Tuesday 22nd March - The last stretch

I woke up this morning feeling fresh and rested after my day off and ready for the last 80 miles. Yesterday the weather was horrendous with wind and heavy rain all day so  rather than go back and cycle what I missed the day before I sat on my backside all day and read my book.

The ride today should have been around 75 miles but my uncle took me back up to the Mangamuka Gorge and dropped me off where I had my puncture on Sunday. Thankfully it was near the top so it didn’t take long to get over the top and free wheel down 5 miles of steep twisting perfectly smooth new tarmac. It was then a 10 mile ride into Kaitaia where I desperately tried to find a cycle shop to pump up my rear tyre properly. With my tiny cycle pump I had only managed to get the rear tyre half inflated so if I was going to do 80 miles or more I needed it fully pressurised. I found a cycle shop on the main street however their compressor was broken and they had sold out of more or less everything as they were closing down that day. I was counting on them so was forced to improvise and found a boat shop that had a compressor and although it would not fit my tyre valve we managed to rig up a method of inflating the tyre properly using tubes and a bit of brute strength.

At last I was in a position to focus on the task in hand as I now had 68 miles to go to Cape Reinga. I had stripped my bike down to the bare essentials so only had a few things to carry on the days trip. It made such a difference that I flew along for the first 53 miles without even stopping for a drink. The terrain was pretty flat and sheltered with lots of little villages and farms dotted along the road. The scenery was lovely with great views towards the coast on either side. I was now cycling up the very thin section of the north island which is mainly sheep and dairy farmland. The first thing I noticed was that it was so quiet. All I could hear was the circada’s ( small noisy insects like Cricket’s ) and my own laboured breathing as I tried to keep up as fast a speed as possible.

After around 40 miles I was overtaken ny my Uncle Bob in his jeep who had travelled up to Kaitaia to see Nigel’s family and very kindly pick me up from the Cape. He flashed past with Leon in the passenger seat and failed to recognise me as Bob was so used to seeing my bike with two large red pannier bags on the back. Leon is a 15 year old German lad staying at the farm for 6 months and going to school in Kaitaia for a bit of “life experience”. Eventually I caught up the guys at Te Kau where the most northerly convenience store is situated. I had a quick 15 minute stop to have a cold drink and an ice cream and set off again. Bob was convinced that I only had another 30 kms to do but alas it turned out that it was actually 28 miles making it closer to 45 kms. This would have been fine but my flat road now turned into a rather hilly road and seemed to go straight up hill from this point. After the last 53 miles only involving around 500 feet of climb I was now confronted with 3250 feet of climb over the next 28 miles. There was not one flat section left and the road became a roller coaster with one hill after another. To make matters worse the north easterly wind picked up and  made life more difficult still. Although I am used to the hills now I found the last 28 miles pretty hard going at times especially with the wind. I had averaged 16 mph for the first 53 miles but this went down to below 12 for the last part.

The road was pretty good thankfully and there was less and less traffic as I got closer to the Cape and I became more and more excited at the idea of finishing. It was nice to think that someone would be there when I finished else it would have been a bit of an anti-climax. The finish line however did not come quickly and there were so many false summits before the final hill that looked down on the lighthouse at the very northern tip. At one stage I was adamant that I had just climbed the last hill so took some pictures looking out over the surrounding landscape, only to find that there were 6 more hills to climb before the end.

Anyway, I eventually arrived at the Cape and Bob and Leon were waiting and we went down to the lighthouse and took a few photos next to the large sign denoting all the distances to different parts of the world. The Cape has had a bit of a facelift in recent years and there are new paths and parking areas and various Mauri monuments all around as it is supposed to be a spiritual place.

It was a great feeling to finally finish and also slightly sad as I have enjoyed the trip so much. I have actually stuck to my original itinerary exactly so I’m really pleased with that. I have managed to cycle exactly 1288 miles and have climbed over 53 thousand feet. I haven’t quite worked it out yet but I reckon that I must have climbed the height of Mount Everest twice during this trip. It’s certainly not far off anyway. My bike has held up well but now need a bit of attention. My trek 7700 has now completed well over 5000 miles between this trip, the London to Monaco trip and last year’s cycle round the country with all the associated training mileage.  It has only had 2 punctures this trip and the second one actually turned out to be a faulty valve. It’s just a pity that they came within 2 hours of each other.

Thankfully my Ankle has held up well over the last 2 weeks. There were times when I thought that I was going to have to call it a day especially in Wellington but the rest days and physio have really helped. I won’t be cycling for a couple of weeks though so it heals properly. The one annoying thing though has been that I have not lost a single lb in weight !!! How can this be ? I guess I have eaten pretty well all trip and have had several BBQ’s and lots of beer ( When in Rome and all that !!) I now need to try and stem my appetite for steak and beer or I will never ride a bike again.

I will be heading back to Auckland in the next day or so and fly back to the UK on Saturday 26^th landing on the 27^th. Before then I will be celebrating my birthday in Ellerslie in Auckland on Friday night ( 25^th ) if anyone fancies flying over. If you do I will buy you a beer I promise.

I hope you enjoyed the blog as much as I enjoyed writing it and bye for now.

Andy 

Tuesday 22nd March

I made it !!!!!!!! 81 miles today in well under 6 hours and many many hills at the end. I will write my blog in the morning when I am sober ! Sad its over but also relieved.

Sunday 20th March - Penultimate ride

I did not really feel like it this morning to be entirely honest. I woke up at 8am and felt like I hadn’t really slept more than 3 hours  despite having had more like 7 hours. Everything hurt when I got up but strangely not the ankle for some reason despite it seizing up last night.

I had a quick breakfast and finally set off just before 10am which was later than I wanted. I said goodbye to Jeannie and Mark and they took a few “Actions Shots” as they drove alongside me for the first mile or so.  Finally they headed home to Auckland 120 miles away and I headed off on my own again. It had been great to have some company for the day yesterday especially people to cycle with as I have spent 3 weeks with no one to speak to during the daytime which is nice at first but a little tedious after a while.

The first 5 miles or so were uphill today and felt like a bit of a struggle until I found a rhythm and then It was back to normal and in no time I was flying along and finally stopped for a quick coffee after 25 miles and lunch around 10 miles further along in a town called Kawakawa, so good they named it twice. Kawakawa is actually famous for its public toilets “The Hunertwasser Toilets” which are rather fancy and tiled with elaborate mosaics. There is also a railway track running through the main street which I did not expect so I was rudely interrupted by a noisy, smoky steam engine passing within 10 feet of me as I was sipping my latte and scoffing my BLT. I met a few cool people at the local café one of which was into his bikes. He asked me about mine and I proudly informed him about the fact that I had not had a puncture in over 5000 miles since the second week after I bought it.  

After Kawakawa it was a flattish run for a while and then uphill for a decent clime to around 950 feet. I had only been on the bike around an hour after lunch where God punished me for bragging about the Puncture situation. It wasn’t long before I had one in my rear tyre and spent 45 minutes fixing it. I’m not used to fixing them you see having not had one for two years and my miniature pump is crap.  It was however the first puncture of the trip and probably well overdue so I couldn’t really complain.

