then along Great South Road, were a bit hairy, but motorists were generally careful around me. Nevertheless, I was glad to get out of the suburbs and onto quieter, more rural roads.

I bet you didn't know potatoes grew in sacks.

The weather today, was wonderful - blue skies and fluffy white clouds, warm but not scorching, and no wind to speak of - absolutely perfect for riding. I made good time until about kilometer 30, where I encountered the first of the two hills in today's ride. Climbing slowed me down, naturally, but the hill wasn't particularly tall or steep, and it's far too nice a day to be put in a bad mood by a hill or two.

The road goes ever on and on...

At some point along the route, I passed out of Auckland and into the Waikato:

Shortly after the hill, I stopped in Tuakau for a coffee break and a bit of late breakfast, then set out for the final 18k or so to my accommodations for the night.

The place I'm staying tonight is called Shekinah Farm, a remote little hostel conveniently placed about halfway between Auckland and Hamilton. It's quite lovely, and I'm staying in a little cabin apart from the main house:

The view from my cabin is... well, see for yourself:

Tomorrow, I continue on to Hamilton. It'll be about the same distance as today, but almost entirely flat. I'm looking forward to it.

Videoblogs: Day 3 and Day 4

Here's the videoblogs for days 3 and 4. I'm particularly fond of the Waipoua forest footage in day 4, though I wish I could figure out a way to mount the camera that was a little less jittery.

I won't be posting videoblogs for every day in future - not all days are interesting enough to warrant one. Expect less frequent, but hopefully more interesting vlogs in future!

Day 7: Kaiwaka to Wellsford

Distance: 20.1k
Distance so far: 397.1k
Speed: 12.43k/h
Runkeeper logs: 1

My original plan for today was to head for Helensville, on State Highway 16, a very hilly and winding ride of about 75km. This would have put me within easy reach of Auckland for the following day's ride, and allowed me to avoid the worst of State Highway 1 into Auckland. With that in mind, I got  up early again, and got on the road about 6:45, trying to avoid the worst of the SH1 traffic.

Getting on the bike, though, it was quickly apparent that that wasn't a realistic goal for the day. My legs were still sore from the previous day, and my left knee was stiff and beginning to ache - not a good sign. The weather, too, certainly didn't encourage optimism - gray and overcast, threatening to rain, and occasionally showering me with a few fine drops. Given the state of my legs and the difficulty of the road - constant hills - I decided to ride the 20km to Wellsford, where State Highway 16 branches off, and make a decision as to what to do when I got there.

Arriving in Wellsford, I sat down for breakfast at a cafe and considered my options. Only two seemed practical:

1. Stay for the night in Wellsford and try the remaining 55km to Helensville along State Highway 16 again in the morning.
2. Compromise on my "bike every meter of NZ" principle and get a lift in to Auckland, and continue my ride from there later.

The guide is fairly clear on this: the ride in to Auckland is not one of the highlights of NZ cycling by any measure, and they strongly recommend not riding it - with only an "if you must" section describing the SH16 route - something I was discovering for myself. I'd only moderately enjoyed yesterday's ride, and I wasn't enjoying today's - either what I had done or what was likely ahead - either. I'm sure you can see where this is headed...

Yes, I've officially declared defeat on my goal of riding every meter from Cape Reinga to Bluff, and I got a lift in to Auckland. I'm still continuing my tour - naturally - and I still intend to keep to the spirit of my goal to ride the length of NZ, but I've decided that since I'm doing this trip for my enjoyment, there's little point in forcing myself to slog through parts I really don't enjoy when there are other options available.

I'm taking Tuesday as a day off in Auckland - enforced, more or less, since I need to pick up my mudguards from the Auckland post office and fit them to my bike - and I'll be back on the road, headed for Hamilton and the Waikato, on Wednesday. Look for my next update then.

Day 6: Dargaville to Kaiwaka

Distance: 79.9k
Distance so far: 377.1k
Speed: 14.9k/h
Runkeeper logs: 1 2

Once again I planned for an early start today, getting up a little after 6, but my plans were pleasantly derailed when I ran into another cyclist staying at the Greenhouse Backpackers' (hi, Emma!), and we spent a couple of hours chatting about our respective trips, tips for the road, and so forth. It turns out she's following the same guide I am (the Lonely Planet Cycling New Zealand guide), and even doing the same route I am currently on, but we're going in opposite directions! I was able to fill her in on what to expect in the next couple of days, and vice-versa.

The weather today was best described as 'ominous' - dark clouds overhead for almost the whole day, with only brief breaks of sunshine. It constantly threatened to rain, but surprisingly the most it came to was a couple of occasions when it started spitting for a little while, then gave up. I'm hoping the clouds blow out or rain themselves out by morning.

