23/02/08
Welcome back to my world folks. Well, another day is in the bag, but I’m feeling great today! The ride from Te Anau to Tuatapere was over 100km, but I was happy the entire way today. The road was generally downhill, and there was a nice tailwind for most of the ride. I can’t stress enough just how nice that is. There was only one hill of any concern, a 200m climb called Jericho Hill. Apart from that, it was just undulating terrain the whole way. My little map is up and awaiting your inspection. along with some shots for the day. Overall, I didn’t take too many pictures, as the scenery was generally not that remarkable. It was nice, but nothing out of the ordinary or really different from what I’ve been seeing for a lot of the trip. Farmland and rolling fields with sheep and cows. Yippee. Read on for a little more detail on this great riding day.

22/02/08
Hello all, and welcome to another chapter in my ongoing adventures. This day’s story is brought to you by the word Fiord, and not Sound. More on that in a little bit. Essentially, this was another rest day. Not that I necessarily needed it, but simply because I’m in Te Anau, and this is where the only road that heads out to Milford Sound starts and finishes, and I wasn’t going to come all the way to New Zealand without checking out the world famous Milford Sound! As such, I had booked a coach and cruise trip while I was still in Queenstown a few days ago. This was a bit of a gamble, since I didn’t know what the weather would be doing, but things worked out just fine, as you’ll find out if you read on. As per usual, and I’m sure I don’t even need to mention it anymore, you can check out the map I put together for the day, as well as hopefully some pictures that I’ll try to get up on Flickr. Read on, mates!

21/02/08
Hello folks, I’m happy to report that I’m safe and sound at Bob and Maxine’s Backpackers in Te Anau. Although there were no major mishaps to report on the way here, and even though most of the route was downhill, that’s not to say that the day wasn’t without its little challenges and frustrations. More specifically, I’d have to say that most of the day was full of challenges and frustrations. I’ve put a map together to show you where I was, but as you can see, there weren’t all that many pictures taken, for the simple fact that the road I was on was utter crap for what I was hauling. Check out the map, and read on for more details. I fear the story won’t be all that long, as it’ll be too painful to recall 🙂

20/02/08
Catchy title, don’t you think? Don’t worry too much though, the disaster wasn’t catastrophic, but it was certainly frustrating. Of course, you’ll have to read more of the post to find out what I’m talking about, as I don’t want to give it away just yet 😉 Today marked my return to the road by bike after a week of not cycling! Hard to believe isn’t it? Well, at least I was still quite active with my time, and had a very enjoyable time in Queenstown staying with Julia and Mark. Thanks a ton guys, it was awesome, especially our Valentines’ threesome! Ha ha. Get your head out of the gutters people, we just went out on the town and called it that. Anyway, I’m sure you’re all anxious to hear what my day had in store for me, aren’t you? My route today took me from Queenstown to a place called Mavora Lakes. Yeah, go ahead, try to find it on Google maps. I know it’s there, but I’m not sure it’ll show you a road. Luckily, you can see my route on the map if you care to, check out the pictures, and read on for more.

19/02/08
Just thought I’d let you all know that for the first time in the entire trip, there are no pictures, or maps, or really any stories to tell you for the day. Yup, I took the day off. Fully. I did laundry, did lots of Internet-y things, ran some errands in town, and even hired a movie to watch. Popped up some popcorn, and watched it in the late afternoon before the kids got home. Once Julia and Mark got in, I took them out for some Mexican food for supper. Tomorrw, I start the day with a ride on the historic TSS Earnslaw, a coal-fired steamer to get to a gravel road that will take me to the Mavora Lakes where I plan to camp for the night. Day after that, on to Te Anau, and my day trip to Milford. However, you’ll read about those things in due time, so there! Hope you all enjoyed your day off for Family Day as much as I did for my Recovery Day!! 🙂