I carried on and over the hills and as I reached a particularly nasty mountain range called the Mungamukas I got another bloody puncture half way up. I was not a happy man especially as it was in the rear again making it a right pain in the backside to fix. You have to remove the panniers, unscrew the pannier rack and mess about with the gears. It takes a while and I only had one more spare inner tube. I was now going to be arriving in Kaitaia in the dark as  I had a way to go and was behind schedule already due to starting late and the previous puncture. ( and maybe a long lunch ) After finding a safe pull in where I could fix it I was stood there contemplating kicking the hell out of the stupid bike when I saw a Yute ( open backed van )  approaching. I stuck out my thumb on the off chance and he pulled straight over.  I have to admit that I hitched the last 12 miles so now have to go back and ride it tomorrow on my day off. What a pain.

Anyway, I made it to the farm and it is just how I remembered it from 11 years ago. This is where my brother in law Nigel was brought up and where he and my sister Cathy and nephew William are emigrating to next month. I have been made to feel straight at home by Coleen, Gavin and Bron and have been dragged one way and the other by the girls, Micaela and Odyssey aged 7 and 5 who have entertained me with their gymnastic display. ( It was  pretty damn impressive too )

I now have a rest day……or at least I used to have  a rest day tomorrow. ( now I have part of today’s route to do again ) and Tuesday I cycle the final 78 miles to Cape Reinga to the finish line.  Can’t wait !!

Saturday 19th March

  

Well we made it to Whangarei finally at 7pm this evening after a day of tough climbs. I say “we” because I was joined by two friends from  Auckland who have cycled with me for 60 of the 80 miles covered today. Jeannie and Mark joined me at Welsford at around 11.45 and found me sitting in a café scoffing carrot cake and coffee. ( No change there then! ) I left Arkles Bay around 10am after a great night and a pretty leisurely morning.

Today was always going to be a tough day because there are so many steep hills on the way up here and very few flat sections till you get within 20 miles of Whangarei itself. Mark and Jeannie arrived at my Café in Marks jeep with the bikes on the back and arranged to cycle sections of the ride with me whilst the other drove. It worked really well and Jeannie started off with me for a hilly 50 km stretch starting with Dome Valley and ending at the very steep Brynderwyn Range on route. She actually did incredibly well considering she doesn’t really cycle much at all and set the pace for me. She flew up the hills like they were flat and we covered the ground pretty quickly considering the type of terrain we were on. I took advantage of the jeep and chucked my panniers in there and cycled without the 20kg load I have carried for the last 1050 miles. It was bliss. Mark drove ahead for about 20 miles at a time and cycled back to meet us then returned with us to the jeep. This worked really well and we eventually stopped at the 40 mile mark at an Italian Pizzeria in Kaiwaka. We had a well-earned meal and a beer and hit the road again an hour later. After completing the highest peak Jeannie hopped in the Jeep and Mark and I flew down the 1000 foot drop at brake neck speed hitting 40mph and keeping up an incredible pace for the next 3 hours as we covered another 40 miles at an average speed that stayed around 20 mph for ages. It was so nice to  find a long flat section we took full advantage and I can honestly say I have never kept up such a pace for such a long time. I did have to keep up with Mark on his race bike who is super fit so this may be how  I managed it. It was fun but I am now completely dead on my feet.

Mark has a mate who lives in Whangarei who were are all now staying with and we have had a great meal and a few beers. My eyelids are now drooping and I’m ready for bed as it’s a 90 mile ride from hell tomorrow involving some bigger and steeper hills. Today was 80 miles with 5000 feet of climb but tomorrow is 90 miles with 6000 feet of climb. I will definitely need my rest day in Kaitaia before I hit Cape Reinga the following day. Only two days to go though eh ! 

Thursday 17th and Friday 18th March

Ok, so I’m a little late with posting this blog but I have actually been busy……relaxing mostly !

Yesterday I was at Tania’s place in Penrose and had a lovely long lie in and a relaxing morning doing nothing apart from a little bike maintenance. In the afternoon we went for lunch into Ellerslie which is a suburb nearby and slightly closer to the centre of Auckland to a trendy bar the name of which escapes me now. I was then escorted to the physiotherapists to have some more treatment for the old ankle ( I’m sure your bored of hearing about this now )

The receptionist was really lovely and on reading the explanation of how my injury occurred looked over her horn rimmed glasses at me and said “were going to have to do better than that”. “Why ? ” I said looking puzzled. “well you will never get this free on the ACC with a story like that will you ?”

The ACC is NZ’s version of medical insurance or the NHS and apparently they are pretty easy going. She crossed out my explanation which read “ Achilles tendonitis caused by persistent cycling” and said “ Could you have been in an accident perhaps ?”

I said “well I did get run off the road by a logging truck into a ditch a few days back!” shrugging my shoulders and trying to be helpful. “Perfect “ she said and changed my explanation to an outrageous  piece of fiction whereby a logging truck almost caused my demise in a horrific near miss causing me to take avoiding action and cycle over a cliff top and fall 1000 feet down a cliff side and land in a heap on some rock only causing a mild sprain to the Achilles. Ok so I’m exaggerating a bit now but her explanation wasn’t far off that I assure you. Naturally being an honest cop this has given me sleepless nights since.

Once the blatant lies were complete I was met by a lovely friendly physio called Clare who actually turned out to be a former Nazi torturer ( This is her description not mine I hasten to add ) she went to work on me like I had just viciously slaughtered her whole family and burnt her house down. It was like a revenge treatment. The pain she inflicted on me was infinitely more terrible than the pain my Achilles was giving me even in the worst moments. I almost bit through my arm I was trying that hard not to cry out and I sweated more in 30 minutes than I have in 1000 miles. Suffice it to say I will not be returning for a follow up visit and a life of walking like “Jake the Peg “ is far more appealing that going through that again. I could actually see the pleasure in her face as she leaned her whole weight on my ankle which was positioned over a sharp edge in order to separate the bones and “Introduce some mobility to the problem area “ ………Problem area my arse, its gonna be a damn problem now it’s broken off ( were my thoughts at the time !)

Anyway, it’s over now and I’m alive to tell the tale and despite a stupid looking strapped up ankle which makes me look like I’m wearing weird looking suspenders I’m feeling much better.

Today has been a far easier day by comparison. Despite cycling 3 miles in the wrong direction first thing this morning and then being sent in the wrong direction again by a Police Officer I eventually made it to the ferry to get over to the North Shore and had a really leisurely ride along the East Coast Road to Arkles Bay around 40 km’s up the coast. The North Shore is really nice and seems like the sort of place I would like to live with lots of bars and coffees shops. The road however was like a rollercoaster with one steep rise after another. There were no big hills but there were plenty and the ride of 50 odd km’s felt further than it was. Nevertheless I landed at Triston’s house the moment the heavens opened and it bucketed down.

Triston is a Police Officer with Auckland Police whom I used to work with back in Ellesmere Port and has been over here for 3 years now with his wife and two daughters. He has settled in really well and they have a fabulous house, a great life and an annoyingly good tan. I still look transparent in contrast. Tris took me for a drive round the area which is idyllic and we had a great meal and a couple of glasses of wine ( or maybe more !!) The whole family have embraced life in NZ which is good to see and it obviously works well for them. The girls are happy and have made great friends and love the way of life here.

