A Kiwi, but not a flightless bird or brown fuzzy skin green centred fruit. Humanist, Skeptic, Cyclist, Car Enthusiast, Westie Auckland Tāmaki Makaurau, Aotearoa New Zealand | he/him
A recent “Hidden Heroes” article on Honest John got my attention. They think my Fiat Bravo HGT is a future classic and there are only 21 left on the road in the U.K. There were never many HGTs in New Zealand; I was told maybe Thirty total and just
Travel
I had a nice breakfast back at “Seashore Cabaret” on the Petone waterfront (opposite the lodge). Today was just the drive back to Auckland but by a different route than I came down. AHBART skilfully packed (OK, not really) for the long drive home. I use foam ‘pool noodles’ to
Just driving today, Westport to Picton and on the Bluebridge Ferry to Wellington. Love the Buller Gorge road, great in any mode of transport but especially this one! I found LOVE on the side of the road at Inangahua Junction! The Upper Buller Gorge is higher! The obligatory stop at
I slept in a bit again, nice after the busy A20 and big drive days. Finally looked out the window about 8am to see blue skies and sun. What a contrast to last night’s overcast and drizzle! I’d come back to Westport as back in 2011 we cycled
New Zealand
After collecting AHBART in Christchurch late in the evening I drove out to Akaroa. There were three motivating factors for this; 1. I’ve never been to Akaroa 2. A former colleague has retired there and it was a chance to catch up. 3. I had been told it was
The last day of our Alps To Ocean ride started with breakfast at Burnside Homestead. Most large NZ houses of this era were laid out as rooms along corridors/wings. Burnside is unusual in having a huge octagonal centre parlour with most of the rooms radiating off it. It was
Signs of more snow arriving on the hills overnight but seeing this sunrise, and blue sky, was a nice start to the day. After breakfast at Waitaki Braids we loaded up and drove back to Otematata to ride the best part of the trail we skipped yesterday. While waiting I
Adventure South
I had a late night watching F1 on my phone as mobile data was faster than WIFI. Awoke to grim weather, cold and wet, and it didn’t look like it was passing. At breakfast Bas suggested a change from the scheduled ride to Kurow. We jumped in the bus
Sunday dawned (very) cold and (comparatively) fine. After breakfast in Twizel our destination was Lake Ohau Lodge for lunch. I’d ridden in this area before, on road long before the trail, but was looking forward to revisiting it from a new perspective. Up early after staying up too late
The short walk to breakfast and view across Lake Tekapo was sufficient to see the forecast grim weather had arrived. The good thing about riding with people with extensive local knowledge is they know where not to go. Instead of battling head/side winds, and rain, on the first part
The start of the A2O Cycle Trip proper meant getting rid of AHBART for a week. I’d been offered a free secure park but it was on the opposite side of Christchurch from where I was staying so had an early start. Although Friday, workday for most, there was
Driving the Inland Route from Kaikōura to Waiau
