From Kingston motor camp through to Te Anau, a distance of 112kms, or about 70 miles. This was a great day for cycling. The sun came out and the headwind dropped to almost nothing. From Kingston to Athol is pretty gentle then there's a modest col or saddle (a cyclist waved as we sat there, eating our lunch) after which we hurtled down to the 'Five Rivers' (once known as the Punjab since that also means five rivers) area and took the turning for Mossburn. The road to Mossburn is flat and, with little wind, we were soon at The town. It's a small town with a lot of traffic - heading for Milford Sound and Te Anau. It's a friendly place. We noticed a cut out cowboy leaning against the timber of the veranda of the shop - the lady (born in Bluff, where we will be going) who owned it said it was made by a local and we mentioned that we last saw one, oh six years ago, in the USA. She said it was obtained so she had a man, albeit a pretty inactive one, in her life. She said that she couldn't live in a city and we said neither could we, we just existed in the ugly city which might be considered home.Then we headed out, eventually reaching a more substantial col with great views to distant mountains after a few miles of gentle climbing. A scottish (well, St Andrews flag was prominently displayed) cycling duo shot past at high speed down hill towards Mossburn - all lycra and snazzy. Wonderful quiet sunny countryside, with lovely windreaks of firs planted in great rows over the grassland. Almost like an Alice in Wonderland chessboard.Then on through the curiously named hamlet of The Key, then towards a distant range of hills over the now increasingly flat landscape. And then we arrived in Te Anau.Shopped, where a man leaving the shop said to me - you need a car for all that stuff. I replied that we didn't need a car - we'd got just the space for our shopping and wasn't he worried about the price of oil - $100 a barrel isn't it. This terminated the exchange. The man (of course) looked like a spot of cycling to the shops would do him a world of good, a bit overweight, etc.Then pitched up at Te Anau Top 10 Camping at a discount (kindly lady!) on the official price of $23 each to camp. It is next to the YHA and so has the advantage I can us the YHA cheap wireless while staying at the campsite next door.
From Kingston motor camp through to Te Anau, a distance of 112kms, or about 70 miles. This was a great day for cycling. The sun came out and the headwind dropped to almost nothing. From Kingston to Athol is pretty gentle then there's a modest col or saddle (a cyclist waved as we sat there, eating our lunch) after which we hurtled down to the 'Five Rivers' (once known as the Punjab since that also means five rivers) area and took the turning for Mossburn. The road to Mossburn is flat and, with little wind, we were soon at The town. It's a small town with a lot of traffic - heading for Milford Sound and Te Anau. It's a friendly place. We noticed a cut out cowboy leaning against the timber of the veranda of the shop - the lady (born in Bluff, where we will be going) who owned it said it was made by a local and we mentioned that we last saw one, oh six years ago, in the USA. She said it was obtained so she had a man, albeit a pretty inactive one, in her life. She said that she couldn't live in a city and we said neither could we, we just existed in the ugly city which might be considered home.Then we headed out, eventually reaching a more substantial col with great views to distant mountains after a few miles of gentle climbing. A scottish (well, St Andrews flag was prominently displayed) cycling duo shot past at high speed down hill towards Mossburn - all lycra and snazzy. Wonderful quiet sunny countryside, with lovely windreaks of firs planted in great rows over the grassland. Almost like an Alice in Wonderland chessboard.Then on through the curiously named hamlet of The Key, then towards a distant range of hills over the now increasingly flat landscape. And then we arrived in Te Anau.Shopped, where a man leaving the shop said to me - you need a car for all that stuff. I replied that we didn't need a car - we'd got just the space for our shopping and wasn't he worried about the price of oil - $100 a barrel isn't it. This terminated the exchange. The man (of course) looked like a spot of cycling to the shops would do him a world of good, a bit overweight, etc.Then pitched up at Te Anau Top 10 Camping at a discount (kindly lady!) on the official price of $23 each to camp. It is next to the YHA and so has the advantage I can us the YHA cheap wireless while staying at the campsite next door.