I have had a great night reminiscing about the old days in “The Port” and would love to stay longer but alas I have 82 miles to cycle tomorrow and many hills. I don’t think there is a flat road until 60 miles are up tomorrow so I will need a good night’s sleep tonight. On that note I better get my head down. Only three more days on the road and I can relax. Ten days and I will be home in Blighty and this will be a distant memory. 

Wednesday 16th March 10pm

Felt rather jaded this morning and understandably so I guess. Still didn’t have much of an appetite despite not eating last night but managed a couple of pieces of toast before heading back out onto the road again. The weather has become hotter and hotter the further north I go and today was no exception. It was pretty sweltering from the off and I had a raging thirst in no time. I have spent so much money on Powerade and similar energy drinks on this trip I may have to take out a second mortgage.

The road from Cambridge to Auckland for the early part was a new road called the A1b and is by far the nicest road I have cycled on this whole trip. It was like velvet compared to the rough surfaces I have become used to and actually had a smooth tarmac finish. This may not sound like a big deal but it was believe me ! The usual surface here is incredibly course to the extent that it shakes the bolts on your bike loose and probably my skeleton too. I have persistently numb hands from the vibrations and that’s despite front suspension.

It didn’t take me long to get through the first 34 miles and dispense with the A1b and I ended up in Mc Donalds in a place called Huntly where they have a  big coal mine. By this stage I was a sweaty heap and plastered with flies again and looked a mess when I entered the restaurant. I am constantly having to wash myself down so people don’t get scared at the sight of me. I really do look a mess sometimes and you would not want to sit next to me !

Once past Huntly it was back on the busy A1 sadly and back to multiple HGVs wizzing past at close quarters. Eventually I had to leave the highway as it turned into a motorway and I resorted to the Great South Road that leads straight into Auckland alongside the motorway. It was a pretty flat run all day apart from one big hill at Bombay and a welcome relief. It wasn’t the most scenic day and I have not taken a single picture but it’s been good nevertheless.

I actually passed the 1000 mile mark at some stage as I neared Auckland to that is quite an achievement to me. If I had known it at the time I would have stopped and cracked open a celebratory Powerade and given a small speech. Just as well I didn’t eh ?

Finally, Penrose where I was headed to stay with Tania came up far sooner than expected and I was sitting on the porch at 6pm having completed 90 miles as Tania returned home. It was then a quick shower and off to a BBQ and a fat steak and a couple of beers. My eyelids were drooping by 8.30 though and I now lie in bed feeling completely whacked. It is a bit of a milestone to reach Auckland especially bang on schedule and ready for a day off again. I have Physio tomorrow afternoon so although I imagine it will be rather painful it will definitely help me as parts of my body are complaining vociferously and could do with being replaced ( I wish !)

Its only around 300 miles to the top now and 3 1\2 more days on the bike. As much as I am enjoying this I will be glad to say goodbye to that razor blade of a saddle for a good while. I’ve already decided on a new challenge for a future New Zealand trip. Kayaking the whole of the 400 mile long Waikate river. Anyone up for that ????

Tuesday 15th March – Return of the Sausages

I told you they should have carried a bloody health warning didn’t I ???

I have just made it to Cambridge and more importantly my hotel room by the skin of my teeth. I shall say no more on the subject.

Today has been an 80 mile trip from Taupo along the A1, again! and relatively quick really. I had great intentions of starting off early at around 8.30 but I slept really badly due to the humidity and struggled out of bed for 8.45 instead. I packed up, paid my humungous bill and headed to MC Donalds for a breakfast of pancakes and maple syrup, YUM !

I finally set off at 10am and straight into the hills. The first was a 1000 ft climb over about 4 miles and the second was around 700 over a shorter distance. Neither were particularly bad and by 2pm I was sat in Tokoroa enjoying lunch at a small bakery. I got talking to a lady called Kay, or Kate who worked there and she  has a child with neurological problems and was impressed with the Charity I was fundraising for. She gave me a donation and a free cake too. What a star !!

Tokoroa was at the half way mark of 41 miles and from then on the hills were over and it was a flat run to Cambridge supposedly. I had climbed 2200 feet by this stage and averaged 12.3 mph so was going pretty well. 2 hours 40 mins later I was entering Cambridge and having upped my average speed so much I was planning on making it to Hamilton instead as I had plenty of time and another 20 miles in the tank at least. Sadly at this stage, the sausages from yesterday, or maybe something I ate today changed my plans. I was sick a couple of times just before Cambridge and that sealed my fate. I am now ensconced in a nice hotel in Cambridge Town Centre feeling a little better thank god though it has taken a while. I’ll see how well I feel in the morning before committing to the completing the 87 miles to Tania’s place. I should be ok though.

I can’t wait to be on a quieter road though. Today has been one HGV after another and terribly busy. Once through Auckland I will look for some alternative routes hopefully as I have had enough of all the traffic. Its only about 400 miles to go though so 5 more days of cycling and I will be at the very top of New Zealand. I’m looking forward to having a birthday beer in Auckland on the 25^th to celebrate and not have to get up early the next day to cycle a zillion miles.

                

Monday 14th March -Rest Day

Monday 14^th March   7.30pm

Today has been a day of rest and in view of this I managed to sleep till about 11.30am which I must have needed as I was in bed for 11pm last night. Last night I went for a stroll along the lakeside for a couple of miles towards the centre of Taupo and in search of a restaurant. There is a path that leads from my veranda all along the lake side and follows the shore and it is incredibly peaceful. I took a couple of pictures across the lake from my room then more as I walked along the lakeside as the sun began to set. It was pretty spectacular as you will see from my latest photos.

The walk into Town took in some fantastic lakeside houses with families sitting out having BBQ’s and couples sitting on veranda’s enjoying a quiet drink. It really made me crave some company and the first time I have actually felt a little low all trip. 1, 2, 3 ahhhhhhh !!!

 Taupo is a really relaxed and fantastic place though. It is obviously the place where the rich come to relax and families holiday together. The lakefront is littered with flash hotels and even flasher apartments. What is also noticeable here is the abundance of European cars which I am told  are a sign of wealth. They cost so much to import that only the more wealthy can afford them so a BMW is a bit of a status symbol here rather than a reps car back home ( Sorry Paul , Sorry Dave !! ) My old Volvo C70CC retails at over $100,000 here which is twice the price it is at home.

Anyway, today I went for a spin round town on my bike and tried to find the places I came to 11 years ago. As I rode into town I found something my brother in law Nigel told me to look out for. It was a Hole in one competition set up on the shore with a pontoon around 120 yards out into the lake containing a golf green. The prize for a  hole in one is $10,000 so I had to have a go. It cost $20 for 25 balls so I handed over the cash and waited my turn behind a Chinese couple who had obviously never held a golf club in either of their lives. The guy missed the ball more times than he hit it and his best effort went around 30 yards in the wrong direction. She on the other hand hit the green more than once and totally humiliated her fella much to my amusement. My turn came and my first ball hit the edge of the pontoon and dropped into the water. I managed to land on the green a handful of times but there was no way the ball was ever going to stay on a square green 6 metres square so I failed in my bid to win the cash. I managed the second longest drive of the day but that won nothing.

