Queenstown, New Zealand; 4th April 2008.

   We stayed at Collingwood for a week and enjoyed the down-time chilling by the beach, but I didn’t enjoy being bitten by the ferocious sand-flies. The tiny flies actually draw blood; I had several on my legs and shins which, in bed, made my legs feel like they were on fire and itched like crazy. I've tried several repellents to no avail as they still get through. I have been told that the Maoris called them `The saviour of the land ` and now I know why! We’ve also been told that they get worse the further south you go - deep joy indeed! On a more positive note though, we have discovered the `Mussel Inn` just down the road from us and enjoyed some of the excellent beers from the micro brewery, and their brilliant meat pies!

On the beach we dug for our own cockles which I boiled and then fried them up with a little garlic to make garlic-tasting rubber, I'm sure it’s an acquired taste?

Being a bank holiday weekend we had a good turnover of people on our campsite. The majority chose to keep themselves to themselves but we did meet several interesting and chatty people. Amongst them was David, a local chap who had travelled the world over several years so we had plenty to talk about. As a parting gesture David gave us some fresh mussels which I again boiled then fried up with a little garlic to make little delicious garlic flavoured rubber balls. Les took one mouthful and was last seen running for the bins, I must be doing something wrong!

On our last day in Collingwood we went to our new friends’ home, Nicola was throwing a surprise birthday lunch for Peter. We met a good selection of their friends, from farmers to artists, a true cross section of interesting Kiwi people. With good food, plenty of drink and pleasant company it was a great way to finish our time here in the northern part of South Island.

I had noticed recently that there was so much oil coming out around the bike’s oil-filler cap so I replaced the fittings in the cylinder head into which the oil-filler cap goes, I then re-used the locking filler cap again which seems to have done the trick. A lot of GSs I’ve seen have this same problem so perhaps it is just the seal that needs to be replaced more regularly? We will see. I’ve also pumped the Metzler Tourance tyres up a bit more, they were feeling a bit soggy and a hint of shoulder wear was showing, suggesting under-inflation so they are now up 2 lbs in the front to 38psi and 4 in the back making it 46psi.

We departed Collingwood and retraced our route along the HW 60 to Takaka which took us over the hill on the great twisty road and down the other side where we turned off for the coastal town of Marahau, the gateway to the `Abel Tasman` National Park. We just had time to quickly throw the tent up and jump on the water taxi which was going to take us into the park, leave us and we were going to walk back to camp; sounds exciting, doesn't it? Well, after three days of hacking through the dense jungle with my machete along an undiscovered track ... No, I lie. We had a pleasant three-hour walk along a manicured footpath through the interesting forest and bush with beautiful views of secluded bays on our way back to the camp – we were totally spent!!

Leaving Marahau the next day we retraced our route to the HW60 on more great roads and stopped for breakfast at Motueka. It was here we met BJ, a Dutch guy living in Australia, and guess what? He had oil gushing out of his GS1150 filler cap!! BJ was another nice guy and made us an offer of a bed when we get to Perth.

Following another brilliant road, (I’m sure you must be getting fed up with that phrase so from now on I’ll only mention the boring roads!) Anyhow, we passed through Ngatimoti, Stanley Brook to Kohatu where we joined HW 6 - an awesome road to the town of Murchison where we met fellow bike fan Ross in the café, he told us to come and stay when we get to Christchurch. We then went and had coffee with John Jennings whom we met on the ferry coming over from the North Island. I soon discovered that I had more in common with the eternally youthful 70-yr old John than I had initially thought. He was a New Zealand Archery champion some years ago and is still a keen biker. Any further similarity stopped with the gold prospecting though, but I’m willing to have a go! We left John as he gave us a gift of some of his handmade jewellery studs made out of dinosaur fossil, Jurassic Park here we come!!

We followed HW6 sweeping through a gorge between sheer rock faces and followed the river to Westport on the Tasman Sea coast. At Carters Beach we found the `Top Ten` campsite and put the tent up once again. A very welcome portion of fish and chips in the little town of Westport finished the day off nicely.

