Ashburton 29th Feb

29 Feb
My watch is confused telling me it is March already and therefore my mother's birthday. I left the little camping ground near Geraldine thinking I would follow my new friend's advice and stay off the main roads. I thought I could trust my GPS to get me to the right place,  but it became clear that I could easily end up in going around in circles-not so bad in a car. Better the tried and true (but noisy) highway.  I managed the long bridges OK timing my run for minimum disruption to traffic.  Rain was forecast for tomorrow so thought about moving on to Christchurch but didn't have the energy.  The wind was picking up from the north so I picked the southern campground by the domain. The ducks are very noisy at the so I am hoping they will fall asleep eventually. Had a craving for KFC so indulged. Left me full all afternoon.  I am looking forward to catching up with the Bridges after a timely email from Alison S.
I now have a new scheme where I buy the local paper, read it, do the puzzles(one of my few obsessions  and then lay the paper onthe floor of the tent.  This gives insulation as well as protecting Tom's wonderful inflatable mattress from sharp objects.  Thanks Tom.
I am not looking forward to Christchurch - so much misery and loss.   And also on the positive side,  so much resilience. I think only 1 night.  I am pleased I came but I miss Kay and normal life in Hamilton. I am also looking to seeing some old friends in Wellington.

27th Feb Timaru

27 Feb
Today I rode from  Oamaru to Timaru - a distance of about 80km.  I thought it should not be too much of a. challenge.  This is the Canterbury Plains after all - flat and straight roads.   The weather was fine and the temperature was cool.  What I hadn't counted on was the steady sea breeze that  was almost head on.  It made riding a significant challenge. Without the breeze I could have averaged 17km/hr but the breeze reduced it to 12.  To complete the challenge was the series of hills and valleys that lead in to the city of Timaru.  It was a relief to see the signpost for the camping ground. The manager is a cyclist and we talked much about riding and routes north.  He suggested staying off the main roads away from the big trucks. His suggestion has merit although today the big trucks provided some slight relief from the incessant head wind.

Geraldene 28 Feb

28 Feb
The day dawned cold and misty with a few spots of rain. My friendly Dutchman neighbour in the tentsite along from me was ever helpful with suggestions about routes and placed to visit.  My first task was to get my gears sorted.  I rode in to Timaru (I hadn't realised what a gully town/city it really was until I had to bike round it and through it) and found a bike shop open.  They fixed the problem quickly and for free - the bell I put on was imterfering with gears. It didn't before but must have moved.  Its a lot better now. So I packed up and made to set off.  Had another long talk with camp manager about bikes and routes so it was 11.30 before I was on my way.  Lots of hills on the way out. But once out of town, the road was flat,  the strongish southerly was behind me and I made good time to Temuka where I stopped to buy bananas. I mislaid my wallet there and it was a scary moment.  If I lost it for good or it got stolen it would be very tricky.  I am working on a contingency plan. I decided to the country road thing and stopped at a country campground called The Farmyard - delightful. The only problem is the nearest beer for sale is 5km by pushbike- probably a good thing in the long run.

Palmerston 25th

25 th Feb  After two days swanning around Dunedin, being spoilt by my hosts, it was time to hit the road again. I had hoped to start putting some serious kms on the clock. I hadn't reckon ed the steepness of the Dunedin hills. My first mistake was to think that an alternative route for the motorway for cyclists would be well signposted. It is both illegal and foolish to ride a bike on the motorway.  Eventually I found the sign.  What I should have done was caught the excursion train to Palmerston. Cost a bit but would have saved hours pushing a heavy bike up several steep hills. So I made it to Palmerston. Paid for a small room with a TV, heater and sink.  Charged up my phone and made a significant dent in my food store in order to reduce weight. I have been carrying some of it for a long time. We ate out quite a bit on the Trail so it was time to consume a lot of it.
Tomorrow's forecast is rain so it may be a short day.  After that it gets better.  It will, be nice to complete the South Island section-maybe in a week. Perhaps a little more. Warmer nights would be good.

26th Feb Oamaru

26th Feb
Today I left Palmerston at about 9.30.  It was a grey old Sunday with rain threatening pretty much the whole day. The first objective was to get to Oamaru and see what condition my condition was in.  The country  was  rolling hills  which lots of slow progress going up short passages coming down. I reso lved to eat lots of the food I'd been lugging that Tom wasn't so keen on.   Iwas riding through Herbert which is a few kms south of Oamaru when noticed a grand old church.  So I crossed the road to take a look .The servicewas just finishing  but a couple of the ladies allowed me to admire the inside as well as the outside. I even for sign the visitor's book.

Once I finally crawled up the last hill to Oamaru I didn't have the energy to go on.   The cabin prices were exhorbitant so it was back to the tent.  I finally found some grass the tent pegs would into without the use of dynamite.
A German cyclist rode in at about 6 and set up a tent very like mine.  We got talking.  His English was better than my German so we're able to communicate quite well.  He told me I was the first Kiwi cyclist he'd seen.

