We left Taumarunui ready to hit up some more trails as we headed south. We were particularly drawn to the ‘Mountains to Sea’ route which is a collection of trails taking riders all the way from the volcanic plateau at the centre of the North Island, to the sea at Whanganui, via the Whanganui River (including a section involving a jet boat trip on the river itself).
Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) we weren’t able to do the ‘classic’ version of the route as both a key DOC (Department of Conservation) campsite and the river itself were due to be closed to enable the local iwi (Māori tribe) to travel the river by waka (traditional canoe) on an annual journey honouring their ancestors and culture.
I say fortunately as whilst it would have been great to tackle this route (and have a ride on a very fast boat) we had also heard that the trails to the river itself were actually fairly gnarly. Once we had realised we could connect things up by going to National Park (an actual village high up on the volcanic plateau, not the most original name unfortunately…) via local roads and a supposedly ‘easy’ track, we were sold! We could then complete Mountains to Sea by cycling down to the river at Pipiriki, before cycling alongside the river to Whanganui and the river mouth.
So another(nother) mini adventure beckoned for us both and whilst it didn’t turn out to be ‘easy’ (might be something to do with the massive amount of elevation gained on said Fishers Track) – it was stunningly beautiful and incredibly varied.
As mentioned, the ride up to National Park on the Fishers Track was very challenging but the views were epic and the hiking opportunities (whilst pushing the bike) abundant! I did say I wanted to do some hiking whilst in NZ rather than just cycling, so here was my chance…
National Park itself is a bit of a strange place but the weirdness (and huge number of overseas tourists all of a sudden) was made up for by the views of Mount Ruapehu, and Mount Tongariro (better known to some people as Mount Doom in the Lord of the Rings films). Last time we were in National Park was with our lovely pals Hannah and Jody when we attempted to ski here. We missed them both this time – but at least we could actually see the mountains (even if ski-ing was even less of a possibility this time!)
Onwards from National Park we zoomed down State Highway 4 at speed before peeling off for another legendary NZ track – the Old Coach Road. By this point, Matt’s friend Murray in Auckland (who had played a part in recommending all of these tracks) was getting quite a few mentions from me. Most of them positive. The Old Coach Road definitely had a mix of positive and… less so. With cobbles (or setts) appearing to have been directly shipped from Yorkshire but made more knobbly and therefore quite the ride on our bikes (suspension would have been nice…)
All of the climbing from the day was worth it once we cruised down to Pipiriki on a stunningly peaceful road where the views just got better and better culminating in arriving at the great river itself for a cooling dip.
The campsite itself at Pipiriki was also a treat – tranquil and calm, with only the snoring of the next door cycle tourer to disturb the peace.
The ride to Whanganui was another treat as we wended alongside the river with lots of ups and downs to give spectacular views of the valley and beyond.
Fish and chips number 2 of the trip in Whanganui and we were ready to tackle the most indirect route onwards to Welly possible. The start of which was a cheeky elevator ride to get (some of) the climbing done for the day first thing!
Our goal that night was Vinegar Hill, another campsite with a watery location and a chance for a cooling dip (good job as the campsite didn’t have showers!)
After a wobbly start on very fresh, chunky gravel in the morning – we soon got into our stride and were cycling into and across an extremely quiet but beautiful corner for NZ – the Manawatu.
Our destination for the night was a teeny place called Āpiti. Famed for… not a lot, apart from its tavern and the opportunity to free camp in the Domain. Done and done, we had a very enjoyable evening of eating most of the menu and sampling the local ‘Swamp Juice’ beer.
The enjoyable riding continued onwards as we we headed into the Big Smoke of Palmerston North for a couple of nights (we quite liked it, despite a bit of a bad rep for being boring) and onwards to Masterton via more quite back roads, pie stops and rolling North Island scenery.
Our penultimate North Island day wended us to Martinborough with a short day of cycling to give us plenty of time for wine tasting!
Our first this time in NZ (and funnily enough our last summer holiday stop in our campervan when we lived here). The campsite hadn’t changed, the wineries had a bit – but we were soon reacquainted with the local Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir.
After the disappointment of not enough chips in Whanganui we decided to ensure no-one was left hungry when we ordered four portions at the Fish and Chip shop. The lady raised an eyebrow and said ‘just for two of you?’. Undeterred we went for it and polished them all off, no problem. I’d like to say that this was all Matt’s doing, but I definitely made a significant contribution to the effort.
And then we were rolling into the run-in to Welly. A surprisingly stunning last day of riding on the North Island – incorporating the Remutaka Cycle Trail. This was another winner – with a beautiful climb up through forest and then descending into the Hutt Valley for riverside riding pretty much all the way into the actual Big Smoke of Wellington, NZ’s capital.
And relax! A really (really) nice hotel was booked for a mid-week steal AND we were upgraded to a studio because of our bikes! Burritos for dinner (someone’s holiday to Mexico had given us Mexican food cravings…) and an early night to optimise our time underneath the perfect crisp white sheets, atop the soft mattress, with our sleepy heads perched on a mound of heavenly pillows…
Time for a quick sightseeing scramble in the morning and then all aboard the Interislander. ‘Sailing to the other side’…
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