Yeah, it is not raining and while there is a wind, it looks like it will be assisting me for once.
Slept in a bit today, but on the road at 7.45am and there was immediately a bit of a climb out of Kingston which warmed you up, but then there were some ups and downs on basically long straights that the momentum from the down hill tended to get you up the other side.
With the wind being favourable and generally it being a declining gradient, it was a lazy 40ks as Les would say, although it was more often 45 or 50 so after the last few days I was enjoying this..
Nearing I think Garston the new cycle way became apparent but why it runs parallel to the road seems a bit of a shame to me I would have thought that the purpose was to get you away from the road.. Perhaps it has to do with land access issues.
Closer to Athol there has been some $ spent on the cycle way as there are some fancy new wooden suspension bridges.
I obviously misread the Maps application as was intending to have breakfast at Five Rivers and thought that it was about 25k and was gearing myself mentally for this, but ended up being closer to 45ks so was hanging out for food by then. Just before Five Rivers there is a bit of a climb that is tough for the fact that it just seems to go on and on, but over the summit there were the straights with the ups and downs on basically a decending gradient so great fun.
The Five Rivers Cafe was a welcome site and thought that I deserved the full brekkie, which included poached eggs on toast, bacon, tomatoes, hashbrowns, mushrooms, sausages and of course tomato or a home made sauce and a large piece of banana cake with coffee… yum..
Leaving Five Rivers the wind was still generally favourable which was great as there were some long straights, but it all came to an end at the junction at Mossburn, as a change of direction resulted in the wind being right on the nose, great, with 60 odd ks to go over undulating terrain.
It was just a case of putting your head down but when you are battling the wind using the small front chain ring, you know that it is a hard ride and those ks on the Garmin just don’t tick over fast enough.
I was counting down the k’s to Te Anau but it was like riding to Takaka down the valley in that I never feel that I am getting any closer and there were no road signs and the road just kept on turning corners and then yet another long straight.. Some fowl words might have been said to anyone who was listening…
Finally there was a little reprieve with a bit of a decline and it is surprising what energy you get when you see those welcoming signs that you have arrived at your destination..!
Found the booked motel without any trouble which is set in lovely grounds and as it was now quite warm out of the wind, it was time for Mr Scott to get a bit of a spruce up while waiting for the laundry to complete its washing cycle. It was good to be able to put my clothes out on a clothes line rather than having them try and dry in the room overnight and finally, my shoes will dry out! yeah!
Town was only a 300 metre walk across a park and it is nice and tidy with a lot of resturants and seemingly a lot of Italian resturants, another yeah!
I did some research and there is basically only 1 accommodation outfit at Milford Sound unless you are intending to stay on a boat overnight and as there were no vacancies in either, this ended thoughts of staying at Milford. I would like to visit, but am not one to be sitting on a bus on a tour, so have decided to stay a second night at Te Anau and will take a “look” on the Milford Road tomorrow.
It would be good to at least get to the top of the Homer Tunnel, but that is over 100ks in and going all the way is about 118ks, so it would be a big day to go all the way. Reading a tourist brochure, the tunnel gradient is apparently 1 in 10 and is not that well lit..
I will see how I go but it would be a pity being this close to not get to Milford and it would be another tick of items off the bucket list if I did..
Total ks for the day were 125 with a climbing elevation of 698m.