I moved on into town and was quite surprised at how small Taupo is. I always remembered it as being bigger but then I was drunk more or less the whole time I was here 11 years ago so this is not a great shock. I found where the Holy Cow bar used to be and found that it has been replaced with an Irish bar. An hour later I discovered the same bar does an appalling all day breakfast with sausages that should have carried a Government Health Warning.

I was soon back at the hotel twiddling my thumbs wishing I had decided to cycle today instead as I was bored. I really am no good at relaxing. Eventually I broke out my emergency book and this eventually did the trick.cc I am now sat in that snazzy hotel again next door to mine enjoying a beer and free WIFI …..or at least I was,  as the mingy buggers only let you have it free for 20 minutes then you have to pay $10 an hour.

All around me are wealthy types and I have received more than one disapproving glance as I sit here in my tatty crumpled shorts and T shirt nursing an overpriced beer. Bet they don’t know I’m writing about them especially that American lady opposite who made some very defamatory remarks about her Chicken Liver Parfait a couple of minutes ago. If the chef had heard he would have sliced her up into little pieces. Maybe I will go and tell him !!!!

Well its 8.15pm now and I guess I should find somewhere to eat. I’m not eating here as its way too expensive. Not sure where to go this evening. Maybe I will just make do with my emergency snickers and stop early for breakfast somewhere. I’m back on the road tomorrow and have an 80 mile ride to Cambridge. It’s a bit hilly for the first 30 miles tomorrow so I better get an early night.

Hope your all well wherever you are, I’m still hoping those sausages don’t kill me. !!!      

Sunday 13th March – 5pm

What an amazing day. I am sat in a swanky hotel ( mine is next door !! ) enjoying a cold beer, a bowl of crisps and amazing view of Lake Taupo with the yayhts bobbing in the water just yards away. Life doesn’t get much better. Its times like this when you need company though as I am just not eloquent enough to explain how beautiful this place is.  It was this time yesterday that I was sweating my way over the desert road past Mount Doom hoping that it was not going to be much further that the road went downhill. Now I am here with a day and a half off as a reward for half killing myself yesterday. I think I may have to have a skin-full tonight.

Today has been a bit of a “jolly” really with 30 miles of cycling from Turangi this morning. I stretched it out and made it last about 4 hours stopping for breakfast and numerous photo opportunities and chatted to a few people along the way. The route followed the lake for the most part and I was surprised at how clear the lake is. You can look down and see the fish swimming around and there are loads of viewpoints and picnic areas all along the shore. The road is pretty well surfaced for a change and I have been passed my dozens of Ferraris all day as they are having a Ferrari rally here this weekend. It has made a nice change to have classic Italian sports cars wizzing by me rather than logging trucks.

There was just the one hill to speak of today though it was pretty damn steep at 15% on occasions. I was really sweating at one stage probably because I was unprepared for it. The down hill was fab though and took me all the way into Taupo itself at the northern tip of the lake. I have just been informed that Lake Taupo is itself an active volcano and is bubbling away with activity at the very bottom. Regardless of that fact It still looks cold in there so I will be sticking to my heated swimming pool instead thanks.

The last time I was here was 11 years ago on a” Kiwi Experience” Bus tour and I remember a great bar called the Holy Cow. I have really been looking forward to returning there for old time’s sake but I learnt today that it has closed. I am gutted. I remember dancing on the tables in there with a bunch of girls I met and getting steaming drunk. So much for repeating that old memory then !

I was planning on jumping out of a plane whilst here but having pushed the boat out with my hotel I think I may have to show some restraint on that score. I’m not sure what to do tomorrow really except just chill out. I have two 85 mile days after leaving here so it’s probably best to rest whilst I can and let the ankle heal. I will be staying with an old police mate, Tristan in Auckland on Friday so that should be good then its only 3 days to the very top of New Zealand and the end of my challenge. It is all passing by so quickly. I can’t believe 3 weeks is almost up. Oh well, I better grab another beer then and enjoy the present. All this is missing is a certain someone !

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Saturday 12th March 9pm

Well I am well and truly knackered !  Today has been a hellish ride and one that a may not want to repeat in a hurry… actually I will re phrase that…..I may not have the energy to repeat in a hurry. It has actually been a pretty amazing day and one that has taken in some pretty extraordinary scenery. I set off at 9.30am this morning and it was I didn't quite realise that it was uphill from the start. After an hour I was wondering why I could only average about 12/13 mph  when there was no real wind  stopping me and I was beginning to get a little confused. It felt like I was on the flat but when I checked the altimeter I had actually climbed about 800 feet in the first 10 miles hence the slow speed. Within 20 miles I was at 1000 feet and it felt pretty good but just a little slow and I stopped for breakfast and to call my mate Paul back in Manchester. Rather than being down the Pub as per usual for a Friday night he was “polyfillering” holes in his living room wall. Well at least I wasn’t missing anything eh!       

Within another 2 ½ hours I was in Taihape having climbed another 1000 feet albeit rather more as there were several ups and downs along the way. It was now lunch time and I was at my projected  final destination. I scoffed a quick Mc Donalds ( or two ) and saddled up again with a new destination in mind. Turangi which was another 57 miles. I had done 51 already and felt good and I knew that although I still had to climb up to 3500 feet and go over the desert road past the Volcanoes, the last 25 to 30 miles were all down hill so would not take long.

Well it wasn’t all plain sailing as there were some steep climbs to come and just out of Taihapi there was a bitch of a climb which went on for about 3 miles. Once this was over I was at 3000 ish feet and the road became flatter but still a gradual uphill to around 3500 feet near the start of the desert road. I was now in a very barren expanse with Mt Ruapehu and then Mt Ngauruhoe to my west which looked incredible. Both are massive volcanoes and you  may may have seen them in various films such as the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

The temperature was now pretty damn hot and according to my computer it maxed out at 101 F which I’m not sure I believe. There was a good breeze though so It wasn’t too much. The desert road went on for about 25 kms and apart from a couple of sharp rises was ok. It then dipped down suddenly and for the next hour I just weaved around sharp bends and tried to control my speed as I dropped 2500 feet almost without any uphill or flat sections at all. It was like a roller coaster and almost as scary on occasions. I had white knuckles and aching hands at the end as I passed Rangipo prison and it flattened out to Turangi. I think I may need to get some new brake blocks for the rear as I could smell them disintegrating at one point. I hardly had to peddle for twenty odd miles which is just as well as I didn’t really have the energy. I have completed 108 miles today and climbed just short of 5600 feet. I have taken the first motel room on offer and have a lovely room with a pool outside that I don’t have the energy to walk to. I think I will just lie here and not move till tomorrow. Typing this has used up the last bit of energy I have.

Actually I need food so I may have to walk across the road. I must have a few thousand calories to consume to break even even though I don’t really look like I’ve lost a pound. L

The good news is that instead of 80 miles to do tomorrow I only have 32 so I get a day and a half off. I may do a parachute jump or something. Actually my ankle may not like that, Maybe I will just find a thermal bath and turn myself into a prune.

