Another good day on the bike. More fantastic scenery. I am shattered.
Too tired to write a full blog, here are some photos from today in the meantime. They are in chronological order, so they track the day’s route.
I have a rest day planned for Friday (after 4 days riding). I will write a full blog then.
EDIT – I’m now in Reefton for the first of my 2 planned rest days, and it’s time to update the blog.
I was fortunate, and pleased, to have my friend Margaret help with logistics for a few days. It made the whole thing a lot smoother, and after a chilly night in the motorhome it was nice to use the heater in Margaret’s campground cabin while getting sorted for the day.
After a complicated logistical exercise dropping off bikes, motorhome and rider we took a side trip to the beautiful Hokitika Gorge and did the short loop walk. It’s a gorgeous place, and I enjoyed walking for a bit after a long day sitting down the day before – between driving and biking I had been on my backside for about 8 hours.
Then it was time to get back on the bike and tackle the next section of the West Coast Wilderness Trail. From the Kanerie Power Intake the trail heads through more thick native forest for 8 km, crossing the Kanerie river about halfway through.
Then it is a delightful cruise alongside the water race that feeds the power intake before popping out at Lake Kanerie.
After a pleasant lunch stop for lunch here Margaret biked back to her car while I carried on. From Lake Kanerie the Trail is on a good wide gravel road for about 12 km. There is a short sharp climb followed by a fantastic 5km sweeping descent into the Arahura Valley. Being conscious of the late start and the potential to be in the forest when it got dark (I had forgotten my headtorch), I pushed hard down the hill and hit 59kmh at one point. Exhilarating stuff!
Most people ride the wilderness Trail southbound. I was riding northbound, so was going against the flow of traffic. The only advantage of my late start was that I met most of the oncoming riders along this stretch of wide road – much better than meeting them on the single-track trail hemmed in by trees! Several groups headed past, grunting up the hill I was flying down.
After crossing the Arahura River, the trail starts on the long gentle zig-zag climb toward Cowboy Paradise. The slope is gentle and the switchback corners are wide, so the riding is not technical or difficult. It was surprising to look back and see how much height the trail gains along this section.
The trail levels off as it enters a short section of bush, then pops out at Cowboy Paradise. This is a privately owned re-creation of a Wild West town, complete with saloon and shooting galleries, which has had some poor reviews recently. Still conscious of the time, I did not stop for any more than a photo. The place looks unfinished and had a slightly seedy feel to it, although I may have been influenced by the recent negative publicity. There was a pair of cyclist unloading their bikes, apparently about to stay the night. It will be interesting to see whether they post a review of their experience.
Then it’s back onto single-track trail and into the bush for a short descent to the MacPherson Creek swingbridge. This crosses the creek at an impressively deep and narrow chasm, which I could not get a proper photo of – the perspective just would not come out right. You will have to take my word for it, or go and see for yourself, it is well worth a look.
The climb out of the MacPherson Creek gully has half a dozen very tight switchbacks which I knew were beyond my technical ability. So it was ride the straight, hop off for the corner, ride the straight, hop off, repeat. Once I was through the tight turns I powered up the rest of the hill, really flying. The photo stop and micro-rests walking the corners must have seriously boosted my energy, I was on fire here. Oh, wait – somewhere in all the on -and-off the bike I must have bumped the control button, and the motor was now in its maximum assistance mode. No wonder the riding was so easy!
I have had an e-bike for less than a year. 18 months ago I was happily riding a standard bike, doing semi-regular 3 hour rides. Then one day I finished a flat gentle ride completely exhausted, and could barely walk for a week. The post-viral syndrome that has been lurking since my 50×50 runs had flared up.
It took 6 months of not riding and sulking about not being ready for an e-bike before I accepted that I could either not ride again, or get an e-bike.
I still feel guilty about riding an e-bike, and stubbornly try to use it in the first of its 4 assistance settings.
So I corrected the setting here, and grunted up the rest of the hill.
Fortunately the gradient soon eased off a bit and it was a short ride to the high point of the entire Trail. At 317m the Kawhaka Pass is not high, but it was a still good milestone. It was also roughly halfway though my ride for the day, and in terms of the late start and not wanting to be caught in the forest at dusk, it was good to know that it was largely downhill from here to today’s finish at Kumara.
My legs were feeling good, and knowing that all the serous climbing was behind me, I flew down from the Pass, hitting 30kmh at one point. Then I had to slow as the trail wound its way through the forest on another lovely bit of single-track. Although it is only half an hour from a road crossing, it does feel like being deep in the wilderness.
The trail then crosses an open wetland on a nice smooth boardwalk, and it felt good to know that I was nearing the Kumara and Kapitea reservoirs, with around 10 km to go and plenty of daylight. Pushing hard up the Aruhura valley and Kawhaka Pass had got me through the forest in plenty of time.
I was surprised to see how low/empty the reservoirs are. The West Coast traditionally has a high rainfall, I had not realized how dry it has been here. This is due to change over the next 2 days, with heavy rain warnings in place for the district – great for the reservoirs, not so much for me biking in it.
From the reservoirs it is a pleasant 5km drop into Kumara township, where my motorhome was parked. From there it was a short drive back to Hokitika for a well earned shower and beer.
Yesterday’s 9km Mananui tramway is still my favourite section, but today’s route is my favourite full day. The mix of scenery is stunning, there are enough climbs to keep me (and the bike motor) honest, and the downhills are great fun.
Another fantastic day all round.
5x50at50 