FJRider
19th April 2009, 12:49
At this time of year, the weather is usually pretty settled, traffic is usually pretty light. road conditions good, no ice.... well not much. Not that warm... but with reasonable gear....no worries.
So... where to was the question. An old (literally) mate I worked with almost 20 years ago, lives in Kingston, the southern end of Lake Wakatapu. Those that have traveled this area, can't fail to smile. The "Devils Staircase" is known to many motorcyclists.
So away I went. The Cromwell gorge... easy sweeping corners, past Cromwell... heavily policed area... 80 km's speed restriction. Then into the Kawerau gorge. The predominant tourist route into and out of Queenstown, it has quite a heavy traffic flow. But is is a good motorcycling road, but it can and does bite back... so take care there.
Topped up with gas at Frankton, then down the lake road ... a few stops for photos... the on to Kingston. The little tavern attached to the railway station at the bottom end of the town is a nice stopping place, good food and ample parking, and great views of the lake... two minutes walk to its shore from the tavern.
I checked out the location of my mate... and went visiting. I should have done it sooner, and wont be as long till the next visit.
Then home by the same route... My hand held GPS unit tells me my max speed was 125 km's/ hr... quite fast enough. 259 kms on the tripmeter. Could have done it without refuleing... but gas in the tank is good insurance.
So... where to was the question. An old (literally) mate I worked with almost 20 years ago, lives in Kingston, the southern end of Lake Wakatapu. Those that have traveled this area, can't fail to smile. The "Devils Staircase" is known to many motorcyclists.
So away I went. The Cromwell gorge... easy sweeping corners, past Cromwell... heavily policed area... 80 km's speed restriction. Then into the Kawerau gorge. The predominant tourist route into and out of Queenstown, it has quite a heavy traffic flow. But is is a good motorcycling road, but it can and does bite back... so take care there.
Topped up with gas at Frankton, then down the lake road ... a few stops for photos... the on to Kingston. The little tavern attached to the railway station at the bottom end of the town is a nice stopping place, good food and ample parking, and great views of the lake... two minutes walk to its shore from the tavern.
I checked out the location of my mate... and went visiting. I should have done it sooner, and wont be as long till the next visit.
Then home by the same route... My hand held GPS unit tells me my max speed was 125 km's/ hr... quite fast enough. 259 kms on the tripmeter. Could have done it without refuleing... but gas in the tank is good insurance.