Page 2 of 3 FirstFirst 123 LastLast
Results 16 to 30 of 38

Thread: Fifty shades of grey (or One wet week around the South Island)

  1. #16
    Join Date
    24th July 2006 - 11:53
    Bike
    KTM 890 Adventure
    Location
    Wgtn
    Posts
    5,541
    Quote Originally Posted by Frodo View Post
    Thanks Ocean, but I did that and just tried again and the pictures (which are the regulation 1024 pixels along the long edge) still come out as thumbnails.
    Sorry dude, that's the extent of my pic-posting expertise.

    Sure that used to work...
    Go soothingly on the grease mud, as there lurks the skid demon

  2. #17
    Join Date
    4th October 2008 - 16:35
    Bike
    R100GSPD
    Location
    Wellington
    Posts
    10,036
    great pics.You dont need them any larger,we can click on them and they come out great.You can get much larger pics if you have the pics hosted somewhere else but that makes it slow for anyone with limited or slow data or internet.The ataachmnet thumbnail is the best way imho peple can view the larger pics if they want or just view the thumbnail

  3. #18
    Join Date
    13th March 2003 - 11:47
    Bike
    2006 Honda XR250L
    Location
    Porirua
    Posts
    7,349
    Great to see your photos Frodo.
    Cheers

    Merv

  4. #19
    Join Date
    30th January 2004 - 11:00
    Bike
    Indian Scout
    Location
    In a happy place - Kapiti
    Posts
    2,281
    Yeah I enjoyed seeing your pictures. Well done that man.

    seeing the shots along the West Coast just makes me want to rush back down again...and it's fine
    Happiness is a means of travel, not a destination

  5. #20
    Join Date
    15th October 2009 - 17:33
    Bike
    2014 Honda NC750X
    Location
    Auckland
    Posts
    918
    Blog Entries
    4
    Great reading and really nice pics, hope all your gear held up well in the rain!
    Moe: Well, I'm better than dirt. Well, most kinds of dirt. I mean not that fancy store bought dirt. That stuffs loaded with nutrients. I...I can't compete with that stuff.
    - The Simpsons

  6. #21
    Join Date
    3rd January 2013 - 19:46
    Bike
    1999 Honda Hornet CB600FX
    Location
    Taupo
    Posts
    709
    Great pics and I enjoyed reading through your descriptions. Lucky that the cop didn't bother to turn around and good to see that the tire repair kit came in handy. I used to carry one around, then stopped, but may start doing that again.
    ---------------------------
    Disclaimer: Any lapses in spelling, tact, or fact are transmission errors.
    ---------------------------

  7. #22
    Join Date
    23rd July 2014 - 12:08
    Bike
    '08 Wee
    Location
    Auckland
    Posts
    318
    Quote Originally Posted by Grashopper View Post
    Great pics and I enjoyed reading through your descriptions. Lucky that the cop didn't bother to turn around and good to see that the tire repair kit came in handy. I used to carry one around, then stopped, but may start doing that again.
    It might have just been a warning to slow it down, rather than a concerted effort to pay for some doughnuts. One or two others on here have gotten them recently.

  8. #23
    Join Date
    9th May 2008 - 21:23
    Bike
    A
    Location
    B
    Posts
    2,547
    Thanks for sharing your pics and experiences. I'm sure you enjoyed yourself despite the weather.

  9. #24
    Join Date
    9th January 2012 - 16:49
    Bike
    Honda Hornet
    Location
    Napier
    Posts
    123
    Thanks for sharing. The south island is definitely on my bucket list

  10. #25
    Join Date
    27th December 2006 - 07:46
    Bike
    2015 Aprilia Shiver
    Location
    Kapiti
    Posts
    286
    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	Day 5.jpg 
Views:	40 
Size:	90.9 KB 
ID:	318381
    Day 5: Manapouri to Omarama

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5505.jpg 
Views:	46 
Size:	287.2 KB 
ID:	318382
    Originally I’d hoped to ride along the south coast, including the delightful Catlins, camping at the aptly name Porpoise Bay (a stronghold of the endangered Hector dolphins). I flagged that away a couple of days previously with a forecast of strong southerlies. I’d hoped that taking an inland route to Gore would give me better weather. But with predicted rain and hail, I decided to backtrack to Queenstown.
    I delayed leaving Manapouri, hoping the rain would ease. It didn’t. I thought riding in rain at 4 degrees, it would only get better. It didn’t.
    This is a photo from the backpackers as the rain started.


    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5507.jpg 
Views:	44 
Size:	310.8 KB 
ID:	318383
    I rode east from Manapouri then turned north on the road up from Invercargill, and the black clouds to the south told me I had made the right decision. I was pretty cold at this point and knew that I needed a break before the planned coffee in Queenstown. The inside of the café at Kingston was like a sauna and the smell of fresh coffee and baking drew me in. The double flat white was a good as it smelled as was the gluten-free slice. I had some urgent work to attend to, which the dodgy wifi added a challenge.

