When the humdrum of working 9 to 5 gets you down, what do you do?? The answer is easy, plan a bike packing route, book a flight and go ride your bike. We are so lucky here in NZ. It is so easy to find AMAZING places to ride all over the country. The Heaphy track has been on the bucket list for a while now so when a friend suggested meeting there for her 40th birthday we jumped at the chance.
Nelson to Kaiteriteri Day 1 (77 km)
We flew into Nelson and were lucky enough to get a ride from the airport to a friend's place where we could leave our bikes boxes for the duration of the trip (thanks Kim and Sakkie Meyer). We quickly unpacked, loaded up the bikes and headed out of Nelson on the amazing Great Taste trail. What a pleasure it was to be able to ride on a cycleway with no vehicles to contend with. Our plan was to follow the Great Taste trail which would take us to Rabbit Island and on a ferry to Mapua. On arriving at Rabbit Island however, we were disappointed to find a sign saying that the ferry wasn't running until the weekend. We reluctantly backtracked and followed the main road through to Mapua where we had a coffee and the most amazing pie ever! After Mapua we rejoined the Great taste trail and followed it all the way to Kaiteriteri via some pretty cool cycleways and mountain bike trails. We to be on the coast - What a beautiful spot Kaiteriteri is we could have stayed there for a few days.
Day 2 Kaiteriteri to Collingwood
What a great feeling knowing that for the next 6 days we could wake up in the morning and do nothing but ride our bicycles and drink coffee of course ! We were on the road just on daylight excited about the day that lay ahead of us. Our first mission was to climb Takaka Hill. It wasn't half as steep or as bad as we expected and before we knew it we were at the top searching for the Woolshed cafe which had been at the forefront of our minds all morning. Unbelievably it too was closed until the weekend, what a let down.
We felt like little kids wanting to have tantrums due to the disappointment we felt. Feeling cold and despondent we set off down the gravel road to Harwoods hole and the Rameka trails.
It was absolutely freezing and at one point along the road we had to put on almost every layer we owned. Brrr it was bone-chilling cold. The walk into Harwoods hole was a godsend as it was the only way we could warm up. What a spot, what a cave. After Harwoods hole we left the road and headed down the Rameka track. www.trailforks.com/trails/the-rameka/. It was great to be on single track and getting the chance to test our recently acquired hard tail AIR Niner bikes.
They were loving the mix of terrain and performed as well on off-road as they did on road even with a full bike packing load.We arrived at the end of the Rameka track with massive smiles on our faces.They got even bigger after we did some of the Rameka project tracks.
Our favorite was Great Expectations.
These trails are a must do if you are in the area. We dropped down into Takaka then shot off the road to visit the Pupu Springs before heading to Collingwood for the night. It felt nice to have time to take in the detours and alternate routes on the way.
Day 3 Collingwood to James Mackay Hut
We were extremely excited to get on the road and hit the Heaphy track as this had been a bucket list item for Emma for quite some time. As we were riding along signs started to appear on the roadside every few kms cosy cafe ...coffee... cakes. As we had been burned the day before getting our hopes up, we did our best to keep expectations low but given it now was the weekend we secretly thought we might be in with a chance. Wow not only was the coffee shop open but the coffee and scones were to die for. We sat for a while trying to soak up the warmth of the early morning sun sipping our coffee and feeling pretty happy with ourselves. With coffee in our veins we continue on our way very much in our happy place to the start of the Heaphy trail. Talk about awesome wow wow wow.
How cool is it that we are able to take bikes on trails like this. Whoever lobbied government to allow this to happen deserves a medal. The trail was well graded, and a pleasure to ride. It was awesome to see all sorts of groups out on the trail. It was more awesome to come across a group of plump looking extremely colourful Takahe going about their business.
What a treat. Our goal for the night was to get to James Mackay hut. Usually we would blast a trail like this in one day but thanks to the birthday celebrations we had booked a night in the hut. Unfortunately, the birthday girl didn't make it that night but five others did. We had an awesome night chatting with new friends and listening to Kiwi who sounded like they were all around us.
Day 4
James Macaky to Karamea
Today was another shortish day but with the cold weather and rain threatening we didn't mind. The second half the Heaphy was mainly downhill and a whole lot of fun. What a cool feeling it was, riding out to the coast knowing you had just crossed the top of the South Island.
Lucky for us the weather held off until we got settled in to the Last Resort. What a great place to stay we had another lovely evening chatting to our new friends and sharing stories of the day's ride.