The tight bends over here have signs suggesting a maximum speed to take them at; this is in kilometres per hour mind you. I’ve since found that I can take them at a MPH hour equivalent which I feel makes for much more fun!

We had one of the best sections the following day as we headed north along HW67 to Summeriea. The road heads inland climbing into the Radiant Range then, after several miles of technical riding through the forests, descends back to the coast and the town of Karamera where the road ends at the beginning of one of New Zealand's long-distance tracks, the `Heaphy` After a nice cup of coffee we turned around and did it again, oh what fun!!

We retraced to Westport then carried on south on HW6 towards Greymouth. Along the coast we discovered superb bends; it was boot to boot stuff, even on our ½-ton barge! We stopped at the Punakaiki Motor Camp and rented a cabin for a change, not bad at $40 - about £16 per night for the two of us. We arrived early enough to walk up the road to the Pancake Rocks & Blow Holes, an unusual rock formation on the beach. The rocks looked like vertically stacked pancakes eroded into these shapes by the sea.

We had been in touch with another old friend of mine from the archery world back home who had emigrated here several years ago. Colin Janes was now involved in car racing here. The plan was to meet him in Greymouth on Saturday where he had a race. On the way I got stuck behind a flat-back lorry with some boxes on the back. I was puzzled as to why I was being constantly hit by big bugs until I suddenly realised that the boxes on the back of the lorry were in fact bee hives and we were inadvertently killing his stock - Oops!

A 30-mile ride got us to Greymouth where we found the ‘Neptune International Backpackers Hostel’ which was going to be our home for a couple of nights; www.neptunesbackpackers.co.nz The Neptune was an excellent hostel now based in an old hotel. It was clean, comfortable and with plenty of room for us to laze about, but then it started to rain. Rather than sit about in our room we went for a visit around the Monteiths Brewery and hopefully savour the local beer. During the 1½hour guided tour I watched other people, who were no doubt thinking the same as me, “We know how to make it, when do we get to try some”? We did and it was nice, so nice in fact that on the way back to the hostel we found another two pubs serving the Monteiths brew!!

Sadly, the following day’s weather didn't improve and Colin didn't come the several hours drive only to find the race had been called off. So what did we do? We drank some more Monteiths, shopped and watched one of the `Lord of the Rings` movies.

From Greymouth we headed North East on HW7 over the mountains and through thick forests of trees which looked remarkably like silver birch. We tiptoed on the damp roads to Reefton then south east to Springs Junction and over `Lewis Pass` at 863mts high to a ski resort of Hanmer Springs where we found a `Top Ten` camp ground and put the tent up. That evening poor Les was sick, we put it down to some dodgy soup and not the Monteiths! It was a cold night, but by the morning she was okay and we were back on the road again and passing through some nice rolling countryside with cattle and sheep farming in abundance. Eventually we rode into Rangiora and found Colin and Lynn’s place. Over `fush and chups`, (that's how the locals pronounce them), and a few drinks, we reminisced over the old archery days with the Botolphs bowmen of Diss.

Promising to return on our way back north, we left Colin and Lynn the following day and headed towards the west coast again on HW72 through the familiar sounding towns of Oxford and Waddington where we joined the HW73, the ‘Great Mountain Highway’ towards the distant mountains in the east. It got colder the closer we got so after coffee we donned our fleeces for the first time in a while and climbed into the Southern Alps mountain range. The mountains around us were tall and jagged, with scree-covered summits, some with small pockets of snow in the shaded corners. The road was of good quality and, as you’d expect for a mountain range, brilliant on the bike. We crossed over Arthur’s Pass at 924mtrs and had Mt Rollestone at 2271mtrs and Mt Franklin at 2145mtrs either side of us as we descended towards the west coast. We now had to contend with the odd shower so we donned our waterproof leggings and treated the wet roads with a degree more caution! I had expected to have the roads to ourselves from what we’d been told but was surprised as to just how busy it was. There were hundreds of motor-homes on the move every day. Must not complain though, it will be us one day when we grow up, or get as old as our web master who has one!!! (“Ha Ha”, says Ed, “we can always pull over for a nice wee cup of tea and a wee biscuit”).