Friday 11th March

I set off this morning at 8.30am from Upper Hutt for the 80 mile ride to Bulls on the West Coast in good weather and against the wind again. The first part of the trip involved a big climb over the Akatarawa Pass which runs due north from Upper Hutt to the Coast. The climb is just over 1500 feet and is very rolling so you end up climbing 2500 feet in total as the road keeps dropping down annoyingly after a steep climb meaning you have to gain the height all over again. It was a beautiful road though and I only saw about 6 cars for 23 miles. The road peaked at 18 miles and there was a great view towards the coast at this point. I took some photos but it was pretty cloudy by this point so they are not that great. The down hill was fantastic and went on for 5 miles with hundreds of twists and turns. I couldnt ge up any serious speed or I would have plummetted over a 100 foot drop but it was nice to take it easy and just coast down.
Once on the flat I stopped at Waikanae at a "Subway" for a breakfast meatball sandwich and got talking to a Kiwi bloke who kept asking me contentious questions about our Class System in the UK and why we all winge a lot.I so enjoyed his company!!. He then started to make comments about my thighs and asked me how I built them up so much, At this point i made a polite excuse and left leaving half a meatball sandwich and most of my coffee. Its amazing how quickly you can lose your appetite isn't it ?
Once safely back on my bike it was 60 miles of flat road ahead of me which in theory was great. The only problem was the dratted north westerly wind that insisted on blowing me backwards for the next 5 hours. Its so typical that as soon as I get a nice flat easy section to ride mother nature decides to break wind in my face.
Its a pity that the road I was on never really gave me a glimpse of the sea as that would have made it all so worth while. I got to see lots of trucks though and some of them up very close indeed !!!
Once at Levin at the 50 mile mark I pulled in and lookd for a place that may sell carrot cake as this is my personal rocket fuel. I dropped lucky straight away and sat on my own in a deserted cafe for a whole hour. It almost got that boring that I almost hoped the "Thigh Guy" would walk in........I do stress " Almost " though as he was quite strange.
Within a couple of hours I was peddling into Bulls where my Brother in laws mate Kvin lives with his wife and family. I was greeted with a beer in proper Kiwi fashion and have watched the rugby eaten a great meal and skyped home. All in all a great day and no real problems off the ankle. I think i may feel it in the morning though. Tomorrow is a 4000 feet climb up to Taihape so I will need a good sleep tonight. So far so good though. Catch you all later

Thursday 10th March - Lazy day

Today has been a very lazy day and to be honest I have hardly done a thing. I went for a quick ride into town to see how my ankle felt and to get some flowers for the lady of the house for looking after me. On route I realised that my headset on the bike was  a bit knackered so took the bike into a local bike shop and they fixed it for me free of charge in half an hour. How good is that ?
The ankle feels a bit better so I will be testing it out properly by heading to Bulls tomorrow morning some 133 kms away. There is a 1550 foot climb to start with so that should either make me or break me. Cant wait to get going again though as there is so much to see and I'm looking forward to heading up into the mountains where all the volcanos are. The scenery is amazing especially the desert crossing in Tongararo.
I have an early start tomorrow so this is short and sweet . Wish me luck !

Wednesday 9th March - Rest Day

Wednesday 9^th March  1030pm                                                             

Today has been a much needed rest day in Upper Hutt, Wellington with Richard and Clare and their three young sons Jack aged 6, Ollie aged 4 and Tom aged 2. Three little whirling durbishes!

I arrived swearing never to cycle again such was the pain in my left achilles and the situation still hasn’t changed drastically. I have struggled to walk today and my sight- seeing tour kindly lead by Richard has been mainly by car.

 I had a lovely long lie in this morning and woke to a cooked breakfast which was inhaled in record time. I have built up quite an appetite in the last few days after my body has finally recognised that I will be exerting myself more or less every day from now on and needs the fuel. I haven’t really gone on about calorie intake much for fear of being boring but my fancy cycle computer kindly donated by POLAR ( thanks Lynne) tells me I am consuming around 800 cals an hour on the bike which means on average my body needs around 5600 extra calories if I cycle for 7 hours. I really struggle to eat that much so have lost around 8lbs so far. I’m hoping my beer intake will make up the difference though as I have no problems drinking.

Today Richard and I went into Wellington as I mentioned earlier and he showed me the Parliament building, and many of the other significant landmarks. One thing that is very apparent here is pride they take in the city. It is very relaxed, clean and manicured with well defined areas of use. The city itself has a Central Government area, a Retail area, an Industrial Sector and a Party area where all the bars are. It looks like a great city for socialising and everywhere you look you see the mountains behind with an abundance of trees making you feel that you are in a small industrious oasis carved out of a giant forested mountain range. Everywhere you look you see places that you would love to own a house because the views from the hillsides are spectacular. We drove up to Mount Victoria which overlooks the city and has a great viewpoint that takes in not just the city but the surrounding suburbs, airport and marina’s. I just clicked away with my camera like a Japanese Tourist as every view was amazing. It helped that today has been a beautiful day but all the same, this is a place I could live as it is relatively compact, exceptionally well laid out and attractive and many of the houses are individually designed, inventive and have plenty of space. It feels like one big friendly village.

We toured a couple of suburbs around Upper Hutt to see land plots and building sites and I was gobsmacked by the value for money you get here. For the price of my 2 bed city centre pad I could buy a 4 dbl bedroomed 250 sq meter luxury house with a dbl garage and half an acre of land on a hillside overlooking a fantastic view. Wellington really is a fabulous place to live,  full stop! I’ve no plans to move here though so don’t get your hopes up !

Finally today I managed to get to see another Physio who no sooner looked at me she stuck a bunch of acupuncture needles in my legs. I also had some ultra sound on the offending achilles and was diagnosed with Achilles Tendonitis, which I knew already thanks to the internet. It was no surprise when she strapped my ankle up and told me to give up on my cycling trip and lay off exercise for at least two weeks. Yeah Right !  I said.

 I now find myself with a dilemma as I don’t want to do myself irreparable damage and I don’t want to fail in my endeavour. I have decided for the moment to take another rest day tomorrow and have re-jigged my route so it’s a little shorter and less mountainous. This way it should be easier on the ankles and I have slightly longer to repair. I’m not entirely sure my ankle will be ok as the pain was unbearable yesterday but I am determined to give it my best shot. Richard and Claire have been great and are looking after me. In return I read stories to the boys and act as their punch-bag. It’s a fair deal I guess.

I guess in the meantime I can write more dross for you to read with your morning coffee and upload some more boring pictures of roads. Enjoy!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Monday 7th March & Tuesday 8th March

Monday 7^th March - 9.30pm

What a great day !  I didn’t get as far as I wanted to get as I am now in a small village called Ward around 25 miles south of Blenheim but it has been a good ride today.  I set off pretty early at around 8.30 and stopped for breakfast early on and to upload yesterday’s blog. After a quick breakfast  it was back on the bike and off towards Kaikoura, famous for whale watching. The only problem was a range of mountains in-between called the Hundalee’s.

