There and back in 9 days

**Maha** · 28th September 2008, 15:46

Day 1 Warkworth to Ashhurst – 580 kms

Leave at 8:45am with grey rainy skies overhead, a full tank of gas and head south. First stop Huntly for a leg stretch. Turned off SH1 at Taupiri/Gordonton/Cambridge on to Tokoroa for lunch and fuel. Stopped at Taupo for a photo beside the great lake then off over the Desert Road (fuck it was cold!) and on to Waiuru for more fuel. Text to cowboyz to arrange a rendevous at Vinegar Hill with a few of the Ashhurst posse (interesting, EMU’s attract cows??? How bizarre).

Into Ashhurst where we put paid to an awesome BBQ feed, a box of Codys and a bottle of wine and talked endless crap with them down there. Met some fantastic people, including one who should post more often eh black lamb? Thanks for the great night you guys. Crashed at cowboyz abode and was woken by a little voice asking if he could turn TV on.

Day 2 Ashhurst to Masterton – 130 kms

First of the real mint weather days

We must have been great guests as the Ashhurst lot were very keen to see us out of their patch

and accompanied us on some of the finest bits of road a bloke could ride. One does have to wonder about mother sheep feeding their lambs in the middle of the road though

Roundabouts can be challenging for some people you must exit them at some point eh

Got led on a wild Emu chase around Masterton before finally settling for a coffee in main street. Left the guys and went to our motel and did the family birthday thing in the evening.

Day 3 Masterton to Napier – 338 kms

Headed north to meet MSTRS and yungatart at Dannevirke, and were taken on a fantastic excursion around some really cool roads in the back of beyond. Stopped at Wimbledon (no Wombles sadly) but it was closed, until MSTRS banged on the door and got the girl out of bed that is

Sadly no food was on offer even after she had got dressed so we headed to Porangahau for lunch after making the obligatory stop at Tahmatawhakatangihangakoauauotamatetpokaiwhenuakit anatahu. Then onto Havelock North via Waipukarau/Waipawa/Patangata/Elsthorpe. A detour up Te Mata Peak was made before arriving home in Napier. Stay tuned for pics.

**Maha** · 28th September 2008, 15:47

Day 4 Napier

A day off the bike spent doing a bit of a Cooks Tour of Napier complete with wine tasting for Mom

Maha hates it, but managed to pretend to know the difference between a Chardonnay and a Merlot

Discovered you don’t want to out stay your welcome there though, they set their friggen cat on ya

Day 5 Napier to Tolaga Bay – 296 kms

We passed two big trucks and one small truck the entire trip! Absolutely no traffic made the trip a pleasure, some real interesting windy corners made it a interesting windy ride (go Maha), pie and a flat white at Wairoa then on to Gissy. Only HP cop we saw was on those long straights coming into Gisborne, lucky he was distracted methinks. Stopped in 27deg beachside for a stretch, gassed up and headed to Tolaga Bay. Mom was horrified to find the dreaded WRB (cheesecutter) had been installed for a stretch along the most beautiful coastal road in Tatpouri

to prevent a metre drop to the sand below, or possible to prevent a whale stranding or something. Tolaga Bay was stunning, Maha rode out to the end of the wharf. Stayed at the Inn there, highly recommended unless you want food at 3pm that is…more on that later.

Day 6 Tolaga Bay to Waihau Bay – 221 kms

Went to Tokomaru Bay and took a stroll on the now really rickety wharf. Road conditions were great all the way to Ruatoria where we stopped for an all day brecky at 10am. Temp was already 25degs, fantastic! Noticed on the blackboard menu the words six pack squid (wonder what he is famous for in Ruatoria?) The fire brigade are an interesting sight to behold too! Made the tourist stops in Tikitiki, Te Araroa (nice spot) and Hicks Bay (waste of time). Took a recommended detour to a place called Lottin Point at the top of the cape (a must do, really!) and discovered the CB is actually an off road adventure bike as well as a tourer! Then to Waihau for the night.

