Iteris

When it came time to leave Auckland after some well deserved rest, Sue very kindly agreed to drive us and all our stuff to Clevedon, just south of Auckland. There are those that might think it cheating we didn’t cycle through Auckland, but really they are comments I am happy to deal with as the roads around there were too dangerous to cycle and I would rather skip a section and still make it down to Bluff then insist on riding such routes. From Clevedon we cycled along a gorgeously sweeping coastline that glittered alluringly throughout the day. At lunch we gave in temporarily and ate beside the sea at Kawakawa Bay. It was a forty mile day, hard but pleasant none the less and possibly one of the most enjoyable rides so far. We eventually arrived, tired and ready for some food at a five star camp site in Miranda Springs, where, as the name suggests, were thermal pools we were able to bathe in. It is true, the smell of bad eggs was pervasive and though we shot each other some suspicious looks, we were fairly sure it must have been the spring.

The following day we once again packed the kit and set off. I must admit to my arse grumbling at me after such a long day of being on the bike the day before. Still, the road was flat as we cycled through the plains and there was no headwind, so the cycle was fairly easy. It was as we were leaving Piroa after lunch that we encountered a problem. Suffice it to say we found ourselves once more standing in a bike shop. It turned out that a bearing in Jimmy’s bike had broken and there was no replacement to be found. Feeling a little demoralised at having another equipment failure we looked for accommodation. As it turned out there were no camp sites around Piroa that allowed tents and there was a clay pigeon shoot that weekend so most of the accommodation was taken. However, we found a motel, I do use the term loosely and must admit it was one of the first times on the trip that I longed for my tent and my sleeping bag. The proprietor appeared to be a fan of what I have now learned are called stubbies, a throwback from the seventies, a very short type of shorts. I can tell you they are not a pretty sight. All that aside he was very kind and gave us an extra room free of charge, into which we were able to dump all of our kit, and we did sleep well that night.

In the morning we phoned around and managed to find someone who would be able to get us the bearing that we needed, but it would have to be ordered and because of the long weekend wouldn’t arrive till the next week. This left us with the problem of how we’d get to out of Piroa and where we’d stay. Our prayers were answered by Jane and Richard Coon, who appeared in their truck to whisk us and our gear to their house beside lake Ohakuri, half an hour outside of Rotorua. I can honestly say, with a heart felt certainty I cannot convey in words alone, that if I had to be stuck anywhere, here is where I’d want it to be. We are currently staying on a private, eighty acre estate, which includes the lake we overlook, and leaving is going to be made all the more difficult because of Jane and Richard’s great hospitality.

While we’ve been here we’ve pottered around Rotorua town and seen the famous lake. Even at its busiest Rotorua has the pace of perhaps an English town on Sunday. We also visited the Lady Nox Geyser and the thermal springs which were pretty fascinating and we were told that around Rotorua is the most active volcanic area in the world. We then spent an evening at Tamaki village, a Maori experience allegedly. I must admit to being under-whelemd. Although the night started off well with the choreographed dance it quickly seemed to lose cohesion and though it might have pleased some people off of a boat or coach trip, we’ve been meeting New Zealand’s people throughout our trip and learned a great deal more from them than we did from that night.

Although I started this as a record of my thoughts and feelings of this trip I have to say that I think I’m doing a poor job of conveying the spectacular beauty of New Zealand and now that I’ve reached Ohakuri I find my vocabulary inadequate to describe how incredulously outstanding this place is and more than that, how being here seems to effect people. There are a great number of gaps that I will try to fill at a later date.