The Willie Nelson song “on the road again..” was in voice shortly after 7am and while it was fine although slightly overcast, it was very cool and took a while to warm up helped by the sun finally breaking through after about 30 minutes.

For a minute or two I thought I had made a mistake and was retracing my path from yesterday, as both roads had “other” roads running parallel that made it look very similar. Thankfully I had not made a mistake (as appreciate navigation not always my strong suit) so all good.

While the Maps application had worked out a cycle route to Pakuranga at 150k, talking with the motelier this seemed to be a bit of a roundabout route, so it was down SH27. With the change of route basically at the last minute, I was a little under prepared as to what towns etc were on the SH27 route and it was 57ks before there was a cafe, as I was not going to stop less than 10k out from the start.

This cafe was in the middle of literally no where, but it was a very welcome stop as I was hanging out for food by then.

SH27 had some long straights and there was quite a lot of traffic, especially trucks and there was not always a road shoulder, plus there were those bloody rumble strips to continually cross.

The lady at the cafe warned me about the terrible hill that was 20 minutes down the road by car, but I am still looking for it, so I guess it is just a matter of perception…

The road was quite undulating and disappointingly there was a high presence of glass on the road, which is somewhat surprising as it is quite isolated.

Nearing I think Maramarua a dirty black cloud arrived out of no where and the next thing I was drenched and temperature dropped several degrees very quickly. Nearing the Waikato Expressway I had that sinking feeling again of another soft front tyre, the tube having only been replaced yesterday.. Thankfully the rain had stopped by now, but I elected to cheat and just put some air in, I don’t know what I do that as you know that it is not going to last..

At the start of the Waikato Expressway there was a sign for cyclists travelling either south or north to exit, which I did, but must have missed the next sign as then I am on SH1 heading south and I don’t think that I supposed to be riding on this motorway.. Well I have done it in France so might as well do it at home as well.. Thankfully the first exit was less than a 1k and it was all down hill so it was done quickly and ended up in Pokeno.

Time to get the tablet out to check the Map application, but first the front tube needed to be replaced. Surprisingly with all the glass on the road this was not the cause of the flat, but a small piece of wire which even new tyres cannot protect against.

Riding out of Pokeno there is an extensive area of new housing development, which if it is for Auckland city, it is still some way out. The road was quite a steep gradient as needed to climb and cross over SH1 (motorway) and ended up on Razorback Road which then had some steep inclines and short decents for a number of ks. There were some lovely homes with obviously lifestyle blocks, but although it was some distance from SH1 and it was not always visible, the drone of traffic was continious. This road was quite narrow, but had very little traffic which made up for this morning where the trucks were just horrendous and there is not too much slowing when they go past you.

The road finally joined Great South Road that went through Drury and then ultimately on to Papakura where I had intended to stay the night. I was tempted to continue as thought with it being early afternoon it could be a good time to make some progress across the city, but having done 137k, I felt a need to consult more closely the Maps before just blundering on and that finding a room for the night was the best option.

Out with the tablet and found a motel that I had past on the way in, but still within easy walking distance to the shops and resturants.

My bright blue sandels fit in well here, now I just need a really bright yellow shirt and green trousers!! Papakura is an “interesting” place with different nationalities. Everyone is very friendly, but it just different. It was great to be able to purchase some fresh fruit and just chill out until it was time for dinner!

Unfortunately there is no bike shop and Stirling Sports do not stock inner tubes, so I will have my fingers crossed for no more flats until I get some replacements as only 1 spare left.

Having studied the route for tomorrow, while the Maps application provides good detail I can see that I am going to need to be getting the tablet out frequently to check that I am on course.. I was originally intending to head for Helensville, but now am aiming for Wellsford so that hopefully I can get from there to Paihia in a day and skip staying at Whangarei.

The map on the Garmin is a bit small and you cannot scroll through the route so you don’t know if it is the same as the Map application on the tablet. The Maps application route includes going part way down Dominion Road, so knowing that road from being in a taxi on a way to Auckland CBD for meetings when I was working, it could be interesting in peak hour traffic!

I find it hard to believe that I have arrived in Auckland under my own steam (apart from the ferry crossing) and when I riding along my mind wanders as to how many pedal revolutions there have been since leaving home.. That’s enough to put me to sleep!