Due to the fact that the map I have been using is completely crap I didn’t really know where these mountains started but what was apparent was that the road was no longer flat and the landscape became rolling again with barely a flat or straight section at all. To be honest it made a pleasant change though obviously it wasn’t quite as easy. After an hour the road started getting steeper and I thought, “well here we go, this is gonna be a slog” !, but it didn’t really get that difficult and after another 5 to 8 miles of rolling hills it straightened out.  I thought “well that wasn’t so hard was it” but I spoke too soon. On rounding the next corner Mount Everest loomed before me and I took a sharp intake of breath “ Shit !”  For the next 15 miles I climbed one steep road after another and although they didn’t really go beyond 800 feet climbs there were plenty of them and many were 13% gradients or more.

To be honest I still felt very strong and it didn’t get too much though I did have to pop more than a couple of pain killers when the Achilles problem returned. It definitely hurts more when I’m going uphill.  After 32 miles the Hundalee’s swept down to the ocean affording some amazing views and a twisty 38 mph decent which flattened out into a 12 mile coastal run through numerous tunnels. I was always within a few feet of the sea and I kept stopping to take photos as round every headland there was a better view. Eventually I arrived in Kaikoura with a massive appetite and ordered two main courses at a local café. Kaikoura is rather bohemian with lots of travellers ( not the ones who tarmac your drive badly ) and an abundance of people with dreadlocks, goatee beards and sandals.  I felt right at home… !

After spending an hour on lunch I saddled up again and headed north onto a flat road heading inland for a while then back out to the sea again to follow the beach for the next 40 miles. With a slight southerly wind I flew along the coast at around 18mph for ages only slowing for the odd climb or on one occasion when a truck came so close to me the wind pressure it created sent me into a ditch ! ( I’m ok though mum J )

Finally the road turned inland and a sign came up saying Blenheim 55kms. I looked at my watch and it was 6.30pm. I was never going to make it before dark. The venture into the ditch had resulted in a lost map and a busted front torch so I wasn’t going to be cycling in the dark even though I felt able to. I really wanted to do the 120 miles to Blenheim today as I felt so good.

A few miles later around 7pm and after 96 miles I came to a small village called Ward which has a small pub/Inn and a motel. There was no room at the Inn so I ventured on to the motel which also had no room. Fortunately they had a rickety old caravan in the corner at $25 a night so this is where I now sit tapping away on my laptop. There was nowhere open to eat so the Manager kindly gave me some bread and a can of beans so it was  ”Beans a la Toast” for me tonight. I have spent the last hour or so  nattering away to a group of people on a four wheel drive holiday across the remote areas of the south island. They were a great bunch and are having a ball. It looks like great fun. They even gave me a beer and some good advice on where to avoid on the north island.

So I guess this means that I leave the south island tomorrow as it is only about 42 miles to Picton where I catch the ferry to Wellington. It’s been emotional as they say. It has been a beautiful and incredibly friendly place to travel and although I have only stuck to the main route ( The A1 ) I have seen some great sights. The best thing though has been the people and everyone has been brilliant. Complete strangers have been really generous, I have made some new friends and obviously I have experienced some sobering sights in Christchuch. I have even felt my first earthquake and 13 more on top of that so that is something I will always remember.  I have even stuck to my schedule which for me is a first.

Tomorrow night I will be with Richard (Plug) and Clare in Upper Hut above Wellington and then it’s a day off again, thank god. This is of course if I manage to get on the Inter-islander Ferry as I haven’t booked a ticket !!!!!

Tuesday 8^th March -  3pm

Well I am now sat on the Interislander Ferry between Picton and Wellington waving goodbye to the south island ( not literally though as people would think I was strange !) and more than ready for a rest day with Richard and Clare in Upper Hutt. The cycle this morning was not easy as my left ankle is now worse than ever and quite frankly I cannot cycle on it any more. It has taken me a while to get from Ward this morning as it has was pretty hilly to start with and cycling uphill is way more painful. The extra strong painkillers have ceased to have any effect so I will have to see another physio asap. I may need two days off if I am to complete this trip which is a little worrying.

The scenery on route today was beautiful with vineyards lining every hillside and winding roads affording great views. I was in too much of a hurry to stop and take photos and quite frankly it hurt too much to twist my ankle to uncleat my left shoe from my peddle so it was better to keep moving. Blenheim looked really nice but passed me by in a blur and I arrived just in time to book on the next ferry at 2pm.

I now have a 3 hour journey to Wellington to try and find out if painkillers and alcohol work better than just painkillers alone. This could be interesting !!

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Sunday 6th March

Sunday 6^th March – 6.40pm

What a difference a day makes,  or on this occasion a Rest Day. I woke up this morning feeling completely refreshed despite a night interrupted by frequent heavy rain and the odd earth quake tremor.

Last night as I sat watching a film with Gordon and Michelle there was a big aftershock which measured 4.8 on the richter scale and shook the house for quite a few seconds. A bookcase started swaying next to me and I considered darting under the table as it was way bigger than the 13 aftershocks that I experienced yesterday alone. When a shock hits here, the family rush to their laptops to see what the measurement and location of the shock is on a website www.canterburyquakeslive.com   ( or similar ) which shows the measurements within a few minutes of the shock itself. This 4.8’r was the biggest since the big one on the 22^nd Feb and one of the top 30 in the last couple of years ( out of around 5000). Bet you didn’t think they got that much seismic activity here did you?

Anyhow, I digress. My aim today was to head for a small village called Cheviot on the A1 around 76 miles away. I had a quick breakfast and said goodbye to my excellent hosts, Gordon, Michelle, Sam and Jamie who have really looked after me over the last two days. I then headed back onto the A1 and pointed myself north. Thankfully the first 40 miles today were flat so I flew along. It felt like someone had snuck in and replaced my legs with those of Lance Armstrong during the night as my ankle felt good and there were no aches or pains at all. Even the wind was behind me on occasions which made a nice change.

 I ate up the miles averaging well over 16mph for the first 40 but then it had to go wrong didn’t it. I came to a small range of hills at precisely the same time a storm caught up with me and within 30 minutes I was soaked through despite wearing waterproofs. There was no shelter for 15 miles and no anything for that matter so when I finally found a café I was like a drowned rat.  It continued to pour down for ages so I took shelter for an hour and changed clothes before heading back out into the rain and on to Cheviot.

The hills finally ended,  the sun came out minutes later and finally I was rewarded with some fantastic views as I swept down into the Greta Valley and onto the flat again. In no time I was in Cheviot which is small but very pretty. There are quite a few cafés and a few motels and I pulled into the first one which ended up being rather too expensive for a poor cyclist on a budget. The lady who ran it was great though and organised a room for me further up the road. She even gave me a $10 donation for the charity which I will add to my list. The people really are great here.  I now sit in a small hotel room having hand-washed all my soaked clothes wondering how the hell I am going to dry them before morning.

It seems that I now only have one more night on the South Island as tomorrow I am going to try and make Blenheim which is 120 miles away. Then it is only 25 miles to the ferry at Picton and the official half way point. Tomorrow is going to be a stretch as a mountain range called the “Hundalees” are around 20 miles north of here and the roads are steep and go on for miles. I will give it my best though as to be honest there aren’t many other places to stay. Apart from the famous whale and dolphin watching town “Kaikoura” there is very little in-between.

Today has been great though so if the weather holds tomorrow and I have a southerly wind it could be my biggest day yet and it will keep me on target. Right, I’m off for a beer and to see if there is anywhere I can upload this blog. No tinternet at this hotel !!