Back on the HW6 we headed south on the coast road and found ourselves back in the flatlands to Hokitika, just south of Greymouth and where we found the ‘Mountain Jade Backpackers Hostel’ situated over a jade factory and shop.

Next day was a cold but dry start as we continued south along HW6 with the mountains on our left and occasional glimpses of the sea on our right. We passed through flat pasture lands on straight roads then found ourselves climbing and descending through thick forests with many intriguing and fun-filled bends. It was a cold but dry ride south until we turned off to the small seaside village of Okarito. Now, if you want somewhere secluded then this would be the place. It had a handful of wooden dwellings on a windblown shingle beach which was perfect for a bit of peace and quiet. Mind you, if you want to stay here then bring supplies as there are no shops or cafes.

Riding a few kilometres further south we pulled in to see the Franz Josef Glacier. We turned off HW6 and, after a short dirt road and a twenty minute walk, we found a good viewing spot. The image of snow-capped mountains in the distance and ice only several hundred meters away makes you shiver. The destructive power in this glacier was truly amazing, but compared to glaciers we’d seen in Alaska, Canada and Argentina, this was a grubby baby by comparison!

Just down the road from here was the Fox Glacier, but first we called into the town by the same name and found the `Fox Holiday Camp` where we treated ourselves to a cabin for the night. Once booked in we then headed off to the nearby Fox Glacier. It was another amazing piece of Mother Nature engaged in her destructive task. The backdrop of big snow-covered mountains of the Southern Alps made for a beautiful sight.

It has been quite cold for the last couple of days so we have several layers on to keep warm and, as we continue south, we’re told it will be getting colder! We continued to ride south on HW6 and passed a few friendly-named places like Copland River, Jacob’s River and Bruce Bay on our way to the wild and woolly village of Haast. Hot chocolate was the order of the day to warm us up, and then the ride inland and up over the Haast Pass at 564mtrs and across the Southern Alps where we saw waterfalls dropping hundreds of meters through gorges and passed Mt Brewster at 2423mtrs.

We were later treated to an awesome sight as HW 6 ran alongside Lake Wanaka`s crystal clear water surrounded by beautiful mountains, it was real chocolate-box picture stuff. The road crossed over to Lake Hawea and more beautiful views before coming into the town of Wanaka, another busy touristy town where we found a `Top Ten` camp ground and, once again, after a cold day, we rented a cabin for the night.

For once we got up to a dry bike the next morning, it was mild and there wasn’t any dew to mop up but we’d been warned of an approaching storm. So with gathering grey clouds we headed towards Queenstown via Cardrona on a scenic back road. The road wound its way between the rounded green hills populated solely with cattle and sheep until it climbed up getting cold again in the cutting wind. At the summit between the Crown and Criffel Ranges we had spectacular views looking down on Queenstown in the far distance. We descended the twisty road, spoiled somewhat by construction work, to Arrow Junction where we rejoined HW6 for the short distance into Queenstown where we found the `Deco Backpackers Hostel`

www.decobackpackers.co.nz and rented a double room with shared facilities for $60nz, about £24.

Queenstown is another busy tourist town with all winter and summer sports being catered for, any adrenaline junky would be more than happy here. For the more leisurely there is a cruise on the lake or on the nearby Milford Sound in Fiord Land, now that sounds nice, I’ll let you know how we get on.

Petrol has become more expensive the further south we’ve come; it is now $1.80nz, about 75p per ltr. I have also discovered another disconcerting hint of play at the back wheel. I don’t know if it is the paralever bearings settling in or the main wheel bearing on the way out again, I’ll keep an eye on it! Also, another milestone was also reached for our amazing trek so far, 60,000 miles and all is well!

​

From Les

Queenstown, South Island, New Zealand, 4th April 2008.

