South Island circuit - 4000 kilometres

25/11/2020

The first 2000 kilometres started at Ships Cove on the Queen Charlotte Track. First bush camp at School House Bay started a trend with camp resident wekas. Wekas Interested in grabbing anything from my load for nesting material. The track proved hard work with fully loaded trailer, not helped by a number of fallen trees which required attention from my little pruning saw. Review day at Havelock saw 7 kgs of gear mailed home.

Next was the Maungatapu Track into the back of Nelson. A long hard climb with an hour of trailer pushing. Last little steep pitch pulled a Achilles’ tendon with slight tear. Hobbled into the emergency clinic in Nelson for an assessment. Takaka Hill Rameka track was abandoned due to the injury but a wet Misty climb over the hill was a solid workout.

From Takaka I explorer the far north west around Whanganui Inlet down to the Anatori River. Really beautiful scenery and bush followed by rugged wild surf on the West Coast. With heavy rain in the hills both the Anatori and Big Rivers had too much flow to cross so the ride down to Kahurangi Lighthouse was foiled.

Had some good company in Browns Hut at the start of the Heaphy and kept in touch with a few groups over the next couple of days. The wet conditions did not dampen the experience too much, but again the trailer load required constant attention to keep on track. Rode from Saxon Hut straight out to Karamea next day. Great meal in the pub and a long conversation with the 30 year publican, looking to sell and spent more time in Westport with grandchildren.

Next day over the Karamea Bluff to Seddonville to the camp and meal at the blue pub. A loop back through Westport to Murchison where I was to meet Barb. Experience with the trailer suggested the Old Ghost Road would be a too much of a push - so Barb would ferry the trailer back around to Seddonville. Relatively easy four hours climb to Ghost Lake Hut, but the next day was a very hard nine hours and sixty km out to Seddonville. Anniversary dinner of excellent whitebait in the blue pub.

From Seddonville (round two) the path headed south to Punakaiki. Great and quirky Beach Backpackers. Next was Blackball (the “Normal” start to the Old Ghost Road). The plan was to ditch some load and test my leg injured on the Old Ghost Road with a climb to Ces Clark Hut. Base in Blackall was the Formerly Hilton Hotel (famous for the ridiculous legal battle with the international Hilton hotel chain over naming rights). Blackball Hotel provided a very high quality menu- including the lamb salad which made my evening.

I rode for a few kilometres up the track before deciding that the risk of a crash on my injured leg was too great. I simply didn’t have the leg power for necessary control on a grade four track.