Rest Day Quakes

Well I guess it was only a matter of time before I felt the earth move and it finally came at 10am this morning as I was lying in bed in a caravan in Michelle and Gordons back garden. I had just finished a phone call when the caravan began to shake quite violently. My first thought was that my hosts were outside shaking the caravan as some sort of practical joke to wake me up but I soon realised this was not the case. It was actually a bit freaky as I've never really felt anything like it before and that was only a small one by comparison to two weeks ago. It only lasted about 6 seconds in all though and there was no damage done. A local earthquake website showed it to measure 4.1 on the richter scale so a reasonable shudder over all. Two hours later there was another one the same size so I will be used to the earth moving before I leave Christchurch in the morning.
This afternoon has been spent shopping for painkillers and ibuprofen gell for the ankle. Bloody expensive stuff. On crossing the road to the shopping mall I say JT the Korean cyclist who is cycling round the world. It appears he has caught me up!
We had a quick chat and it appears that he is taking a rest day here too. He looked quite shocked and scared when I told him about the two quakes this morning. I think he is having second thoughts now and may cycle on through to a safe distance. I'm sure I will catch him up tomorrow if the ankle holds up ok. At least I can walk on it today so that's an improvement.

Friday 4th March - Short day today

I've just arrived in Christchurch having flown the last 47 miles from Ashburton in less that 3 1/2 hours. The legs felt good today after yesterdays physio. Its just a pity the achilles tendons didn't as they are now both giving me Jip. If it wasn't for the last of my painkillers I don't know what I would have done. I will be buying shares in Nurofen when I return. I think I peddled faster just so I could stop sooner. Whatever works I guess. I think I'm going to have to take a rest day tomorrow whether I like it or not.
Anyway, enough of my moaning, the weather today has been hot and sunny and I am feeling quite self conscious as I sit here in a coffee shop as I must stink. Looking around there is a bit of space and everyone does seem to be congregating on the other side of the shop.Who cares though as they have free WIFI !!! The good thing about burning up all these calories is that you can eat what the hell you want so I have just guzzled a triple chocolate muffin, a cornetto, a bottle of coke and a large latte. I will probably come back from this trip fatter than when I started.
Today I had to cheat a little and get a lift across the Rakaia River bridge which is 1.1 miles long and extremely exposed to the wind. Its pretty damn dangerous as there is no hard shoulder and its quite narrow. If two trucks are converging on one another at speed then there is no room to pass a bike like mine with panniers and I was not risking getting blown into the path of one of these trucks as that would be the end of Andy. It took me all of 30 seconds to flag down a truck to oblige me. It was harder to get him to stop at the other side and let me out again as he wanted the company I think and couldn't really understand why I wanted to carry on cycling after a mile long lift.
The rest of today's ride has been one long perfectly straight road and I have climbed about 80 feet all afternoon. I just kept my head down and peddled like heck. As a result I have averaged 15mph which i'm pretty chuffed with.
I now just need to wait until my hosts are home from work  as they live just round the corner from where I am now. I'm really looking forward to putting my feet up for a while if they don't mind me staying an extra night.
I am now over half way through the South Island so about a quarter of the way through the trip. There is still plenty of time for people to sponsor me. I think the totaliser is on 71% so far so there is still a way to go. Thanks to everyone for the support and the texts. ( you cant get enough when on your own) I will try and post some more photos soon.

Wed 2nd and Thur 3rd Feb

Wednesday 2^nd March - 8pm

Well today was supposed to be an easy 54 mile ride along a flat coastal road from Oamaru to Timaru and I expected it to take about 4 hours at the most. How wrong can you be !

As I set off from the motel this morning the manager said “Watch that wind it’s going to be really gusty along the A1 today “ Gusty was an understatement and unfortunately the gusts were coming right at me all day almost head on from the north west. They were lovely warm winds but incredibly strong and on two occasions stopped me dead in my tracks, literally !  It became quite scary when the winds came from my side and blew me into the road and on many occasions I struggled to keep the bike pointed in the right direction.

Half way through the day I spotted the Studholme Hotel my Uncle and I stayed on the way down. The manager Sam had been great and had offered me a free room on the way up north if it fitted in with my plans so as it had not beed quite that convenient I thought I would drop in for a beer and a burger. As I turned into the road it was on a gust of wind actually took me from almost standing still to over 14 mph without me even peddling, That’s how strong the cross winds were today.

After a long leisurely and free lunch ( Sam is a star ) I mounted the old steed again and set off into the wind once more which had not let up one bit.  It has actually taken me 6.1/4 hours to cycle what should have taken me 4 hours as my average speed was 10mph which is really slow. Instead of 54 miles the distance has been 62 as where I am staying is well north of Timaru towards Point Pleasant.

I am staying with my friend Jeannie’s parents Stuart and Dale. The house is really lovely and set in 50 acres. The living room is the size of a tennis court and the views are fabulous as you look straight out at a long mountain range in the distance. I am now sat with a beer and feeling pretty happy with my progress to date. I have a few niggles with my left hip and achilles tendon but hopefully a bit of rest will sort that. I think I may just do a quick 30 miler tomorrow afternoon rather than rest all day so I don’t have 100 miles to do the following day to Christchurch. If the winds are like they were today there is no way on earth I would make it. The forecast is actually wind and rain for the next few days so it’s not ideal.

Thursday 3^rd March – 7pm

Rather than leave myself a 100 mile ride to Christchurch tomorrow in those headwinds I decided to forego my rest day and break the back of the journey so  giving me a couple of easy days. After a good sleep and a long lie in I had a good chat with Stuart and Dale and Stuart took me for a look around the farm. They breed “Trotters” ( Not Dell Boys and Rodney’s ) which are race horses that you race sitting in a little light chariot behind the horse. They actually bread one of the best Trotters ever a few years back that won loads of races and there are pictures of his achievements around the house.  I helped Stuart saw up a large pine tree that had been blown over an irrigation ditch in yesterday’s winds and took a few pictures before heading off at around 1pm. The aim was to get to Ashburton some 40 miles away leaving around 55 miles for tomorrow. After 7 miles the pain in my left Achilles tendon was too much and I stopped in a small town called Tenuka for a coffee and to decide what to do. Miraculously there was a Physiotherapists surgery 20 yards away so I popped in on the off chance. The receptionist was great and on hearing my plight she sorted me an appointment 10 minutes later.

The Physio “Colin” was a Scottish guy and he took a look at my left Achilles and my left Quad and diagnosed the problem. I could not recount it to you now but basically the muscles in my left calf and Quad had seized up and knotted and these in turn were straining the achilles causing the pain.

He then inflicted ten times the pain I was having on the larger muscles in order to stretch them out and release the tightness. He called it deep tissue massage. Frankly I call it bloody torture!! A grown man nearly wept today. You could hear my cries in Christchurch.

Anyway, after paying the very reasonable bill and thanking Colin and the receptionist for fitting me in I jumped back on the bike and peddled to Ashburton stopping only for a quick lunch. The wind has been a lot calmer today so I’ve averaged 13 mph. The road has been flat and straight all day with views of the mountains to my left and views of the sea to my right. I listened to Adel’s albums all afternoon and have felt really good and pretty fit considering I haven’t had a day off yet.