   We had a lovely week at Collingwood in the Golden Bay area. We both were in need of a break from travelling and just had to put roots down for a few days. “Long-term” travelling can be very tiring and, at worst, exhausting. While the visual and mental stimuli are all around us it can sometimes be too much and we feel as though we are on overload, or system burn out. I can hear some cynics declare, “Sure you are just on a glorified holiday”, but I can assure you that at times it feels like starting a new job at work … Everyday!!!

We do not make any definite plans to visit specific places, though we do have a rough route and a few ideas of places and people we would like to visit along the way and somehow our days just seem to evolve. We try to be on the road by 9am and, depending on where we are heading for, will try to find somewhere to camp or stay by 3-4pm, this then gives us time for a walk and get the lay of the land. Occasionally someone would recommend a place to visit or a road to ride and things just seem to fall into place. A different bed or camp every night can sometimes lead to a bit of sleep deprivation, nocturnal noises from crashing waves on the beach or crashing doors in hostels has made us both very light sleepers and we always keep on ear open for the bike.

Since we have been in NZ we have almost become invisible which is in stark contrast to Mexico, Central and South America where people generally want to be part of our adventure and were curious when a big shiny motorcycle with a couple of middle-aged foreigners appeared on their doorstep. It took us time to get used to the constant attention there but here in NZ it is different. People here tend to keep themselves to themselves with the odd exception. They appear to be more private, the “home-grown” Kiwis’ however have been extremely friendly and accommodating, even offering us beds for the night and contacts to visit. During our stay here we have met more tourists than locals. After the constant attention we were receiving in the Americas this sudden change left us feeling somewhat insignificant and it has taken a while to be used to. I now understand why such a strong bond grows between fellow overland travellers. When we meet other ‘biker travellers’ on the road or in hostels the two-way exchange of information is instant and unforgettable. Perhaps it is the instant recognition that we are individuals with different ideas, backgrounds and agendas? We have all experienced some of the highs and lows of travelling and empathise with each other.

Our week at Collingwood was wonderfully relaxing and long overdue. We walked for miles along the beach when the tide was out, sometimes digging for cockles for our dinner and other times playing Frisbee on the sandy mud flats. We rode up to Fairwell Spit to see the black swans and enormous sand dunes and met Peter, Nick and the girls for dinner at their local. Peter was also about to celebrate another birthday so we joined him and many of their friends for a birthday lunch in their wonderful garden.

Collinwood has a population of about 250, a garage, shop, post office/gift shop, 2 cafes, a bar and restaurant and a very famous chocolate shop full of home-made goodies. The folks are all friendly and over the Easter weekend the restaurant put on 2 “Sheep on the Spit” dinners, a disco, and a live band that played all the golden oldies. It seemed as though all the village turned out, some dressed up for the occasion and others arrived in wellies and shorts - the local uniform; a fun time was had by all.

It was time to get back on the road again so, after farewells to our friendly hosts, we retraced our route to Takaka and then climbed back over the “Hill” and into the hop fields and apple orchards all ripe for picking. We arrived in Marakau on the edge of the Able Tasman National Park in time for lunch and quickly browsing through the various water-taxi guides. We had just over an hour to put up the tent before catching the 45-min boat ride along the coast to Anchorage Bay where we were dropped off onto wonderful golden sands for the start of our 3-hour walk back to base. We began to climb into the trees immediately and soon could look back onto the beautiful bays and the clear blue/green sea. New Zealanders’ call hiking “Tramping” so we tramped along the very easy pathways enjoying the views, plants, birds and streams along the way. Our training on the beach really helped but by the end of the tramp my legs were feeling very heavy and I was glad to get into my sleeping bag for a good nights sleep. Some keen trampers think nothing of doing 4 and 5 day hikes through the forests but over 3 hours was enough for me...this time!

The following day, (with no ill effects) we rode some wonderfully twisty, bendy biker roads, which are Nick’s favourite. We passed between the Tasman Mountains and the Richmond Ranges on our way to Murchison, a small but pretty riverside town and a hot spot for fishing, kayaking and tramping, also home of John whom we met on the Ferry. John was at home and made us coffee as he told us more about the area, his archery and prospecting. He makes jewellery from bone, jade and other stones and on leaving kindly gave me a pair of marine reptile fossil earring studs which I will treasure. We would love to have heard more stories but we continued our ride following the Buller River and gorge to Westport, strangely a port on the west coast.