Timaru

Graham has made it to Timaru after a long day with a headwind. He is hoping to get to Ashburton tomorrow night.

Oamaru

Another hilly day with grey clouds in the morning but fine weather this afternoon. Graham is now in Oamaru.

Palmerston

Hi everyone.. Kay here. Graham has spent the last few nights in Dunedin havin g a lovely time catching up with old friends Greg and Hilda , and Kelvin and Clemency.  Today he made it through to Palmerston.. not as far as he wanted to go but he says that  after  3 big steep hills and cold showery weather he wanted to stay in a cabin.

Rail trail Wedderburm

21 Feb
Today Tom and I left Omakau in drizzle, low cloud and fortunately very little wind. Because we were prepared for it, we made sure our clothes at least were dry double wrapped in plastic bags. We made our selves as waterproof as possible.  Nothing could stop the sandy grit from getting into everything - brakes, chain, sox, shoes. Braking was an excruciating experience,  We maintained quite a good speed despite the conditions and the uphill gradient. Tom negotiated a couple of busdriver cottages for $20 each so we have avoided yet another night in a tent for very little extra cost.  I wouldn't mind the tent if it wasn't for the cold, We solved the mystery of the deflating mattress. Ann's mattress still goes down a bit but theres only one night for him to go.  I am going to miss his company - it has been good.

Rail trail Omakau

20th rail trail day 1
We both had a dreadful night with very cold temperatures, mattresses that lost their and very damp conditions.  I hardly slept at all.
We had spent quite alot of time sorting our stuff into piles. For me I was sending some stuff back to Hamilton because it turned out I didn't so much after all.  Some stuffwas going to Middlemarch to reduce weight on the gravel trail. And it did make a difference today having slightly fewer things onboard. I had picked up Tom's bike the afternoon before because his bus came in after the shop was closed. That worked out well. We started a bit later than I had hoped. We had an easy run to  Alex where we picked up extra pegs for Tom's bivvy bag and of course the caffeine fix.  We made good time to Chatto Creek where Tom shouted lunch.Grateful thanks.  There was a long stretch of uphill climb with a strong wind and a hot sun.  When we got Omakau I opted for the comparative luxury of a 2 bed cabin so we could sort out our problems of leaky mattresses. Tomorrow night its tents again at Wedderburn beside the red shed.

Clyde

19th Sunday
A blob day was ordered and duly delivered. In yesterday's I didn't mention Dave and Brian who quite often go biking together when Brian's wife lets him.  Both come from Christchurch and were quite emotional talking about it. They plan to do it in 2 weeks with lots of little side trips. They both have an interesting perspective on life that involves helping people and not necessarily making a lot of money.  And they love biking.

Queenstowm

18th
Queenstown leaves me cold. Don't get me wrong. It is stunningly beautiful. But it seems to be a lot about money. The houses, the clothes,  the prices, and just the sheer speed of the place.I didnot feel safe riding around.  The 1way street system takes a bit of getting used to.

In our little corner of campingground was a little micro cosm of the world There was Steve sleeping out of the back of a car.A cyclist from a small town, looking for a part-time job to help him through his self improvement course. Will it help him get a career? Hope so

There was Linda - a librarian from Melbourne cruising around in hired station wagon.She knows how to party hard. She has a number of tats-I only saw 1 but I'll take her word for the rest.

Then there was Brigit and Marta. Both from Frankfurt. Both just finished high school and touring first NZ and then Thailand before starting university. One wants to be a lawyer and the other wants to  do media arts.  They flew to New Zealand and bought a car to travel around in sleep in.They had a book of 50 must do things in NZ and planned their tour around that. It was fun sharing impressions of NZ Australia and Europe with these young people.

The next day I left early hoping to find the odd garage sale.  That part of the didn't seem to do garage sales for some reason.Good thing because I can't carry anything anyway. A few steep climbs out of the city and then it was downhill pretty much all the way to Cromwell.  I had not been aware how much climbing I had done from Bluff to Kingston until did the descent to Cromwell and then Clyde. I could (and probably should) have stayed in Cromwell but I wanted a 'blob' day before Tom arrived to do the Rail Trail.  The run down to Clyde should have been a doddle but a head wind had sprung up and though it wasn't strong I was already tired.  Rain was threatening putting added pressure.

Kingston

16 th
it was cold and misty when I left Lumsden.  The night was quite cold and I was pleased I had booked the little cabin.I didn't sleep too but at least I was warm. I briefly toyed with the idea of going on to Queenstown.In theory it would have been possible if the weather had been kind, the roads straight and flat, with a good cloud cover with cool temperatures. It didn't take me long to decide Kingston should be the goal for the day. The cold mist stuck around so I stopped for a coffee at Five Rivers.

Got to Kingston absolutely exhausted. Setup my tent, had a shower, cooked dinner and went to bed.  Had a long talk to a Danish man who commiserated with me about the hills in NZ.