On arrival in Ashburton at 6pm I saw a motel in the same chain as the one I stayed at in Oamaru called the Bella Vista Motel. It is identical in every way to the last one and there was a feeling of deja- vu as I wheeled into the car-park. The Managers Heather and Evan Glass informed me that there were no rooms to be had in the whole of Ashburton due to the earthquake but when they saw my face fall they kindly offered me their spare room in their own accommodation for free. How amazingly generous is that ? I just can’t get over how friendly and generous Kiwi’s are. They put us Brits to shame. When people see and hear what I am doing many of them want to stop and have a yarn and offer advice and support. Everyone has been so generous it has been quite humbling really. I can’t thank everyone enough. If I was doing this back home I would probably just get kids throwing stones at me !

Anyway,  I now lie on my double bed having had a lovely hot shower and you folks in the UK will be getting up to go to work about now. Wilmslow NPT will be just arriving at work to find handovers for prisoners in the bin and doing their best to get out of dealing ! ha ha. I am gonna head out for a beer as I only have a short 50 miler tomorrow to stay at a distant relatives place. It will be strange to be back at the scene of such devastation again. They are predicting another earthquake on or around the 21^st March. I hope it doesn’t come to fruition.

Monday and Tuesdays Blogs.

Monday 28^th Feb  - 11pm

Well that was the toughest days cycling I have ever done in my life and I am exhausted. I arrived at David and Belinda’s house in Northern Dunedin at about 7.30 pm and had to push my bike the last 300 yards as the road they live on is a 20% hill and I would never have been able to climb it even after 2 miles never mind 102 miles. Today I have burnt off almost 8000 calories and climbed in excess of 6000 feet which is roughly two Snowdon’s. The wind has been against me for about 50 miles and for some reason I could not stomach much food which hasn’t helped at all. Even tonight I only ate a regular sized meal. I’m not sure what the problem is but I need to increase my calorie intake or I won’t have much energy before long.  My legs ache, my arse is sore but I feel great having completed a tough day pretty much on schedule.

David and Belinda have been fabulous especially since they have never met me before.( David is the brother of Richard who is a mate of my mate Tony Capstick !! ) I have had a great meal, a well deserved beer and my clothes washed. I am now sat in bed much in need of sleep so this will be brief. The house I am in is amazing and full of Character. It sits atop of a big hill looking out over the whole of Dunedin and the view is amazing. You would need to be a millionaire to live in a place like this in the UK.

Tomorrow is a 72 mile day to Oamaru but again it is a hilly day with two big ones to start off with. My legs are gonna be screaming for the first hour tomorrow and I will need a rubber ring to go on my saddle ( too much information Andy !!!! ) Nevertheless it is less than today and I’m not bothered if I fall short as I will be staying in a hotel if I can find one. Most down here are booked up with Earthquake victims who have no house to live in anymore.

I’m glad today is over but at least I am a day ahead of schedule and have a bit of leeway built in to the trip in case of any unforeseen circumstances. There are bound to be some problems ahead but bring it on I say !

Can’t keep my eyes open any longer so bye for now.

Tuesday 1^st March   - 7pm

Well I have just arrived in Oamaru having completed 70 miles and some pretty steep hills. When I Woke this morning I did not feel like getting on my bike. It actually hurt to sit on my bed so you can imagine what it felt like when I first tentatively placed my backside on the racing saddle that adorns my bike. I will say no more !

I spent a leisurely morning having breakfast and being entertained by 19 month old Violet,  David and Belinda’s daughter. She didn’t seem quite as scared of me as she did last night when I arrived looking all sweaty and with 5 days of facial hair. This morning she was mildly cautious which I have learnt over the last 40 years is all I can reasonably expect from most females.

I set off at 10.30 and within 50 yards I was climbing a 1000 foot hill that takes you out of Dunedin along the A1. This hill went on for ages and then dropped into a 40 mph decent to the foot of a 600 foot climb and once this was over there was a 500 foot climb and so on. After 90 minutes I was ready to pack up and fly home as the rain started to pour down and I met a headwind but ten minutes later my faith was restored as I found a flat bit which went on for about 10 miles.

After promising myself faithfully that I would not rest until Palmerston at the 30 mile mark I saw a café and my resolution failed immediately. I could not get off my bike quick enough and dived in looking like a sweatier version of Grizzly Adams in lycra. I nearly cried when I saw that they had carrot cake and ordered a massive piece together with a coffee and a bottle of coke. I then inhaled all that within seconds and sat and chatted to the staff there. They thought I was mad. Not because of the way I looked I hasten to add but because I was cycling the length of their country. I don’t think either of the staff had ever been further than the South Island.

That carrot cake was like rocket fuel as it turned me from a very weary man into a dynamo and I ate up the next ten miles before hitting more hills. My reaction to the first hill was to stop and get an ice cream  and a can of Iron Brew which I consumed in the shade as it was now 78 F. The weather has been warm but it was now getting hot and the shade was a blessing for a while. As I sat there another cyclist went past on the most laden down bike I have ever seen. I don’t think you could get any more on the bike if you tried. We exchanged pleasantries but he didn’t stop ( probably scared of the beard too !) and I sat for a further 30 mins before heading off again.

After the hills and passing through Palmerston the road met with the beach and I cycled along the coast for a few miles past “ Shag Point” my first photo opportunity of the day and enjoyed the scenery. It really was a surfer’s paradise except of course for all the rocks that lined the beach making it suicide for anyone who would be mad enough to try surfing there.

Further up the coast there was a turn off the A1 enabling you to follow the coast for another 25 miles until reaching Oamaru. I had asked the lady who sold me the ice cream if this was a good route and she said it was lovely as the A1 was really steep and hilly later on and the coastal route was better and more scenic. She said “ You can’t miss the turn off as its next to the chicken laying an egg !!“ I looked at her somewhat mystified like she was some sort of Clairvoyant who knew there would be a small chicken laying an egg at the precise moment I reached the intersection but she saw my confusion and interjected. “ It’s like 20 foot tall, trust me you can’t miss it! “   Well miss it I did,  and before I knew it I was heading up some horrid flipping duel carriageway with massive cattle trucks wizzing past me with about 6 inches between us. ( They all drive like that here )

Anyway, The next hour or so flew by and I felt great which was a bit of a shock considering yesterday’s exploits. I finally arrived in Oamaru at 5.50pm just as I  caught up the guy on the laden down bike from earlier. ( No wonder I caught him up ) We had a chat for 20 mins or so and his name is JT and he is from Korea. He has taken 2 years out to cycle round the world ( hence all the gear ). We exchanged contact details and I said I might meet up with him in McDonalds tonight to exchange manly cycling stories !! ( MD’s has free WIFI )

Today I have climbed 5000 feet and burnt off 6000 calories. 

I now find myself in a snazzy motel type place in a studio apartment costing about £55 a night. It has the most amazing shower and free WIFI too. I now need to get myself the biggest bowl of pasta I can find and skype my lovely girlfriend. I hope she won’t freak at the sight of wierdy beardy face !!

Sorry I went on so much tonight, hope I haven’t bored you all…..if your still reading that is