We have been mixing our accommodation between camping, cabins and hostels with prices varying from £12 to £24. The cabins vary from small sheds with a bed, no sheets or linen and where we use our own sleeping bags, to large carpeted rooms with fridges, kettles, sheets, duvets and towels for up to 5 people. There are usually fully equipped camp kitchens with laundries and lounges with TV and coin-operated internet along with hot showers and bathrooms nearby. We usually opt for a double or twin room in the hostels for a bit more privacy. Ear plugs are a bonus during the night, but on the whole, hostels have been clean and comfortable and can become quite frantic when everyone wants to use the kitchen at the same time.

The further South we travel the scenery has become more interesting and the roads narrower and full of twists and turns. Nick is in 7th heaven and it's surprising how well the old barge handles as we swoop past the cavalcades of camper vans and hire cars. We often stop to take photos and then have to overtake the same campers again; it's almost become like a game.

The vegetation has become quite tropical with huge tree ferns and creepers lining the route. The early morning dew highlights the intricately woven spiders’ webs that cling like Christmas decorations to the roadside bushes. The mountains have become higher with some peaks harbouring pockets of snow and there is a distinct autumnal feel to the air. I think our decision to come to the South Island sooner than later was the right one.

Heading towards the Frans Joseph and Fox Glaciers there was now a real chill in the air. We now need our fleeces, thicker gloves and, unfortunately, our over-trousers as rain is never far away. The Glaciers were not as impressive as I had hoped; they seem spoilt by the constant buzz of helicopters and light aircraft overhead. It is another commercial hotspot and accommodation and food prices jump accordingly.

Mt Aspiring National Park took us through wonderful mountains and lake areas and at last I am beginning to appreciate New Zealand on its own merits rather than trying to compare it with other places we have visited up to now. I can now understand why folks from UK come here in droves to live. There is a familiarity in culture, language and foods etc, but also places that, at times, remind us of Wales, Derbyshire, the Lake District and Scotland. However, these Islands are totally different in many ways and have their own very special beauty and I am looking forward to exploring more with a far more open mind.     Until next time....Lesley

 

Dunedin, South Island, New Zealand; Sun 13th April 2008.

   The longer we stayed in Queenstown the more we liked it. Maybe it’s because it is near the end of the summer season and the winter season hasn't kicked in yet. There aren’t the crowds of people we had half expected; having said that, there's still something for everyone all year around, inc the adrenaline junkies. You can take a jet boat or, for a slower pace, take the 100-year old steam ship, the TSS Earnslaw, www.realjourneys.co.nz  There is also an Americas Cup yacht to see, paracending or just jump in a kayak. If you crave a bit of altitude why not take the ‘Skyline’ gondola to the top of the mountain with its great views over the town and the valley then jump off it with an elastic band attached to your feet!!!! You can even take a tandem paraglide back down to the bar! There's a helicopter and a stunt biplane taking people for a loop the loop, it seems important to scream whatever you do here! All these activities are expensive and not for ‘Round the World’ travellers on a budget but we did take the ride in the gondola!

In Queenstown we were surrounded by mountains, which, in the winter, would be snow-covered and packed with the winter sports fans. Even though the sun shone on them now it was still quite cold, we could so easily have be on a film set of ‘Lord of the Rings’. And oh yes, they’ve got the dreaded sand flies here and they have found me, another three days of swollen itches!!

After our weekend off it was time to move on. We followed HW 6 south along the banks of Lake Wakatipu. We stopped for coffee and a warm up at Kingston as another 2-up BMW GS rode by, we didn’t know it then but we would later catch up with them. From Kingston we rode between the Garvie and Eyre Mountains and saw the ‘Kingston Flyer’, a beautiful old steam engine and carriages billowing steam and soot against a crisp and clean mountain back-drop, a romantic reminder of the halcyon days of steam, check it out at - www.kingstonflyer.co.nz

We eventually turned off onto HW 97 and found ourselves in gently rolling farmland with cattle and sheep for company once again. We’ve also been surprised by the large herds of deer being farmed here, obviously big business.