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5508.jpg 
Views:	59 
Size:	255.0 KB 
ID:	318384
    A biker stood alongside me, shook my hand and introduced himself with an Irish accent, saying he’d lived in New Zealand for years. His hand was as cold as mine must have been a half hour ago. He was riding a Harley Road King with his friend and another couple on another Harley, and asked about the weather further south. I gave the answer he expected, but didn’t want to hear and he went out to report to his friends. The Harleys were the first bikes I’d seen since Murchison on day 2. And then an FJ1200 rode past, heading north, away from the rain. Bikes were no longer rare

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5510.jpg 
Views:	48 
Size:	278.7 KB 
ID:	318385
    The rain eased a little in the bustle of Queenstown, and in spite of the ever-threatening rain, I was pleased to leave. The Kawarau Gorge is like a scene straight out of the Lord of the Rings – and it is – the River Anduin was filmed here. And a great bike road, when dry.

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5515.jpg 
Views:	49 
Size:	192.7 KB 
ID:	318386
    The rain increased alongside Lake Dunstan and it got colder as I climbed slowly towards the Lindis Pass. At the top it was just 3 degrees and it felt like snow. Steam rising from the warmer road belied the real temperature.

  11. #26
    Join Date
    27th December 2006 - 07:46
    Bike
    2015 Aprilia Shiver
    Location
    Kapiti
    Posts
    286
    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5518.jpg 
Views:	41 
Size:	165.1 KB 
ID:	318388
    The other side of the Lindis Pass - the rain had almost stopped.

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5516.jpg 
Views:	42 
Size:	163.7 KB 
ID:	318387
    Heading north. I hoped the desert like Ahuriri Valley would be dry.

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5523.jpg 
Views:	42 
Size:	183.9 KB 
ID:	318389
    Just the other side of Omarama, I turned right into Buscot Station, where I would stay the night. Strange to see a plume of dust behind the bike. And to see the lawn of farm house being watered, but then the rain arrives and I had to bring my drying saturated gloves in.

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5527.jpg 
Views:	44 
Size:	177.6 KB 
ID:	318390
    It rained most of the night and became the most significant rain Omarama had seen for months. The owner of the station said I could stay for free next time if I brought rain!
    (View from my bedroom window).

  12. #27
    Join Date
    7th February 2007 - 23:38
    Bike
    F800GS
    Location
    My place
    Posts
    3,549
    Nice work Frodo

    It's a right pain when the weather turns to custard day after day, but still better than working... right ?

    Re photos: I host mine on Photobucket and "embed" them when posting trip reports

  13. #28
    Join Date
    27th December 2006 - 07:46
    Bike
    2015 Aprilia Shiver
    Location
    Kapiti
    Posts
    286
    Quote Originally Posted by JATZ View Post
    Nice work Frodo

    It's a right pain when the weather turns to custard day after day, but still better than working... right ?

    Re photos: I host mine on Photobucket and "embed" them when posting trip reports
    Absolutely right about riding in rain rather than working! There is another thread here somewhere called "The pleasures of riding in rain". There is a limit and after about 300km of rain at around 5 degrees, the pleasure wanes!

    I have my photos on Picasaweb and will try that. But some have reported that they prefer thumbnails.

    Will post the final 2 days later today (including the dry Day 7!).

  14. #29
    Join Date
    27th December 2006 - 07:46
    Bike
    2015 Aprilia Shiver
    Location
    Kapiti
    Posts
    286
    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	Day 6.jpg 
Views:	38 
Size:	79.9 KB 
ID:	318421
    Day 6: Omarama to Waipara

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5529.jpg 
Views:	37 
Size:	102.0 KB 
ID:	318422
    I woke to scattered sun, light showers and a rainbow.

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5531.jpg 
Views:	38 
Size:	102.1 KB 
ID:	318423
    There was fresh snow on the hills (to the left) as I packed the bike.

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5532.jpg 
Views:	40 
Size:	257.8 KB 
ID:	318424
    Optimistically, I left the rainpants in the pannier as I rode off.

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	IMG_5536.jpg 
Views:	41 
Size:	136.2 KB 
ID:	318425
    It was cold, but dry, although dark clouds were hugging the mountains, obscuring Mt Cook, so I flagged away the planned side trip. Light rain started and the temperature dropped to 5 degrees as a bunch of about a dozen bikes, all BMWs, approached. Clearly an organised motorbike tour. I hope they have better weather than I! I will be back, but that may be difficult for them.

  15. #30
    Join Date
    19th January 2013 - 16:56
    Bike
    a 400 and a 650 :-)
    Location
    The Isthmus
    Posts
    1,590
    Enjoying reading and seeing photos of your trip, the photo with the lupins is wonderful...

    yeah, I know, DoC doesn't like them but they add colour in a spectacular way in grand scenery.

    Thanks for sharing.

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •