Central Otago (Part 1) – thyme and timelessness

The everchanging landscapes of NZ meant that after a couple of hours of driving south from Lake Pukaki, we had traversed through mountainous high country, past the Clay Cliffs and Lindis Pass, and arrived at the dry craggy lands of NZ’s most inland region: Central Otago.

The town of Cromwell – dubbed the ‘fruit bowl of the South’ – was our first stop and Rich was rather distracted by a giant pair pear on the roadside. Who can blame him? We even stopped for photos.

Having read about the Otago Central Rail Trail, NZ’s original ‘Great Cycle’, we decided to take to two wheels for a day and tackle a small section of the 150km trail. Starting at Omakau we mounted the saddles and pedalled off. With the sun out and the scent of wild thyme in the air I could not have been happier to be on a bike again! Riding in the sunshine, carefree, with gorgeous views of golden rolling hills and blue skies… Is it just me, or do all bike rides in the countryside on a summers day begin with that joyful free feeling? Well that’s how I roll anyway. At least initially.

Our bike ride took us through the stunning Poolburn Gorge Valley and the vast open space of the Maniototo Plain, through long tunnels and over impressive viaducts.

It was a hot day. A real scorcher. When we saw lizards, we decided to name the area the ‘Arizona of NZ’ (not that either of us have ever been to Arizona, but it seemed an apt comparison). The area also seemed to have a sense of timelessness, with historic buildings, sleepy little towns and relics from the 19th century gold rush. We both said it felt like time had stood still there. And it was really quite cool.

So off we cycled to a place called Auripo. The track, being a disused railway line, was
mostly flat…but,it was stony. And 36 bumpy kilometres – even on a decent bike – began to take its toll on my thirtysomething-year-old legs and knees… and butt.

Since we had the bikes until midnight, we opted for a more gentle and shaded afternoon cycle along the emerald green Clutha River. It was lovely but, fickle as I may be, after a day on a bike, that “joyful free feeling” transcended into an eagerness to get OFF the pain-inflicting contraption! (It will probably come as no surprise to read that we ended up swimming in the river afterwards to relax tired muscles and have a general wash.)

Emma x

Hawkes Bay (Part 2)

A trip to Hawky B without visiting some wineries was a crime I was not prepared to commit. Especially with the option to tour the wine trails on a bicycle. And ESPECIALLY if the bike was a retro style, duck-egg green with a large cushioned seat. Ok, the bike may have only had one gear and required back-pedalling to stop (this took some getting used to!) but altogether it was a recipe for the most fun I’ve had on a bike since I was about 9 and 3/4.

After hiring bikes in the morning, we felt we ought to hold back and wait until a socially acceptable time before commencing any wine tasting. Pedalling alongside the turquoise (it really was turquoise) Hawke Bay was enough distraction for an hour or so.

Once midday rolled around we were pedalling up the gravel drive of the first winery, Clearview Estate, with parallel rows of vines stretching into the distance. To our besaddled amazement, the tasting here was FREE! So wine not?! From offerings of Chardonnay to Pinot Gris to Sauvignon Blanc to Rose our palettes were in for a vine time! (Saving the reds for later in the day)…

On our merry way, we headed to the flashy Elephant Hill winery where we sniffed and sipped our way through a few of their delicious delicacies before we cycled giddily on with beautiful views of the countryside all around us. To quote Rich, “I think work has finally left my soul”. We stopped for a picnic – although my lunch decided to fall on the floor. Thankfully vanlife has made me resilient to such minor traumas and all was OK #fivesecondrule.

Our last stop was the Te Awanga Estate Vineyard. Our favourite winery of the day. Although of course they had the advantage since we weren’t totally sober. Their wines were totally gluggable and we were ALMOST tempted to buy a bottle of their Chardonnay. Or was it Pinot Gris? The grape escapes me.

Anyway, cheers to a fab day of bike tasting and wineling.

* Revelation of the day: Pinot Gris is another name for Pinot Grigio, and Syrah = Shiraz.

An unplanned lock-in

Having booked the van in for a “self-containment” modification the following week, we decided to stick around and explore the greater Wellington region in the meantime. Kaitoke National Park was our first stop and home to Rivendell (which Rich assures me was a significant LOTR film location). Anyway we took a lovely walk along the Pakuratahi river – which had lots of swimming spots along the way (I was almost tempted!) – and the air was noticeably fresh…really, gloriously fresh!…and the electronic-sounding birds chirped in the background. Everything seemed to be going so well! And then I found myself locked in a public toilet. Where the air was not so gloriously fresh.

Campervan Lesson Number 1: make sure to use a toilet with a working lock.

Camper points went to Rich that day for his heroic rescue.

A day of cycling followed the afternoon after the loo-lock-in. The Rimutaka Rail Trail was a good calorie-burner and had pretty awesome views. We even cycled through a few long tunnels where we needed headtorches to see. But Man, I missed my cycle shorts back home in the UK, and waddled like a duck afterwards. On another note, after 3 days in a DOC campsite without showers, we treated ourselves to $2 showers at a local swimming pool – I have no shame in saying that was $2 very well spent!