At Mossburn we turned North West on HW 94 to Te Anau where we stopped for lunch and met up with the couple on the other BMW. Urs, from Switzerland and his Chilean girlfriend Javiera are doing a tour of NZ on a hired bike. They were a nice couple and we hoped to meet them again later.

Riding around this area of South Island seemed somehow familiar to us, we had seen it before at the movies, and we could so easily have been on a ‘Lord of the Rings’ movie set as it was all filmed here in NZ.

The ride north along HW 94 to Milford Sound was quite spectacular. We had a twisting road through forests and mountains on a perfect day, although it was cold it was still beautiful. The further we travelled the rockier and more intimidating the mountains became, their valleys being carved out over thousands of years by glaciers.

After passing through the Homer Tunnel, close to Mount Christina at 2502mtrs, and descending a switchback towards Milford Sound, we had sheer rock cliffs on either side.

Milford Sound is a small settlement catering for tourists with a couple of lodges. We found the ‘Milford Sound Backpackers Lodge’ where we camped in the woods in a nicely organised pitch and used the facilities of the hostel.

We later walked the short distance to the cruise terminal and booked ourselves on a boat for the following morning, www.redboats.co.nz at $65 each.

Back at the camp site we caught up with Urs and Javiera who’d had an eventful ride to Milford Sound. They had crashed on one of the many tight corners and ripped one of the panniers off and caused some other damage. They will have to pay $2500 for repairs and it will certainly make a bigger dent in their holiday budget! We joined them and tried to lift their spirits. Time, beer and wine are great healers and by evening it didn't seem too bad!!

The following morning we were up earlier than normal. Les was loading the bike when she quietly called me over as, only a few feet away, stood an elusive Kiwi. It was mottled brown and stood about one about a foot tall as it walked around the bike in the gloom. By the time we’d got the camera from the tent it was in the undergrowth and hidden. After describing it to some of the locals it seems we were very lucky to see one, many locals have never set eyes on this endangered creature.

We caught our boat the next morning. There were only 10 of us onboard - it could have carried hundreds! We had a spectacular cruise down the Milford Sound Fiord to the Tasman Sea and back again in just less than two hours. It was spectacular as we carved our way between the huge rock faces, many several hundred meters high and carved by glaciers thousands of years ago. It was a perfect day with blue sky and sunshine although cold in the shade. We were once again lucky as this place can get 6mtrs of rain a year and is considered to be the wettest place in New Zealand.

After the cruise we retraced our route along the spectacular HW 94 South to Te Anau and stayed at the ‘Great Lakes Holiday Park’ where we treated ourselves to a cabin and had to turn the heating up on another cold evening. As we warmed we reminisced on another great day, our first sight of a Kiwi, the Fiords and another great road seemingly built by a motorcyclist through beautiful and unspoilt scenery, it was perfect.

Next day we had our thermals on as we headed south along HW 95 and passed through more scenery reminiscent of the movie, ‘Lord of the Rings’. We then rode the ‘Tourist’, ‘Southern scenic route’, to Invercargill, the most southerly city on South Island and where we stayed at the ‘Southern Comfort’ backpackers’ hostel. Just a short walk away we visited the town’s museum where we found a small exhibition about Burt Munro and his famous motorcycle, the World’s fastest Indian. We had watched the film of the same name starring Sir Anthony Hopkins over a year ago and had been given a mission by Eddie, our webmaster to find the bike!

Burt Munro, 1899-1978 was a New Zealander who bought a 1920s 600cc Indian Scout which, over a period of several years, he rebuilt to 1000cc and in 1967 broke the world speed record for its class at an average speed of 183.586 mph, (the fastest one-way speed being over 190mph!) on Bonneville Salt Flats, USA. Apparently the record still stands to this day.

