Living La Vida Loca

Noah and Dalia headed off to explore the North Island and we were very excited for them. Many of our fondest memories of our time in NZ in 2019 were at some of the places they planned to travel to, so we are glad they could do a similar exploration and we hope to hear about their experiences when we reunite in the States. Andrew, Kathy and I – based on our great journey a few years ago – decided to do a biking trip with the same company we used last time, Adventure South NZ. On that trip we biked a very different section of the south island – on standard road bikes. We had some regrets back then as the terrain was quite hilly in sections and riding gravel is a learned skill. Nonetheless we enjoyed that trip so much we came back for more…this time, it was 4.5 days on ebikes, riding a total of 150 km (just under 100 miles). This was the Otago Central Rail Trail – an old train bed for produce and livestock transport now converted into a biking and hiking track.

The vast majority of the scenery was farmland and open space – very verdant, with more sheep than people. It was lovely riding except for one day when it rained, and the itinerary was sprinkled with stays at lovely refurbished motels in towns along the route. Our guides were two terrific women – one extremely experienced at guiding these groups, the other an experienced biker but new to this particular route. They were both lovely and helpful – and we were amazed at how much they were responsible and able to do for our crew. They made sure accommodations were satisfactory, made breakfast for us some mornings, planned stops for mid morning snack and lunches, unloaded and loaded bikes and equipment and bags every day, and managed to participate and befriend many of us in the process. We were the only Americans on this trip – the rest were Aussies and Kiwis – all in our 60s and 70’s, and all quite fit!

Some of the highlights for me included…

…riding part of a spectacular gorge on a track that literally hugs the sheer cliffs that form the ravine of water. Kathy chose to ride the entire way while Andrew and I were happy to ride the first bit and circle back. Kudos to Kathy for her bravery.

…riding through old railway tunnels! Very dark and a bit spooky, but fun nonetheless. Bike lights and Andrew’s headlamp were very helpful. We had a few daredevils in the group who decided to climb up to sit atop one of these tunnels – great for Instagram shots.

…swimming on a very hot day in a man made lake created when sluicing for gold was being done in the area. The water was cold but so refreshing that Kathy, one of the guides and I swam nearly across the entire lake. A real treat.

…OMG – and the food! Honestly I would have thought that biking every day would be great for my waistline, but the quantity and quality of the food we had along this adventure tipped the scale instead. No regrets but I have never had a bad meal down under and this was no exception. From the roadside bakeries we stopped at mid-morning, to the local, family-run lunch spots, to the evening meals, we were treated to loads of fresh produce, lots of vegetarian specialties, and local wines. They know how to do this.

We really enjoyed the company of our fellow riders – perhaps more than the landscape when the farmland was “same-same” – and on balance, this kind of trip is really only as fun as the people you meet. This was a good one.