On my way
Trip Start
Oct 14, 2008
1
6
136
Trip End
Ongoing
Dargaville,
North Island,
New Zealand
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Journey
Bus: Auckland to Wellsford - nice people, great views, no problems
Bike: Wellsford to Paparoa - distance 64.4km (16 not fully loaded going to a boring museum),
Average speed 16.90km/hr.
Bike: Paparoa to Dargaville - distance 52.02km (give or take bit when the little computer didn't work)
Average Speed 17.01km/hr
Accommodation:
Due to there being no backpacker hostels in Paparoa and not wanting to test myself to much on the first day, i decided to stop at a B&B in Paparoa - this was suppose to be a treat. It might have been nice if
a. I was happy to chatting to owners (alot)
b. like bizarrely frilly, chintzy odd decor
c. liked being watched by noisy owners.
So as i like none of these things, it was kinda horrible. Luckily about 9pm a couple from Tahiti (which to my shame i wasn't sure where it was, I have since looked it up, there are few things I'm still keen to learn). Any way they arrived and brought the grand total of guests up to 3 and diffused the situation a little.
So about 9 in the morning I fled and was off again with my heavily laden bike with showers forecast, after about an hour it started showering and didn't stop for most of the rest of the day.
I skipped my planned stop in Ruawai because it was a really short hop (I had somewhat underestimated my ability), the road was really flat and the women was horrible on the phone and kept calling my Natalie despite repeat corrections, so i pushed on for Dargaville.
I'm now staying in a hostel which is much nicer and loads cheaper (I don't what this says about where I'm happy). Its a converted school house and bedding is extra so I'm glad to be dragging my sleeping bag around. In keeping with the school theme they have a talk on astronomy in the evening, although me and a couple of other guests thought this would tell us about southern constellations etc, it turned out to be a lecture on astro-physics causing me to remember all the reasons I didn't pursue physics but also the reasons why i used to think it would be fun.
On a less astronomical note, my Londoner instinct kicked into whilst squatting behind a bush. I stopped for a snack in the rain at a picnic site about 20km from anywhere and then thought I make a quick dash over the road and behind a bush, leaving my bike unattended but visible (as was I but i hoped the rain would make me blend).
Just as I was done a car pulled up and I thought 'my bike, my stuff!). Scrambled with shorts, I piled back over the gate that i thought might collapse but didn't, rushed across the road to two people not even looking like they might be thinking about stealing my bike but eating sandwich's in there car. I sheepishly collected the bike (not a that a actual sheep could do this - that would be silly) and was on my way.