In the exhibition there is a streamlined bike but this one is only a replica made for the film and powered by a Ducati engine. To see the original you have to take a walk downtown to the hardware shop! E Hayes and Son’s hardware store in the high street not only has Burt’s original record holding bike but also his 1936 MSS 500 Velocette which he rebuilt to 650cc and took to 138mph - a lesser known achievement. The incredible thing about these bikes is that Burt made everything for them himself through trial and error and with basic tools. The museum and store are well worth a visit and the film is also well worth a look.

It truly is a small world you know. Several months ago we were at a hostel in Panama, Central America when Les brought to my attention a Columbian magazine which had a story about a New Zealand family who were riding through the Americas on two motorcycles with their children on pillion. Months later we were about to cross Arthur's Pass, South Island, NZ when we met Shane, a man who knows the same couple living near Invercargill. We gave them a ring and ended up spending the night with them. Over dinner we talked with Garth, Sandra and their two children about their travelling adventures and ours, and once again picked up a few more tips from some really seasoned travellers. Coincidently, Garth and I shared the same profession, (before my retirement), and the same passion for inflicting pain by riding a bicycle in races!

At last I have eaten shellfish cooked as they should be! We stopped at Bluff, a little town on the coast south of Invercargill and sampled some of the famous Bluff oysters. It would appear I'd been cooking them for too long. Also, thanks for the advice from my on-line chefs, Garrett and Carol back home - I will try again!

Leaving Invercargill on a cool and occasionally damp day we headed east along the ‘Southern Scenic Route’ and followed the coastline through the Maclennan and Beresford Ranges to Owaka and Balclutha where we joined HW1 north east through Milton and into Dunedin.

We passed another ‘Globaltrek’ landmark today at a running total of 61,000 miles.

We are staying at the ‘Hogwartz’ backpackers’ hostel, www.hogwartz.co.nz  where a superb double room with an elevated sitting area overlooking the city costs us $60 a night, about £24, and, as its the weekend, we are having a few days off!

Dunedin nestles between hills on the east coast of South Island. It has a university and a very young and arty culture with loads of cafes where you can sip espresso and watch the world go by, but not for us, we were busy today. We had already been to ‘Cadbury World’ and overdosed on chocolate in the morning, then to the ‘Pride of the South, Speights Brewery’. At the end of one of the best brewery tours I’d been on, we were given a glass, shown the beer taps of the various brews they do and told, “Help yourself, you’ve got twenty minutes”. Well, that certainly washed the chocolate down!!!!

Tomorrow we head further north along the coast towards Christchurch, but first I've got to take a look at something a bit different. According to the Guinness Book of Records, the world’s steepest street is Baldwin Street at 1 in 1.266. I wonder if we can ride our ½-ton barge up it? I'll let you know!

Until next time, Nick.

​

From Les

Dunedin, South Island, New Zealand; 13th April 2008

   We decided to spend the weekend in Queenstown to investigate the differing reports we received regarding this small town which is surrounded by mountains on the shores of Lake Wakatipu. With a name like Queenstown it must be worth a visit I thought, and so it was. The scenery was stunning from our vantage point in the hostel’s back garden where we could see most of the town and harbour area.

The whole town was geared up for adventure sports and dangerous pastimes such as bungee jumping, paracending, jet-boat rides and paragliding etc. During the winter it is a bustling ski resort, the rest of the year it caters for those who enjoy the gentle cruise on a steam boat or those who feel the need to throw themselves off the edge of cliffs, dangling in mid air like rag dolls for no apparent reason. It definitely wasn't the cheapest place to stay mind you but we only managed to spend $42 to ride the Gondola, (cable car) to the skyline high above the town where we could enjoy the fantastic views. There were many bars and eateries near the quay and we enjoyed an evening of live music and stayed out till way past the witching hour!! Our well-equipped hostel was unfortunately up a very steep hill which really got the heart and lungs working - exercise at last!!

