Another South Island tour

[hondav2]

I live near Te Anau on main road if u want a bed for night , also we have Dust 2 Mavora , a crowd of us stay at a Lodge near Mavora Lakes on last weekend of Feb , starts friday 25th afternoon , leave sunday morning 27th , cost of accomodation and meals is $40 a night , there is 30km gravel road in there , great location , would be great to have u there. Cheers Toddy

[BladeBrit]

Great to meet you today Phill and hope you weren't too frustrated in the cage round the Coro Loop. Look forward to hearing about your trip, especially on the VFR down south!

Thanks for the coffee Geoff and the great chat. Yes I was straining at the leash on the Coro loop and the next day around the East cape but will be on the VFR on Saturday so looking forward to that.
Catching the Ferry at the crack of dawn tomorrow so not too many beers tonight

[BladeBrit]

I live near Te Anau on main road if u want a bed for night , also we have Dust 2 Mavora , a crowd of us stay at a Lodge near Mavora Lakes on last weekend of Feb , starts friday 25th afternoon , leave sunday morning 27th , cost of accomodation and meals is $40 a night , there is 30km gravel road in there , great location , would be great to have u there. Cheers Toddy

Hi Toddy, Thanks for the offer I am hoping to hit Te anau and Milford sound in the dry (yes I know unlikley) so my arrival date is unsure at present but may be Monday if all goes to plan as i can then swing by Dunedin to meet up with the TT2000 guys for the Friday.
I do not have a map in front of me at the moment so will look up the location of Mavora Lakes.

Cheers
Phill

[Jantar]

Southern Tavern. Princes St, Dunedin

[BladeBrit]

Southern Tavern. Princes St, Dunedin

Milford sound in the dry, Result.
Really enjoyed the road on the way back to Te Anau as well, The temp was 20 degrees I could not believe it.
Rode through the Catlins today which was probably the best ride so far even if it was a bit damp.
Southern Tavern sounds good to me I have booked a Speights brewery tour at 4 with dinner to follow so I will stagger along there after that. I may however not be making much sense after the tour so I will apologies up front.

[Blackbird]

Great stuff Phill, glad you're having a great time. No mention of the highway patrol, so all must be good there too

[BladeBrit]

Great stuff Phill, glad you're having a great time. No mention of the highway patrol, so all must be good there too

Hey Geoff I see plod everyday and they keep flashing their lights at me and waving are they just really friendly ??? or am I missing something.

[Blackbird]

Hey Geoff I see plod everyday and they keep flashing their lights at me and waving are they just really friendly ??? or am I missing something.

No they're really friendly. Raise two fingers and they'll follow you and buy you a cup of coffee and a bit of cake when they catch up. Try it through Balclutha and you'll get to meet KB member Scumdog in his day job

[BladeBrit]

Try it through Balclutha and you'll get to meet KB member Scumdog in his day job

It was probably Scumdog then that was going the other way when I whistled past at 120 yesterday he did not give chase so if it was then thanks mate.

[BladeBrit]

Southern Tavern. Princes St, Dunedin

Well Johnny no mates at the Southern Tavern last night

However the Rugby was interesting particularly when the Highlanders pulled their finger out in the second half, it was a shame that the Blackcaps did not do as well on the other TV.

Took a ride today to Moeraki boulders via North road to Waitati and then went back to Palmerston and took the 85 and 87 route back to Dunedin.
The 87 was excellent, more so I think because I decided to not look at the speedo and just ride the road like I would back home. Fortunately the only police I saw was on route 1 near Moeraki where I was being captain sensible.
I also took a spin out to the Otago peninsular which had a very nice road towards the end down by the sea.

Off to Arrowtown tomorrow but I hope to take the run up to Glenorchy on route.
Then I am traveling to Wanaka via the crown range and stopping a few days so I can do a jet boat trip recommended by Geoff.

[Blackbird]

Fortunately the only police I saw was on route 1 near Moeraki where I was being captain sensible.

Off to Arrowtown tomorrow but I hope to take the run up to Glenorchy on route.
Then I am traveling to Wanaka via the crown range and stopping a few days so I can do a jet boat trip recommended by Geoff.

I had a finger wagged at me for going a bit quick by the police at Moeraki riding down to start the Southern Cross endurance ride. Jantar (Malcolm) reckoned I was lucky as they're a bit sensitive there.

Crown Range is great. Make sure you stop at the Cardrona pub for the obligatory photo. You'll love the Matukituki River, just breathtaking. As I mentioned, Brent Pihama is ex-NZSAS and I worked with his dad. It was 3 years ago that we did the trip and it was one of our highlights.

Travel safely....

[BladeBrit]

Glenorchy road a big thumbs up
Crown range was great as well but they should really ban campers on that road. oh yes with the obligatory photo at Cardona.

Did the river trip but with Brents brother Kelvin a top day out so thanks for the heads up Geoff.

[Blackbird]

Great going Phill! hope that you've got a route to dodge the uncertain weather a bit later in the week!

Safe riding mate!

[BladeBrit]

Next part of the trip will be to Fox's Glacier for 2 nights for a tramp on the Glacier. I will be riding there tomorrow via the Haast pass but I am planning to leave as late as possible as it looks like the rain is forecast to be biblical in the morning.
Then it is over Arthurs pass to Springfield and then probably back over Lewis the next day to Greymouth depending on the weather.
Everywhere is looking wet at the moment, tomorrow so I think it will be a case of putting up with it rather than avoiding it.

I have also posted this thread:-
http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/sh...post1129999620

As it looks like I am going to be on a luggage search at the end of the trip.

Phill

[BladeBrit]

Well leaving late did not avoid the rain but the Haast Pass was interesting and would be nice with a dry road.
However I managed to get a dry day to walk the glacier and for a wander around the lake so that compensated for the rain over the Haast.
The ride from Fox was nice, the roads were damp but still good however the rain kicked in as I went over Arthurs and cleared on the other side to provide a hot end to the day at Springfield hotel with some beers.
The next day dawned bright and hot and it was a nice ride over the Lewis pass but the rain made an appearance as I descended past Springs junction until Greymouth. The trip though was still enjoyable.
Today it was a great ride from Greymouth to Westport with a stop off to see pancake rocks and the blow holes and side trip to Karamea.
I thought that people were winding me up when I headed out of Westport and the road was straight as an arrow for 40 km but then the road went crazy and it turned into a top ride. A spot of hail at Karamea cut my break there short and I headed back to Westport smiling all the way.
Tomorrow it is the Buller gorge and 2 nights in Nelson, The weather looks good for the next 2 days so I will be heading out with crossed fingers for some more fun.