Day 5
Karamea to Stern Hut
It doesn't get a lot better than leaving one awesome trail and riding to start another awesome trail. It didn't take much to get us out of bed and onto the road to Seddonville. The road to Seddonville was pretty quiet with not much traffic, it was nice to have a bit of sealed road and get some kilometers under the tyres. We had no idea how far we were going to get today but were hopeful of making it all the way to Stern Hut on the Old Ghost Road. We stopped off for a coffee at the Seddonville hotel and found out a lot about the history of the area and that someone who has lived 30 years in the area is still a newcomer and not a true local.
We had done the Old Ghost Road before in the other direction but the trail still managed to surprise and delight and blow our minds. Something about the trail makes you feel extremely privileged to be there. It is a truly special place and the sort of place all Kiwis should visit to understand what an amazing country we live in. We stopped of at the first hut on the way in to get out of the cold and boil up some hot soup what a spot. Even if you just do an out and back on this trail it is well worth it. The track just got better and better and we arrived at Stern Hut buzzing from our day's ride. It does not get much better than that and thankfully we had more of it ahead of us the next day.
Stern Hut to Murchison
What a day. The trail was 90 percent rideable the sun was out the views were to die for and the bike carry up the stairs was nothing at all.
Once again we were blown away by this trail there are no words to describe how incredible is it to ride this trail.
The scenery was forever changing we had smooth leaf covered sections, rocky gnarly sections, ice and snow sections, a section of frozen mud but mostly we had flowing rideable insanely beautiful sections of trial. I have to say that I think doing the trail in this direction from South to North has its merits the downhill section through to Lyell is nuts and absolute heaven. Wow wow wow. We arrived at Lyell totally blown away but frozen to the bone.
We sat in the sun at the carpark to try and warm up before jumping on to the road for the last 30 km or so into Murchison to find a nice warm cosy motel room for the night. What a day.
Day 7
Murchison to Nelson
We were pretty sad that today was our last day on the road. We started the day with a coffee at our favourite cafe in Murchison then hit the road. We found an awesome road that lead us to Lake Rotoroa we had ridden this road in the Tour Aotearoa and had had a bit of a miserable time so wanted to change the memory.
We weren't disappointed it was a beautiful road, no traffic and lovely bush but to be fair it was freezing - winter riding ain't much fun when you are chilled through to the bone. We layered up with all our clothes and continued on our way. We stopped briefly at the Lake for a photo then heading back out onto the main road. The road was busy and after 6 days of no traffic we struggled with the aggression of drivers and the large number of trucks on the road through the Buller Gorge. We opted for the longer but less busy Tadmore / Glenhope road to Tapawera. We had done this road before on the Tour Aotearoa but it was much better this time due to a strong tail wind. From Tapawera it was a bit of a headwind slog back to the main highway but well worth the detour. We then headed through the
Spooner tunnel before being picked up in Wakefield by Kim who took us home for a delicious home cooked meal and a comfy as bed for the night.
What a great trip. 600 km or so of stunning cycling tracks, single track and back roads. Well worth doing and should be on everyone's bucket list.
Nelson to Kaiteriteri Day 1 (77 km)
We flew into Nelson and were lucky enough to get a ride from the airport to a friend's place where we could leave our bikes boxes for the duration of the trip (thanks Kim and Sakkie Meyer). We quickly unpacked, loaded up the bikes and headed out of Nelson on the amazing Great Taste trail. What a pleasure it was to be able to ride on a cycleway with no vehicles to contend with. Our plan was to follow the Great Taste trail which would take us to Rabbit Island and on a ferry to Mapua. On arriving at Rabbit Island however, we were disappointed to find a sign saying that the ferry wasn't running until the weekend. We reluctantly backtracked and followed the main road through to Mapua where we had a coffee and the most amazing pie ever! After Mapua we rejoined the Great taste trail and followed it all the way to Kaiteriteri via some pretty cool cycleways and mountain bike trails. We to be on the coast - What a beautiful spot Kaiteriteri is we could have stayed there for a few days.Day 2 Kaiteriteri to Collingwood
What a great feeling knowing that for the next 6 days we could wake up in the morning and do nothing but ride our bicycles and drink coffee of course ! We were on the road just on daylight excited about the day that lay ahead of us. Our first mission was to climb Takaka Hill. It wasn't half as steep or as bad as we expected and before we knew it we were at the top searching for the Woolshed cafe which had been at the forefront of our minds all morning. Unbelievably it too was closed until the weekend, what a let down.
We felt like little kids wanting to have tantrums due to the disappointment we felt. Feeling cold and despondent we set off down the gravel road to Harwoods hole and the Rameka trails.
It was absolutely freezing and at one point along the road we had to put on almost every layer we owned. Brrr it was bone-chilling cold. The walk into Harwoods hole was a godsend as it was the only way we could warm up. What a spot, what a cave. After Harwoods hole we left the road and headed down the Rameka track. www.trailforks.com/trails/the-rameka/. It was great to be on single track and getting the chance to test our recently acquired hard tail AIR Niner bikes.
