I spent October 2021 to early August 2022 exploring New Zealand both cycling and drive/cycle road tripping. This index was updated as that journey progressed, not always to plan, with links to blog posts and other external resources.

'The Why' and 'The Plan' sections have an overview of how I decided to do that, initial plans, and changes along the way but I've since retro-blogged 'The Reality', in depth as it happened, with near daily significant ride/drive summaries.

The Reality:

Ride areas completed to August 2022

This is what I've been up to:

Planning | July - Sept 2021

Looking back:

Blog Posts by ride base:

North Island
- Auckland (Summary and/or significant)
  - September to October 2021 | Auckland COVID-19 Lockdown L3
    - Regional restrictions? Not so much
    - Cycling local in the Auckland Regional Lockdown
  - October to December 2021 | Auckland COVID-19 Lockdown L3.1
    - Cycling further afield in the Auckland Regional Lockdown
  - January 2022 after lockdowns ended
    - Āwhitu (Manukau South Head)
    - Waiheke Island
  - May 2022 (after South Island Trip)
  - June 2022 (after South Island Trip)
  - July 2022 (after South Island Trip)
    - Hillary Trail | Whatipu, Ōmanawanui and Puriri Ridge Hike
- Waikato
  - January 2022
  - May 2022 (after South Island Trip)
    - Waikato River Trail | Mangakino to Atiamuri
    - Te Awa River Ride | Tamahere to Karāpiro
  - August 2022 (after South Island Trip)
    - Waikato River Trail | Mangakino to Waipapa | Final Time Out 2021-22 Ride
  - January 2023 to complete the full Te Awa River Ride
    - Te Awa River Ride | Hamilton to Cambridge (inc. new Hamilton Gardens - Tamahere Section)
- Taupo & Rotorua
  - January 2022
  - May 2022 (after South Island Trip)
    - Great Lake Trails | Waihaha & Waihora Trails
    - Rotary Trail, Huka Falls, Aratiatia revisited & Lakefront Pathway
- Taumarunui & Timber Trail (Pureora Forest) - May 2022 (after South Island Trip)
South Island Road Trip (Jan - April 2022)
- Drive/Ferry
  - Auckland to Whanganui & Wellington | 21 January 2022
  - Cook Strait Ferry to Picton, Nelson
- Nelson - January 2022
- Drive
  - Nelson to Tākaka, via Richmond twice!
- Golden Bay - January/February 2022
- Drive/Fly to Auckland & back
- Queenstown - February 2022
- Alexandra - February 2022
- Roxburgh - February 2022
- Otematata - February 2022
- Drive/Fly to Auckland & back
- Hokitika - March 2022
  - West Coast Wilderness Trail inc. Hokitika Gorge Walk
- Drive
  - Hokitika, Ross Walk & drive to Punakaiki
- Punakaiki - March 2022
- Westport - March 2022
- Hanmer Springs - March 2022
- Picton- March 2022
- Drive/Ferry
  - Picton, Blenheim, Cook Strait Ferry to Wellington
- Wellington - March/April 2022
- Drive
  - Wellington to Auckland Finish | 03 April 2022

Total Distances:

2021-09-25 to 2022-08-06
- Cycled | 7882 km
- Walked | 172 km
- Driven for South Island Road Trip | 6034 km
- Ride, Hike, Drive, Summary (click for full image)
Great Rides Done: (a couple more were added as I rode!)
- Aqua = Great Rides Completed (click for full image)

Relive videos of all rides/hikes:

Relives are 2–3-minute video summaries of rides showing the track and photos taken along the way.