**Maha** · 28th September 2008, 15:47

Day 7 Waihau Bay to Edgecumbe – 218 kms

After our complimentary crayfish meal, beers and wine, king size bed and a sumptuous breakfast we were back on the road again. First stop for the day was Raukokore (Anglican church) the cemetery there tells a few sad stories. The weather was overcast and a bit pissy and windy, but brightened up at Opotiki. Stopped at Ohope by the beach then on to Edgecumbe to enjoy the hospitality of Dangerous Bastard and Bikerchick. A short ride out to Thornton Beach ensued, then we returned home to be fed nearly to bursting point, we crashed on the ever so slowly deflalting air bed (why is it those things never seem to stay up, anyone know of a Viagra product that might help?) Thanks guys was a great night.

Day 8 Edgecumbe to Whangamata – 222 kms

From Edgecumbe we took Braemar Road up over the Rotoma’s past Rotoiti and turned right at Te Ngae junction and went around the back of Lake Rotorua to Hamurana. Old Tauranga Direct Road brought us into Tauranga where we had a catch up with nodrog at lunchtime. From there we made our way up to Whangamata. Maha caught up with an old boss of his there, we had yum pizza, took some cool night pics of the bike and crashed out early. All this travelling makes for tired travellers it seems

Whats with the pair of us lying in bed rubbing Voltarin into our aching joints at the same time anyway

Day 9 Whangamata to Warkworth – 251 kms

The weather deteriorated steadily en route to Thames. We made a quick stop at the memorial crosses for Darryl and Bruce, then visited with Moms Mom in Thames. Was a bit of a challenge getting the bunch of flowers (for her birthday) from the shops to her house mind, the looks were good though. A few more Panadol and a foot long subway saw us refuelled to make our way home. Stopped at the top of the Bombays to don the wet weather suits as the sky was looking seriously menacing. Back on the road and got a real hammering of wind and rain most of the way back to Warkworth. Leave in the wet, arrive home in the wet

So all in all a total of 2236 kms for the trip. No mishaps or dramas (apart from that poxy cat in Napier) and it only took an hour to clean the bike this morning.

**Maha** · 28th September 2008, 15:53

Some pics of the first day or so.
Love the Kawasharkie....spankin' colour an so easy on the eye....

**Maha** · 28th September 2008, 15:58

Awesome time in Ashhurst (with two H's)...cheers EMU people.....

**Maha** · 28th September 2008, 16:04

Some of the 'must visit pubs' out the back of and north of Dannevirke somewhere...
Wimbledon/Porangahau and Patangata. Fantastic roads, better than up here, no question! Sorry guys, secrets out...

**Mom** · 28th September 2008, 16:19

Napier has always held a soft spot in my heart - not hard to see why really. The views are spectacular, the architecture is special, the ocean.

**Mom** · 28th September 2008, 16:24

I am not good with heights so Te Mata Peak is a bit of a challenge for me, but the views are too good to miss. Sadly we were up there late in the day so missed the westerly aspect but here are a couple of shots from up there anyway.

**Mom** · 28th September 2008, 16:35

The Tabacco Building in Napeir was pretty cool, the main entrance and dome roof are amazing.
And the longest place name?... wonder what the area code is?....

**Maha** · 28th September 2008, 16:43

27 Degs in Gisborne when we got there, you can see it was hot in the photos...

**Maha** · 28th September 2008, 16:50

Onto Tolaga bay...what a cool place to stay, and the road there was amazing. Took the bike out on the Wharf. Stayed at the Inn (bar is open from 3.30pm till 5.30pm

) but you can buy beers and take them to your room. The pic of the Inn, the balcony area in front was off our room. The Inn manager was a top bloke, made us tea and said we could have whatever we wanted, mix and match the menu....

The Viaduct is over the Motu River.

**Maha** · 28th September 2008, 16:55

Some pics of Tolaga Bay...me on a log and some other deadwood lying around.
Really is a stunning place, on days like it was when we were there anyway.
Petrol everywhere around the East Cape...I got from Gisborne to Waihau on a tank, but theres gas at Tolaga and Te Puia Springs etc.

**The Stranger:Me** · 28th September 2008, 17:00

Damn, that silver bike in no3 is one sexy machine.

**Maha** · 28th September 2008, 17:04

Not alot happening there, was early though. But yet again, the day was perfect. The Wharf is a little bit suspect at the very end and the old shipping buildings stand as a testiment to an era that once was.