Sorry, but the pictures on this post are not all in the correct order. The computer has been giving me fits and at this point I'd rather post it than sit here. We'll correct it in the future.

Who knows what day it is? It’s a wonderful feeling of not quite knowing but really being in the moment and focusing just on the things around you. That is one of the joys of an adventure like this. You are so focused on the activity and taking in your immediate surroundings that you don’t know a lot of what’s happening elsewhere. This was just a glorious biking day. We started off from Franz Joseph Glacier. There were 3 big hills out of town. Jane chose to ride them in the van and Bob chose to ride them on his bike. So, Jane started biking at Fox Glacier and went for a respectable 55 miles. The riding today was on beautiful road, very little traffic. Rain forest on either side, mountains in the distance and then a beautiful beach.

We arrived at Lake Moeraki to a beautiful wilderness lodge. Some from our group kayaked during the afternoon. I took some pictures. That evening we went for a walk after dark to see the glow worms and to see the southern sky. Seeing Orion upside down compared to how one sees it the Northern Hemisphere brought home that we really are on the other side of this ball we call Earth. We learned how to tell south from the southern sky: South is at the intersection of the extension of the Southern Cross and the perpendicular bisecting a line between Proxima Centauri and Alpha Centauri. It was great fun to see the Centauri suns (the obvious destination for our first starship) for the first time. At Lake Moeraki we had our first full scale introduction to sand flies all too similar to our black flies. Just like our black flies, the sand flies LOVE Jane! From Lake Moeraki we travelled to Makorora. We climbed the hill up from the lake to a wonderful view point. We travelled along and then came to another wonderful beach where we saw some dolphins swimming close to the beach. We travelled up the Haast river valley ( with cows in the river bed) to Haast Pass. A long steep pass and it was very hot. We both stopped a few times to try to cool off and to get our heart rates down. Bob waited at the top for Jane and we had a glorious ride down Haast pass to very different country. All of a sudden we were out of the rain forest and into beech and pine forests with sheep grazing in the pastures. After 70 miles we were very happy to reach our funky lodge in Makorara.

From Lake Moeraki we travelled to Makorora. We climbed the hill up from the lake to a wonderful view point. We travelled along and then came to another wonderful beach where we saw some dolphins swimming close to the beach. We travelled up the Haast river valley ( with cows in the river bed) to Haast Pass. A long steep pass and it was very hot. We both stopped a few times to try to cool off and to get our heart rates down. Bob waited at the top for Jane and we had a glorious ride down Haast pass to very different country. All of a sudden we were out of the rain forest and into beech and pine forests with sheep grazing in the pastures.

After 70 miles we were very happy to reach our funky lodge in Makorara.

It was from this beach that we saw dolphins swimming close to shore.

From Makorora we journeyed to Wanaka. This was also a beautiful ride—going along Lake Wanaka and then Lake Hawea and then coming back to Lake Wanaka. Jane’s legs were very tired from the previous day, so she went at a snail’s pace. Bob got to the lodge first and booked a massage for each of us. It helped a lot. At this point we were beginning to realize that this magical tour was soon coming to an end as Claire and Roger, two riders from the U.K., left us in Wanaka to wander on their own.

The next day dawned rainy with forecasts of rain throughout the country. At breakfast the debate was to ride or not. As this was the last day and reputed to be a beautiful ride, it was not an easy decision. As you can imagine, Bob cycled and Jane rode in the van. We stopped in Cadrone at this hotel for coffee. As the rain let up at some points, Jane was regretting her decision, but then it would become heavier and she was thinking that she had had enough experience biking in the rain. There were other hardy souls riding in the rain, some for the whole trip and others for parts of it.

Rose finishing her bike tour with a big smile on her faceand Bob and Phil finishing the ride at the hotel in Queenstown.

Here we are in Queenstown, a tiny town on the edge of a beautiful lake. It’s been cloudy and rainy since we arrived so we’re not really experiencing it at its best, but now the sun is brightening a bit and we’ll ride the gondola to the hill over town and see if we can get a view

We had one last dinner with some of the friends we’d made on the trip and realized that our ride was truly over. The people we’ve met on this trip have been great and we’re hoping to stay in touch. Today we have a final day in Queenstown and then on Monday morning we start on the Milford track. It’s cloudy and wet looking outside, reported to be the same tomorrow. That’s o.k. with us, we’re hoping for clear weather when we go over MacKinnon Pass.

We dropped off our Toyota in Christchurch on Thursday and picked up our Trek bikes that afternoon. We also met our fellow travelers and our leaders Pete and Em on our PedalTours trip. There are 13 of us in all and with the exception of one couple who are from the U.K., all Americans—mostly from the West Coast. The next day our bike adventure began. As we rode in the vans out of Christchurch, the weather was intermittent showers. We stopped at a cafe out of town and the adventurous –i.e., Bob and two other men- rode from there in the rain over a very steep pass.

In the afternoon, after the rain had stopped. Notice, biking on the left side of the road!

Along the way to Wilderness Lodge at Arthur's Pass. Parts of this day looked like Lord of the Rings land.

Jane rode in the van up to the top of the pass –got out there and rode down that pass, but then pretty steady up. We ended up at Arthur’s Pass Wilderness Lodge—a beautiful lodge. As a first day ride, this was a little wet, but not too long. While at the lodge we went to see the sheep farm and learned all about the Merino sheep. There were wonderful sheep dogs, a great Border Collie and another New Zealand breed.

t Valentine's Day at the top of Arthur's Pass.