Auckland | 25 September 2021 to date

Auckland region in lockdown August 19 to December 15

Waikato | Jan, May, & August 2022
- Port Waikato to Nikau Cave Café TO2122-57 [RL]
- Te Awa River Ride
- Waikato River Trails:
- Putaruru Blue Springs Walk TO2122-61w [RL]
- Paeroa to Wāihi TO2122-61 [RL]
Taupo & Rotorua Rides | Jan & May 2022
- Taupō Hūka Falls Aratiatia Loop TO2122-63 [RL]
- Taupō Falls Rapids Lakefront TO2122-115 [RL] (Kayaks over Huka Falls)
- Rotorua Forest Loop & City Thermal Path TO2122-64 [RL]
- Great Lakes Rides:
Timber Trail | May 2022
- Timber Trail Day 1 TO2122-116a [RL]
- Timber Trail Day 2 TO2122-116b [RL]
Nelson Rides | Jan 2022
Golden Bay Rides | Jan/Feb 2022
Otago/Canterbury Rides | Feb 2022
- Queenstown
- Alexandra/Cromwell
  - Alexandra Dunstan Trail Cromwell TO2122-78 [RL]
- Roxburgh/Clutha
- Alps to Ocean revisited
  - A2O Otematata Sailors Cutting (Benmore) TO2122-83 [RL]
  - A2O Otematata to Kurow (Waitaki Braids) TO2122-84 [RL]
West Coast Rides | March 2022
- West Coast Wilderness Trail | With Cycle Journeys
- Punakaiki / Paparoa
- Old Ghost Road Trail | Adventure South Trip Cancelled, may do 03-2023 as still have a (deferred) Hokatika Wild Food Festival Ticket. Replaced with Westport, Hanmer Springs, & Picton. Update 2024-03: Did the trip as originally booked with Adventure South
- Westport
  - Westport Kawatiri Coastal Trail TO2122-93 [RL]
  - Westport Denniston Plateau TO2122-94 [RL]
- Hanmer Springs
- Picton
  - Picton Havelock Link Pathway TO2122-98 [RL]
  - Picton Robin Hood Bay Loop TO2122-99 [RL]
Lower North Island Rides | March/April 2022
- Wellington
Still on 'To do' list. More to come when they happen!
- Waikato River Trails
  - Finish un-ridden part of Section 4 Maratai
- Central Plateau
  - Moutain to Sea (Ruapehu - Whanganui inc Bridge to Nowhere)
- Hawkes Bay
  - Napier Trails
  - Havelock (Te Mata Peak)
  - Whirinaki Mtb
- Wairarapa Coast
  - Cape Pallliser
  - Castle Point
- Revisit
  - Northland
    - Twin Coast Trail
  - Bay of Plenty/East Cape
    - Motu Trails
Other Indexes
- All the posts tagged TO2122 [RPB]
- All the photos on Flickr [FLK]

The Why:

On July 26, 2021, at 12:41 I stopped cycling, snapped this photo (how I know the time), absorbed the view and decided...

A few weeks before, July 9th, I saw Kiwi (albeit US based) musician Greg Johnson at the Powerstation; a stunning evening:

Since then, I have been listening to his ~200 Track 'Box Set' on repeat or shuffle. At 4:32 on August 3 I was wide awake, thinking about some upcoming work changes, and the phone shuffle playlist picked one of my favourite tracks, from the early 'Vine Street Stories' album: 'Don't Wait Another Day'

Taking that advice, I picked up my phone, fired up OneNote (how I know the time) and wrote what I said at work later that day:

Thanks for sharing the new tribe/chapter/squad design with me yesterday (Mon 2nd). After due consideration I have decided, although included, I do not see a place for me in it.

What next?

I've yet to visit Europe, had saved for that but then COVID-19 changed the world. With no desire to travel anywhere for a long time, even though fully vaccinated, I'm taking this opportunity to invest some of that locally with a summer break in New Zealand.

It will be from October to at least the end of March. Then I will decide what's next, find my Lemonade Stand?*

* Greg shared how hearing wealthy friends talk about their retirement plans (shares, investments etc) made him think about his own...

The Plan @ 25 Sept 2021 (COVID-19 status permitting)

I have no firm plans for the next few months but have put together an evolving list of things to consider:

(re)Connecting

With myself, people, activities I have drifted away from...

Was looking forward to seeing/doing more with Alfie which wasn't to be but (if anything) it reaffirmed this move.

Cycling/Drive Touring

Visiting parts of NZ I haven't been, or which have changed since last visited. I have travelled/cycled most of the South Island but that was before most of the cycle trails were established. Have yet to visit Golden Bay/Farewell Spit or spend much time on the Wairarapa Coast so those go on the list.

