The safari approaches its conclusion...
More thoughts...
-- Why would anybody own a motorcycle and ride it less than 1,000km a year?
Day 12: Westport - Karamea - Westport - Nelson: We left our dodgy lodgings as quickly as possible and hopped into town for some breakfast, just as the CUSTARD SQUARES were being removed from the oven. Mrs H remarked that it was too early for a custard square. We shortly departed for Karamea under heavily overcast skies but enjoyed a moody ride along the flat through Waimangaroa and the triple-metropolis that is Granity/Ngakawau/Hector. We stopped briefly at Ngakawau so that I could demonstrate the Solid Energy rail terminus/aerial ropeway from the Stockton mine for the benefit of Mrs H who had never witnessed before the eighth engineering wonder of the world. After a significant burst of nostalgia we tootled northwards along the coast before heading inland.
After crossing the bridge by the Seddonville turnoff, we were confronted with 23km of some of the most demanding winding road I have ever ridden. Tight technical corners and steep in places as well. This wasn't particularly scenic, although by then our "wow" meters were well up the scale. Given that the whole ride to Karamea from Westport to Karamea is about 90km, this level of windy road amounts to a considerable investment. Running out of the twisties at Little Wanganui, the scenery also improves and you're back on the coast again.
Karamea is a bit of a non-event really (apologies to any Karamea residents), so after an excellent coffee and cake at the Last Resort, we retraced our tracks to Westport. The twisties were no easier on the return.
In Westport it was now officially time for a custard square...
The day was brightening as we hit the Buller Gorge. We should have stopped for more photos. This is a stunning ride in all aspects of the rider's lexicon. The places where the road is cut out of the rock are impressive, particularly Hawks Crag.
At Murchison our memories saved us from experiencing another egregious coffee at the tea rooms and we went to a place across the road by the souvenir store.
It was great to be back on the road to Nelson again, albeit in a direction different to last time. This is a ride of major changes in scenery with a good combination of fast sweeping corners, straights, tighter twisties, and some uphill grades where you can really flaunt your horsepower!
Nelson was at its stunning best on our return, requiring the ubiquitous ride around the Tahunanui headland into the town proper.
Day 13: A quieter day. We took the opportunity to call our riding mates from our day to Mt Cook earlier in the trip and arranged to meet them and their partners for dinner. Meanwhile we rode the triangle road from Nelson, through Tapawera to Motueka, with a short sidebar to the beach at Kaiteriteri. We were a bit overdressed for this last bit! I can recommend an excellent kebab house for lunch in Motueka, about opposite the Suzuki dealership.
We rolled back to Nelson at a leisurely pace, soaking up the last of summer.
Dinner with our new biker friends and their partners was a splendid occasion. We agreed to meet up with Chris and his partner the following morning for an excursion on our way to catch the ferry (sob).
Day 14: Goodbye to Nelson. What a great place to live if you're a biker. God knows where the bike shops are though... (other then the Yamaha shop by the airport turnoff and the Honda shop at Richmond).
We followed Chris and Mrs C up to Lake Rotoiti at St Arnaud via a brief stop at the Tophouse hostel. The scenery through here is interesting, even if it is mostly Weyerhauser's Golden Downs forest. Lots of sandflies at the lake but no wasps. A rain front was moving up the lake as we left and it was cold.
A short distance down the Wairau Valley the cloud disappeared, the skies turned to the bluest of blue, the temperature warmed up and we were pushed to Renwick by a steady tail wind. The countryside was up to its best visual splendour. The road is a ripper with no hidden dangers.
We had a long leisurely lunch at Hunters Vineyard sitting in the sun and soaking up some excellent Sangiovese. We said our fond farewells to Chris and Mrs C as they headed back to Nelson and we to Picton for our date with destiny, in the form of the Bluebridge.
It's still nice to bask in the afterglow of 14 magnificent days in the South Island. Even the thought of imminent Visa bills clouds not these memories! We had long before this trip noticed how, when biking, time and distance become somehow irrelevant and this trip confirmed this. Two weeks, two months, two years... We were not conscious of the time we spent on our bikes (several hours each day) or the distances we covered (about 325km on average each day). We met some wonderful people, some of whom will remain close friends, and had a riding experience to which words cannot truly do justice. We are blessed to be able to ride motorbikes and to live in this country.
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Originally Posted by Hitcher
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