Feb 4th, Oamuru, New Zealand

I have had a pretty uneventful two days riding to Oamuru. It was mostly flat or downhill, and the wind was only a factor during part of the first day. Yesterday, I had a good tailwind and averaged about 25 kph!

I left Omarama the morning of 2/2 with the goal of Kurow, a small town near the half-way point. I immediately ran into two other cycle tourists who were doing something quite interesting. If you are reading this blog, then you know how difficult it can be to get your bike to the airport, all boxed up, and the same for your personal gear. These guys solved the problem by using a bike carrier that converts into a trailer. When the time comes, they will ride to the airport, fold up their “Bike Friday” collapsible cycles and put them inside the carriers, along with most of their gear. This becomes a hard-shell suitcase with wheels on the bottom.

Collapsible bikes and trailers that convert to bike containers

There was only one difficult hill in the ride, but the wind was in my face. Fortunately, there was this sign to remind me of the wind.

In case you forget the headwinds…

After the getting over the only hill, I came upon an impressive-looking hydroelectric plant.

Hydroelectric plant

And that was pretty much the only interesting thing that happed the entire day. I arrived at the small town of Kurow, and set up at a very quiet campground. The next morning (2/3) the wind changed directions and I basically coasted into Oamuru. I passed a cliff that contained drawings made by the Maori hundreds of years ago. The drawings did not lend themselves to photography, but the cliffs are interesting enough.

Cliffs with Maori drawings

Much of the past several days I have been either riding next to, or on, the “Alps to Ocean” cycle trail. The idea of a dedicated cycle path is a good one. However, it has been poorly implemented. Much of the surface is loose gravel, tough to cycle on even for a mountain bike. But, they are getting the right idea at least.

Alps to Ocean Cycle Trail

At the campground in Oamuru, I met several other cycle tourists. A pair of young men from Japan have been touring for over a month. Daniel, I guy I have run into at a couple of other campground was there and we shared a bottle of wine, along with Thomas, from Germany. Daniel is seriously thinking about doing a ride to support Doctors Without Borders, an organization he has worked with. As a nurse, Daniel has traveled to many places including the Middle East.

Left-to-right: Me, Daniel, Thomas.

Today, I am going to stop a bit early at a campsite that is on the beach, and has a lot of very large round boulders. I will try to post a few pictures later. The day after tomorrow, I will have a very difficult ride into Dunedin. Here is the elevation profile:

www.cycletour.co.nz

I may not have internet tonight, but I will certainly make a post after arriving in Dunedin.

Scott