Once I got on the road at 9, the first 30k were pretty smooth going, being an all-too-rare flat section. It's incredibly nice to be able to just sit back and set a nice brisk, steady pace, rather than having to change up and change down every few minutes, spending seemingly interminable amounts of time grinding up hills at a snail's pace.

After about 30k, I stopped at Ruawai, at the Elle Cee cafe, recommended to me by Emma, and enjoyed a really delicious second breakfast - probably the best french toast I've ever had - and a pretty good coffee too. As I was leaving, I ran into another touring cyclist, who was ending his day in Ruawai, and we chatted briefly about conditions and the road ahead, then I set off again.

Heading out of Ruawai, I had about another 8k before the hills began, after which they really didn't mess around, seemingly seeking to make up for the easy ride I'd had the rest of the day. The next 3 hours were spent slogging through the hilly terrain along State Highway 12, before eventually making it to Brynderwyn.

Brynderwyn really is just an intersection with a cafe. There's supposedly a motel there, but I couldn't find it, and I didn't particularly want to stay there anyway, so I set out for Kaiwaka, and the Gateway North Motel & Cafe, which seemed like my best chance of shelter for the day.

This last 8k stretch from Brynderwyn to the motel was along State Highway 1, and I'm fairly sure riding it took a couple of months off my life. Even a hundred kilometers north of Auckland, SH1 is busy, busy busy. Motorists blat by at speeds in excess of a hundred kilometers an hour, with far less clearance than they'd usually accord a cyclist on quieter motorways. At times there's a fairly wide shoulder, but at other times this dwindles to almost nothing - seemingly coinciding with downhill stretches. Most of the road has a vibration strip along the border of the shoulder to wake sleepy motorists. As a result, the downhills consist of trying to keep the vibration strip between the right wheel and the rear one, while simultaneously turning to track the road, making sure the left wheel isn't in danger of going off the edge of the road, and trying to dodge the occasional roadkill or pile of broken glass. Fail to do all of this and you're greeted with bone-shaking vibration at best, and the grille of an oncoming car at worst. Not my idea of fun.

Thus, the motel was a welcome sight. I'm checked in, resting my legs, and planning for tomorrow - for which I think an early start will be essential if I don't want to compete with traffic like this again tomorrow morning before I can take the fork to SH16.

Day 5: Waipoua Forest to Dargaville

Distance: 52.9k
Distance so far: 297.2k
Speed: 14.8k/h
Runkeeper logs: 1 2

Accommodation last night was at the huts at the Waipoua Forest campsite; basic but functional. I rose early again, and got on the road about 7:30.

Climbing up out of the forest took about 45 minutes. The slope was gentler than on the way in, and I didn't have to climb as far, either. The scenery was just as beautiful as yesterday, with several good views out over the forest, showing the large number of towering kauri trees dotted through it. After that, there were several more significant hills to handle. Fortunately, most of the slopes were fairly gradual, with only one or two steep climbs.

Just before the two hour mark I had the big descent of the day, descending 150 meters in only 2 kilometers, and continuing a slower descent after that. The guide, which describes this route going the other way, describes this as the hardest ascent of the trip, and I'm glad I was handling it on the downhill rather than the up. Caution and sharp corners mean my top speed on the descent isn't much to write home about, but it was fun all the same.

The rest of the way to Dargaville was pretty unremarkable, with no significant towns worth a stop along the way. As a result, I pressed on without a break - and probably at a higher pace than I needed to - and arrived in Dargaville a little after 11AM, significantly ahead of schedule.

Yes, really.

Welcome to the thriving metropolis of Dargaville.

Dargaville itself is nothing to write home about. It's one of the towns whose main attraction is being able to leave it. That said, I have discovered a couple of hidden gems: The backpackers, called The Greenhouse, is very nice. It's built in an old schoolhouse, and the dorm room is in one of the classrooms, as is the social area / lounge. Private rooms are in cabins out the back of the schoolhouse. The whole thing is well maintained, clean, cheerful, and colorful, with both murals dating back to its provenance as a school, as well as more recent decorations. The hosts are warm, friendly, and welcoming.

There's also a sushi place, called Sushi Nara, on the main street, that does surprisingly good sushi. And the cafe "Blah Blah Blah" reportedly does a good coffee.

All that aside, I'll still be glad to move on tomorrow.

Two other things of note accompany my arrival in Dargaville. First, my road support - my mum - who has been helping out for the first week, has departed. From here on out I'm on my own. Second, since I'm now officially in Northland, I can cross off the first province from my list; I'm done with the Far North!