Lumsden

Good keen men
15 feb  I left Invercargill heading first for Winton then Dipton and if nothing suitable accomodation wise turned up Lumsden at 80kms was the final choice.  I was a little worried as a fellow cyclists didn't think there was a campsite at Lumsden.  I got even more concerned when signs pointing to a site were faded.  I asked a local and was relieved that it was just out of towb.  Honesty box for campsites as in Bluff.but I wanted a cabin so I had to ring the numbe.  Turns she is from PNG and her husband is currently in Morrocco where he often goes to work. Kind of unexpected in a tiny little conservative town like Lumsden.   It is a lovely little campground and I thought it was going to be great when a couple of good keen fisher blokes decided to take the other cabin which is inches from my front door. Clearly a test of my humility.  And I failed , again.

14 th Feb Bluff and back to Invercargill

Bluff  The bow of the canoe

Today was shakedown day. I got really cold at night as the strong southerly kept the temperature very cool. It confirmed the decision to start south and go north was the right one (weather-wise anyway). I had breakfast (left over chips) and then muesli.  I packed up all my things and headed for the bay where the huge chain links go into the bay. An effective and inspiring piece of sculpture. I missed seeing the Maritime Museum at Bluff but it would have meant waiting around for 30 minutes or more till it opened and I was still cold.  One day we'll be back and I can see it then.  I rode past some trampers (German I think) - a couple walking the length of the South Island.  Quite humbling. You think YOUR pilgrimage is quite challenging and then you meet others whose challenge seems far geater. Got back to Invercargill at midday and went shopping after booking into the camping ground. Some things had to wait. Some things I plain forgot. There were lots of cyclists - mostly from Europe including a couple with two very young children under 5 from Switzerland. Brave - some would say unwise - on NZ roads.  But they got there safely.

13 Feb Invercargill

Today began in the early morning.  I got up (because I couldn't sleep) at about 3 am, checked email and facebook (as you do), and went back to sleep.  At 6.30 I woke and checked my watch.    We needed to be at the airport by 6.45 which gave us 10 mins to make it happen.  Fortunately the bike and all the extras were pretty much in place.

There is a dilema - do you plan for every eventuality (e.g. broken spokes) or go light and hope it all works ok. I have 2 spare spokes and 2 spare chain links if the chain breaks.  I think I even know how to use them.  The tools are quite heavy, so its a toss up. I also have lots of plastic ties which are great and weigh almost nothing.

We made it to the airport and the check-in was very painless.  I am on my way.

Why?

Another question I am asked is "Why are you going uphill ?" - thats what it looks like on a globe as we traditionally know it. There are a number of practical reasons why I'm going in this direction.  Food, transport, prevailing wind direction (I hope).  But there also a spiritual reason.

 In 2001 Kay flew to Europe to walk the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage across northern Spain - 800km, 5 weeks.  In 2003 the two of us essentially walked the same route together.   The remains of St James - one of the Disciples of  Jesus - is reputed to be interred in a silver casket buried beneath the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela in Galicia.  For a thousand years pilgrims have been making similar journeys to Santiago for a whole variety of reasons.  For a better feel for it, watch the movie "The Way" with Martin Sheen.

There are few places in New Zealand  that could command such an interest.  Spirit's Rock is the sacred ground at Cape Reinga where Maori believe the human spirit touches before heading off to Hawaiiki, once a person has died.

Although we were there, walking across Spain together, a pilgrimage is essentially a solo effort. The people you are with are part of your pilgrimage through life, but in the end you are born, you live and you die alone. 
So my trip is partly holiday, fun, exercise, meeting new people, sightseeing, a break from the rigours of the classroom and administration. It is also being at that point of departure for Maori at Cape Reinga. It is a time of self-reflection and perhaps a re-discovery of who I am and why I am here.

So it is uphill.  Some of it will be hard.  When I have been back for a while I will be able to answer the next question - "Was it worth it ?".  But thats another story.

Just a few days...

Had a question from many of my colleagues - "Are you ready?"

A hard one to answer as there so many possible ways to look at it.

Am I packed ?    I have a spreadsheet (as many Technologists do) of all that needs to go in and where it should go.  There are pile of items sitting on my office floor, waiting to be bagged and put in the appropriate pannier.  Most of them have been weighed to keep the the balance even.   My only regret is that can't think of a practical way to take a guitar along.  recorder - yes.   guitar no.


Am I physically ready ?    I have done some training, possibly not as much as I should have.  I have done several long distance trips in the last month - and survived.  The trip has been set up with a flexible timeline.  So I will make it manageable.   Kay keeps telling me - "its not a race, or an endurance event".  And, as usual, she is right.

Have I booked all the things that need to be booked?  I have booked my flight to Invercargill. I have booked my  flight back from Kaitaia and the train trip from the end of the Otago Rail Trail back to Dunedin.  The only other booking I need to make is how to get back from Cape Reinga to Kaitaia..   With bike.