The next day we had gorgeous weather and rode up to the top of Arthur’s Pass and from there it was down all the way to the West Coast and ended up in Hokahita. As we went down from the pass, the forest changed to a rain forest. There were ferns and eucalyptus and all sorts of other tropical plants. We heard what sounded like a parrot or cuckoo. It was a glorious day. This was a long day—longer for Bob of course, as he did 16km more than I did. But, I ended up with a respectable 103km(around 63 miles).

Lunch at an outdoor cafe on the way to the coast.

These lovely roads with ferns and fern trees on either side.
Hokahita is a town well known for its jade. Jade was used by the ancient Maori for tools. However, then to make the tools took many years and often generations of families would be working on a piece of jade. The shops in Hokahita are not necessarily the best ones for buying so we were spared that. And given that we barely got to town in time for a shower before dinner, I was relieved that I wasn’t missing a great opportunity.

This morning we woke to partly cloudy skies and much warmer than it had been. We both could put on our summer jerseys. Today was also a long day and we started out along the coast. Right before lunch we had a brief shower but then the riding was nice. After lunch I found a Maori shop with nice jade in it. Today was described by the guides to us as undulating, no big hills. However, we ended up climbing over 2700 feet over 65 miles. We stopped around 8 miles out of town for our last snack and then headed into Franz Joseph. Shortly after we started it began to rain, but we thought we’d be fine and didn’t stop to put on our rain gear. By the time we got to our motel, we were soaked and a hot shower felt very good.

This morning the sun was shining and we took a walk up to Franz Joseph glacier. This beautiful waterfall was on the side of the glacial floor. Very interesting to see ferns in the forest next to the glacier. This afternoon we’re happy to have very little to do.

It's now Wednesday and we're in Christchurch. On Monday Jane kayaked in Abel Tasman to Apple Rock.(picture on the right). Then paddled back and met Bob for lunch.

We then rode a boat out to Tonga Rock in the park. Saw a couple of seal pups along the way. At Tonga Rock we hiked on the Abel Tasman track for the afternoon. The track goes along some ridges and then as you can see onto the beach. We hiked for a couple of hours and then took another boat back to the beginning. We had gorgeous summer weather and of course it was beautiful.

The next day the weather changed and we headed to Kaikoura on the opposite coast. We passed through the vineyards around Blenheim and had lunch at this one. We are trying all the Sauvignon Blancs and have had some really excellent wines. Unfortunately, we have had to test our rain gear today.

The ride along the coast to Kaikoura was along the sea and quite beautiful. In Kaikoura, home of many seals and lots of whale boat excursions, we walked to Seal Park and then walked up a hill overlooking the harbor. We were glad we did that last night, as this morning it was very foggy and wet this morning.

This is the cathedral in Christchurch. Tomorrow we meet the people on our bike tour and get our bikes and take a little ride around Christchurch and then on Friday the real bike riding begins. It's not clear what kind of weather we're going to have, but I think there's some wetness in our future. Below is the Rose window in the cathedral. The cathedral is intersting in that all the struts and interior supports (with the exception of the column) are wooden. Hope for sunny weather for us.

In Wellington and Picton on the South Island

It’s Saturday and we’ve now been here long enough to have some initial impressions of this beautiful country. Firstly, the people are really lovely. They’re very proud of their country and have been giving us all sorts of hints about what sights we must see. Even in the grocery stores, clerks are friendly and engaging. On the flight from Auckland, the man sitting next to me gave me great tips on the country and provided us with the name of a restaurant where we ate one night. The Maori have a rich cultural history. Wednesday we saw a Haka(picture above)at the museum in Auckland. Haka is the dance which the warriors do prior to going to battle. .

This is a decoration from one of the Maori war canoes. The canoe was made out of one tree and had intricate carvings all along it.

Thursday in Wellington at Te Anau (a gorgeous museum)we learned more about the Maori and Friday is Waitangi Day, celebrating the signing of the treaty between the English and the Maori. You can imagine that the Maori did not fare too well by that treaty. . This is from the top of the cable car in Wellington, looking down at the city and the harbor. We flew to Wellington and after spending a day here took the ferry across to the South Island, to Picton.

There is excellent coffee everywhere. . At least as good as in ItalyBob is in heaven. It really is gorgeous here. These are pictures from the ferry crossing going from Wellington on the North Island to Picton on the South Island

Marlborough Sound from the ferry. The view from our motel in Picton.

This is the next day as we're heading out of the harbor on a boat with bicycles to ride the Queen Charlotte track.

This is from the highest point on the track. A long hard trail up to here with a lot of places where it was too steep to ride and you had to push your bike. We had some adventures on this trail. But, this picture only begins to convey how beautiful it is. The track is a hiking/biking track which follows the ridge line. some people do the entire track as a 4 - 5 day walk. There are places to stay along the way, often only reached by hiking or by boat.

First Day in Auckland

Views of Auckland from the Sky Tower.

After a very long, but relatively uneventful flight we landed in New Zealand on Tuesday morning. Monday was a lost day for us as we crossed the international date line. We are really in summer. We took it easy today to recover from the lost day and long flight. We walked the city, of course going to the highest spot, the Tower you see above. People do bungy jump off the top of this, not us. And fortunately we didn’t see any while we were there.

Later we Walked along the docks and the last picture is of the ferry building. A great way to see the city, we’ll do when we return at the end of our trip.

We're off today to the Auckland Museum and then this afternoon we fly to Wellington, the country's capital at the very southernmost tip of the North Island.