Our next quest was to visit the famous Milford Sounds in Fiord Land. En route we passed the Kingston Flyer steam train billowing plumes of steam into the fresh clean air. It made me think at length about the lack of continuity in the eco-friendliness of these Islands. Some hostels and camp-sites have very strict re-cycling programmes and frown upon those who dare to mix plastics with paper. On the other hand, other places have no re-cycling systems at all and are very proud of the fact that they burn coal to fire the water heaters and to heat the buildings – all quite contrary I thought!!

We have once again been so lucky with the weather despite it being very autumnal and chilly. The skies stayed clear and blue as we chugged through the waterways of Milford Sound. The chilled-out captain spent most of his time reading the paper and expertly steering us with his feet resting on the wheel - years of practise I assume. He was quite jovial and chatty telling us about the silly things that tourists ask such as “What time do they turn the waterfalls off?” or “Do they put the dolphins in tanks at night?” You can just guess the nationality!! We were joined by some fellow bikers, Urs and Javiera who also camped amongst the trees with us but they missed our encounter with the Islands secretive Kiwi bird. We understand it is rare to get a sighting of these flightless birds and many people born and bred here have never seen one so we were very lucky.

The scenery changes at every twist and turn in the road, and there are many of those! From the mountains we followed the Southern scenic route south through rolling green hills which provide abundant pastures for the hundreds of sheep, cows and deer. The price of milk and dairy products is surprisingly high here even though the air is filled with bovine smells. Apparently the large companies such as Tesco and Sainsbury buy vast quantities of milk fairly cheaply which doesn’t seem to leave much for the locals.

We arrived in the town of Invercargill with plenty of time to visit the local museum where we spent time in the “Burt Munro exhibition”, (The Worlds Fastest Indian -- a great film to see). Then it was on to Hayes Hardware store where Burt's bikes were on display, this was another goal achieved ... we are doing well!

While in Panama, almost a year ago, I thumbed through a motorcycle magazine and read an article about a couple who had taken their 2 young children on a 13-month tour of the Americas. By sheer coincidence we met a guy in a car park near Arthur's Pass who knew this couple and gave us their phone number. Nick called Sandra and we were invited to stay with them outside Invercargill. The children, Nadine 8 and Frank 7 were busy doing what children do and had settled back into school after their return in November 2007. It was great to hear of Garth and Sandra's adventures which made ours seem pretty tame by comparison. Whilst crossing Brazil they spent 6 days axle-deep in mud and were rapidly running out of food, but still they lived to tell the tale. We thoroughly enjoyed our time with them all, Thank you.

We followed the Southern Ocean scenic route which started off fairly flat and damp till we got to the Catlins conservation area where the hills became steeper, smoother and interlocking with many covered by forests and deciduous trees. The blending autumnal colours made for wonderful scenes as we caught the occasional glimpse of bays and beaches. We were now heading for Dunedin where I had a “surprise” treat awaiting me. However, Nick had been giving me too many easy hints so I had guessed before Garth had the chance to say, “the Cadbury's chocolate factory is a good place to visit”!

We have based ourselves in a lovely room in the comfortable ‘Hogwartz’ hostel on a hill overlooking the city for the weekend. On Saturday we visited the Cadbury factory and ate our free goodies during the introductory film, and then it was off to the Speights Brewery tour. This was far more interesting than the Monteiths tour of a few weeks ago. It was interesting to see that several of the very old machines in use were made in Bury St Edmunds, which means that the Green King brewery didn't get them all. We were even encouraged to pull our own pints and I was happy to find I hadn't completely lost my touch from over 20 years ago. To complete our, not so healthy diet, we ate a cheap Chinese and then rolled back to the room to watch the first Lord of the Rings video and consume a large bar of discount dark chocolate. If you are going to over indulge I thought, then you may as well do it big style!!!!

Today, after a very relaxing start, I wandered into town and visited the old railway station which houses art galleries filled with many works by local artists. The sun was bright and warm so I sat in the park for a while, wandered some more and then struggled up the steep hill back to base with the shopping. It's good to get some distance between us now and again and this weekend in particular has been a very worthwhile break. We will try to take a break each weekend from now on but … you know how it is … have bike, must travel!

Till the next time, Lesley