In Taupo now !

After a train to Palmerston North , a trip to the hospital to check all was well (and it apparently was) then a bus to Taurangi We resumed cycling from there. We cycled the 50k to Taupo yesterday and it didnt feel too bad.

But first we headed to the Thermal Hot pools at Tokaanu

From New Zealand Cycle tour

From New Zealand Cycle tour

From New Zealand Cycle tour

From New Zealand Cycle tour

As we headed along the road we got treated to views of the three volcanos in Tongariro national park at the end of lake taupo

From New Zealand Cycle tour

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Kid jumping into thermal rock pools]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

Here a thermal stream meets the Waikato river giving toasty warm pools of over 40 degrees! The perfect way to relax after some riding.

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Jayne riding her bike off road]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[and again]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[And Jayne riding her bike off THE road!]

After spontaniously deciding to do some mountain biking to Huka Falls, it all went a bit pear shaped when jaynes shoulder bag swung off while riding and dragged her with it. The result was Jayne and her bike lying in a heap halfway down the verge....Mum and Dad don't worry, I'm fine. Just a few scrapes and a lot of jokes from Terry!

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Us after reaching Huka Falls.... all limbs still intact. We saw the falls in the sun this time (we were here just under a year ago in a hire car in the rain.....it wasn't as nice)]

Nelson to Wellington

Sorry for lack of updates , been a bit under the weather . Feeling better now though after some rest in wellington

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[friendly ducks in picton ....its not a trick that duck only has one leg and it hops everywhere!!]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

Ferry to wellington through the sounds

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[coming into wellington]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[dolphin skeleton at Te papa museum]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[pigmy whale skeleton ...about 25 metres long]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[closest we have seen to an actual kiwi]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[a stuffed tuatara ...they live to over 200 years old]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[the britten homebuilt in NZ daytona winning motor bike]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[wellington cable car]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[playing with the settings on the camera....a flower in the botanical gardens]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[going down the cable car]

Off to get a train to palmerston north tomorrow , missing out about 160k section of mad road. Its very very windy and very very busy ....and not to mention motorway so we are not allowed to ride it anyway. heading up over dessert road to taupo after we get on the road again.

Abel Tasman Kayaking

From New Zealand Cycle tour

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[fishermans island]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[lots of posh boats about]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Rocky shoreline]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[warm water]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[snorkling]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[sunset anchorage]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[early morning paddle]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[rocky beach]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[fish right at shore line]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[they had a fleet of these old tractors for transporting the boats. They transport you up the slip way and right to the kayaking center in the boat and your about 50meters in land before you actually get off the boat ! ]

Westport to murchiston

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Lower Buller gorge]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Huge Dragonfly]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Upper Buller Gorge]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Nzs longests "swingbridge" (read suspension bridge)]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Again the whole bridge though]

off kayaking in Abel Tesman on wednesday and thursday which should be fun.

New Map......

Now in Westport

Fox Glacier to Westport

a short hop over to Franz Josef Glacier of about 25k then another 60 to Hokitika with a a steep climb in the pouring rain , here it rained for about 36 hours non stop really , we took shelter in a motel which we then turned into a sauna with our wet kit and the heater. From there we went on to Punakaki via Greymouth where we got sunburnt and viewed the pancake rocks and blowholes , this was an 90k day and from there a shortish but hard with headwind/hills day to Westport. We have taken a day off here to recover and arrange Kayaking for Motuaka.

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[the top of the haast pass]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Some long distances there ]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[The gates of haast]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[falls at the gates of haast looks tiny in the shot but if i tell you that from where the shot is taken to the water is about 3 times my height]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[blue skys]

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From New Zealand Cycle tour

[rainbows at Fox]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Fox Glacier Terminal face]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Fox Again]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Chris , one of the Austrailian couple we played leapfrog with between fox and Hokitika]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[jayne]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Franz Josef glacier terminal face]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[again with people to show just how big it really is when you are there ]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[us with the glacier in the background]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[a lunch stop in Ross]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Riding along past these Sandy Bluffs(cliffs) you could hear them crumbling away sounding like they were going to collapse at any time ! ]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[It looks nice when the rain stops. Much of our ride from Hokitika to Westport was made up of Waterfront roads , unfortunantly with these come the wind ! ]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Looking for Austrailia]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Drink stop at Barrytown.....Baz vegas as far as we could tell was their name for the pool table and the ping pong table with a discoball over it ......]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

Bluffs at Punakaiki

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[sun set at pancake rocks]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Pancake rocks blowhole, the sea smashed into the cliffs some 40-50foot below and came up a crack in the rocks and blew out the top like steam!!]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[Interesting staircase on the cliffs]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[The view back to the cliffs]

From New Zealand Cycle tour

[the sleepy town of westport...still one of the more populated places we have seen.....this year.]

We hit 2500kms on the odometer yesterday also.

Also while reading the local paper we learned than the bannockburn hotel which the Bannockburn classic race we did on december 30th has had its roof blown off in a freak tornado.....glad we aint in the tent in that area still !!!

http://www.odt.co.nz/your-town/bannockburn/38754/mini-tornados-lift-iron-roof-bannockburn-hotel