Our favorite was Great Expectations.These trails are a must do if you are in the area. We dropped down into Takaka then shot off the road to visit the Pupu Springs before heading to Collingwood for the night. It felt nice to have time to take in the detours and alternate routes on the way.
Day 3 Collingwood to James Mackay Hut
We were extremely excited to get on the road and hit the Heaphy track as this had been a bucket list item for Emma for quite some time. As we were riding along signs started to appear on the roadside every few kms cosy cafe ...coffee... cakes. As we had been burned the day before getting our hopes up, we did our best to keep expectations low but given it now was the weekend we secretly thought we might be in with a chance. Wow not only was the coffee shop open but the coffee and scones were to die for. We sat for a while trying to soak up the warmth of the early morning sun sipping our coffee and feeling pretty happy with ourselves. With coffee in our veins we continue on our way very much in our happy place to the start of the Heaphy trail. Talk about awesome wow wow wow.
How cool is it that we are able to take bikes on trails like this. Whoever lobbied government to allow this to happen deserves a medal. The trail was well graded, and a pleasure to ride. It was awesome to see all sorts of groups out on the trail. It was more awesome to come across a group of plump looking extremely colourful Takahe going about their business.
What a treat. Our goal for the night was to get to James Mackay hut. Usually we would blast a trail like this in one day but thanks to the birthday celebrations we had booked a night in the hut. Unfortunately, the birthday girl didn't make it that night but five others did. We had an awesome night chatting with new friends and listening to Kiwi who sounded like they were all around us.Day 4
James Macaky to Karamea
Today was another shortish day but with the cold weather and rain threatening we didn't mind. The second half the Heaphy was mainly downhill and a whole lot of fun. What a cool feeling it was, riding out to the coast knowing you had just crossed the top of the South Island.
Lucky for us the weather held off until we got settled in to the Last Resort. What a great place to stay we had another lovely evening chatting to our new friends and sharing stories of the day's ride.
Day 5
Karamea to Stern Hut
It doesn't get a lot better than leaving one awesome trail and riding to start another awesome trail. It didn't take much to get us out of bed and onto the road to Seddonville. The road to Seddonville was pretty quiet with not much traffic, it was nice to have a bit of sealed road and get some kilometers under the tyres. We had no idea how far we were going to get today but were hopeful of making it all the way to Stern Hut on the Old Ghost Road. We stopped off for a coffee at the Seddonville hotel and found out a lot about the history of the area and that someone who has lived 30 years in the area is still a newcomer and not a true local.
We had done the Old Ghost Road before in the other direction but the trail still managed to surprise and delight and blow our minds. Something about the trail makes you feel extremely privileged to be there. It is a truly special place and the sort of place all Kiwis should visit to understand what an amazing country we live in. We stopped of at the first hut on the way in to get out of the cold and boil up some hot soup what a spot. Even if you just do an out and back on this trail it is well worth it. The track just got better and better and we arrived at Stern Hut buzzing from our day's ride. It does not get much better than that and thankfully we had more of it ahead of us the next day.
What a day. The trail was 90 percent rideable the sun was out the views were to die for and the bike carry up the stairs was nothing at all.
Once again we were blown away by this trail there are no words to describe how incredible is it to ride this trail.
The scenery was forever changing we had smooth leaf covered sections, rocky gnarly sections, ice and snow sections, a section of frozen mud but mostly we had flowing rideable insanely beautiful sections of trial. I have to say that I think doing the trail in this direction from South to North has its merits the downhill section through to Lyell is nuts and absolute heaven. Wow wow wow. We arrived at Lyell totally blown away but frozen to the bone.
Day 7
Murchison to Nelson
We were pretty sad that today was our last day on the road. We started the day with a coffee at our favourite cafe in Murchison then hit the road. We found an awesome road that lead us to Lake Rotoroa we had ridden this road in the Tour Aotearoa and had had a bit of a miserable time so wanted to change the memory.
We weren't disappointed it was a beautiful road, no traffic and lovely bush but to be fair it was freezing - winter riding ain't much fun when you are chilled through to the bone. We layered up with all our clothes and continued on our way. We stopped briefly at the Lake for a photo then heading back out onto the main road. The road was busy and after 6 days of no traffic we struggled with the aggression of drivers and the large number of trucks on the road through the Buller Gorge. We opted for the longer but less busy Tadmore / Glenhope road to Tapawera. We had done this road before on the Tour Aotearoa but it was much better this time due to a strong tail wind. From Tapawera it was a bit of a headwind slog back to the main highway but well worth the detour. We then headed through the
What a great trip. 600 km or so of stunning cycling tracks, single track and back roads. Well worth doing and should be on everyone's bucket list.