Italics are tentative, removed if completed or confirmed.
Links in this section will go to resources, like area or cycle path sites, not my content:

Local

Woodhill MTB
Day/overnight trip | Any time
- Waiheke (Jan 2022)
- Great Barrier
- Manukau South Head Awhitu (Jan 2022)
- Kaipara North Head (Pouto)
- Kaipara South Head (Jan 2022)

North Island

Northland Revisit | 2021-12 | Cancelled due to COVID lockdown and area vaccination status (purple)
- Whangarei Heads
- Twin Coast (Hokianga to Bay Of Islands) reprise
- Waitangi MTB Park

East Cape/Napier Revisit | 2021-12 | Cancelled due to COVID lockdown and area vaccination status (orange)
- Napier Hawkes Bay Trails
- Motu & East Cape reprise

Wellington | Could not do 2021-11 as planned so did 2022-03/04 | (light blue)
- Hutt / Rimutaka Trail
- Pencarrow Coast
- Wairarapa Coast

Waikato/Central/Taranaki | 2022-01
- Waikato (pink)
- Central/Taranaki (magenta) Initially cancelled due to COVID lockdown
  - Timber Trail - Did this in May 2022
  - Mountains to Sea (Ruapehu - Whanganui) Still on my to do list

South Island

Upper South | January/Feb 2022 (yellow)
- Nelson Coppermine and Queen Charlotte Reprise
- Golden Bay & Farewell Spit

Otago & Southland Revisit | February 2022 (red)
- Queenstown (visited lots but never cycled the trails there) & but not Around the Mountains
- Roxburgh Gorge & Clutha Gold Trails
- Lake Dunstan Trail
- Oamaru & the new leg of A2O (Omarama to Kurow was not built when did the A2O)

West Coast Trails Revisit | March 2022 (navy blue)
- West Coast Wilderness
- Paparoa Track (Did day ride as no huts free)
- Old Ghost Road (Deferred as scheduled group ride didn't eventuate and a bit remote for me as a solo ride (no phone coverage for most of the three days). Update 2024-03: Did the trip as originally booked with Adventure South)

Reading

This is a few of the books I own, but haven't had the motivation to read... now with time...

Read
- rich enough? | Mary Holm
  - Lives up to its tagline, "Read this one book, set up your money, and get on with your life!". Simple financial advice from starting out (Kiwisaver, first home) to retirement and beyond. You can hear Mary on Radio NZ, but this book is a good easy to read summary of the practical advice shared there. Recommended!
- James Acaster's Guide to Quitting Social Media (Audible) (I didn't)
Reading
- Mondo Agnelli - Mondo Agnelli: Fiat, Chrysler, and the Power of a Dynasty
- Quantum Man: Richard Feynman's Life in Science | Lawrence M. Krauss

And that is all. Was surprised how little time I had, or felt like, reading other than on-line content. Carried the Fiat book on my whole South Island trip without opening it!

Watched
- TV:
  - Series: Sex Education, Wanted (see Alexandra), Utopia, Rosehaven, Five Bedrooms and finished the last season of The Man in the High Castle
- Cinema: The Big Bike Film Night 2022

Listening

I haven't listened to much music recently. if did it was just a background shuffle. Now I'm listening to music, not tracks, not shuffled, albums, as the artist intended.

Work through my backlog of thirty-One episodes of Matthew's brilliant "Ice Coffee: the history of human activity in Antarctica', and about 30 hours of Sean Carroll's excellent, but demanding, Mindscape podcast.

Gear for the trip

Tailfin Aeropack Top Bag: This adds to my existing Tailfin rack. I got as found in wet weather opening the panniers for 'mid ride' stuff, like camera or money, let in the wet. Having that sort of stuff in the top bag will be much better. Also allows a more 'bike packing' (rear bag only) setup for tighter trails.
- Tailfin AeroPack Review: A premium, rigid seatpack - BIKEPACKING.com
Personal Locator Beacon: For when I get lost.
Full Suspension Mountain Bike: Recommended, strongly, for the Old Ghost Road Track. I could either rent, just for the track, or buy...