Mana to Pauatahanui

On Monday 11 September, it was a fine but windy day, so we decided on a short-ish, undemanding ride (17 km). We hadn’t biked to Pauatahanui for quite a while, so we parked at the Ngati Toa Domain, in Mana, and biked along the Camborne Walkway. The track was reasonably dry, and we didn’t encounter any people with pushchairs, so I ‘survived’ the track without taking a spill – as I did the last time we were here.

On the Camborne Walkway (photo by John)

We biked to Pauatahanui and had lunch at the Ground Up Café. We are always impressed with how quickly our coffees are delivered – the barista must be listening closely to the orders being placed, and putting them into effect immediately.

John’s hotcakes were beautifully presented – and delicious too (photo by John)

After lunch we looked into the saddlery and stock feed shop next door, and got talking to the young woman at the counter. She was interested in our SmartMotion bikes, as she said she worked a couple of days a week for Daryl Neal, from whom we bought these bikes, when he used to own Wellington Electric Bikes in Upper Hutt. He had a hand in designing the SmartMotions, but now concentrates on designing and building UBCO electric farmbikes, and she works on his web design. Thinking she would be a keen cyclist, I asked her what sort of bike she rode. Her answer was “I ride a horse”!

On the way back along Motukaraka Point, I noticed a layer of shells in the cut-away bank next to the road – a midden from long ago. This area was once an important Ngati Ira settlement. While John stopped to take a photo of it, we were hailed by a chap who had been sitting near his parked car, playing his ukulele. “I know you, do you write a blog? I recognised your bikes”. He said his name was Terry Casey, and he plays in Bluegrass bands in Upper Hutt pubs. We chatted, and then he played a little tune on his mouth organ. You do meet some interesting people while biking …

There are some nice gardens at Motukaraka Point (photo by John)

A midden – this area was once an important Māori settlement (photo by John)

A chat with Terry Casey, Bluegrass musician (photo by John)

There is a new stretch of track and boardwalk across some of the wetlands, which is very much nicer to ride on than the road (which is narrow and busy wih car traffic). It is a local Rotary project, and I hope that eventually the whole stretch between Motukaraka and the Camborne Walkway will be provided with a walking/cycle track away from the road.

The boardwalk across the tidal area (photo by John)

The tide was in and the wind was quite strong, causing wavelets to slap onto the road (photo by John)

Back at the Ngati Toa Domain, we thought we would go and look at the “beach that disappeared”. In April, a whole beach alongside the Mana Marina disappeared overnight. In the aerial photo on this website,  you can see the same brown yacht as in John’s photo, and you can see how large the beach was, which is now gone.

There was once a beach here … (photo by John)

A final pretty shot of the entrance to Porirua Harbour (photo by John)

Folding Goldies ride to Te Marua

We were supposed to go for a Folding Goldies ride on Thursday 17 August, but the Met Service had put out a strong wind warning, saying “northerlies expected to rise to severe gale gusting 130 km/hr in exposed places during Thursday”. I didn’t much fancy that, so I emailed Alastair, the leader of the Folding Goldies, suggesting Friday might be a better option. His witty reply on Meet-up was “Given the official advice to tie down trampolines, wheelie bins, and old age pensioners on bikes, we'll change to Friday”. 

The plan was to take the train to Upper Hutt, then bike into the Mangaroa Valley, to Tunnel Gully, and to the Stonestead Devonshire Tea place in Te Marua for tea and scones. Then we would bike back along the Hutt River Trail to Upper Hutt for the train back. Here is the map. 

Sue (our neighbour), John, and I boarded the train in Petone, the others had all boarded in Wellington. There were nine of us, including two new guys, Gordon and George.

Meeting up at Upper Hutt Station (photo by John)

The ride into the Mangaroa Valley was quite steep. Five of us were riding e-bikes and we steamed up the hill OK, but a couple of the others ended up having to get off and walk. 

George and Alastair made it to the top without having to walk (photo by John)

Everyone has caught up (photo by John)

The road down the Mangaroa Valley was pleasantly flat or slightly undulating. At the junction with Maymorn Road, Alastair gave us the choice between staying on the road or going for Tunnel Gully, which was a bit more of a challenge. We opted for the latter.

Maymorn Road or Tunnel Gully? (photo by John)

Near the entrance to the Gully area, there was a very steep gravelly track through bush, which was so steep that even those with e-bikes had to get off and walk.

This bit of track was too steep even for the e-bike riders (photo by John)

We rode on a bush track for a while, and met an amazing sight – some some guys walking a huge number of dogs. I was surprised that not all were on a leash, but they were all very well behaved.

I counted at least 18 dogs! (photo by John)

Traffic jam! (photo by John)

The tunnel was not too long, and John coped OK, though he did have to walk (darkness messes with his balance). At the wrong moment he found that the front light on his bike wasn't working. But the tunnel is short enough to be able to see light at the end of it.

The tunnel (photo by John)

A nice bit of track amongst tall trees

Tunnel Gully Recreation Area (photo by John)

After that, there was a bit more steep, but sealed, road, but then a lovely descent on a good (and quiet) road down to Stonestead at Te Marua, where Kevin Bold runs a great Devonshire Tea house. He has a large selection of teas, a choice of great big sultana, cheese or plain scones, accompanied by cream and a choice of jams (raspberry, apricot or strawberry), or mustard or relish (for the cheese scones). He even caters for the coffee drinkers.

We had our scones and tea at the tables outside. Except Gordon and I had coffee in plungers, and when I went to lift my tray off the counter, I managed to disgrace myself by knocking over Gordon’s plunger. Aargh! Coffee everywhere. Kevin didn't seem to be too fazed, thankfully – he just mopped it up and made another coffee for Gordon.

Tea, coffee and scones at Stonestead (photo by John)

Kevin took this group photo before we continued on our ride

After a pleasant interlude, we biked along the Hutt River Trail to Upper Hutt. There is a section of the track that is being rebuilt, after several floods washed out some of the bank over the last year.

Reconstruction of the river bank track

Before we got to Harcourt Park, we rode past a paddock where a beautiful brown alpaca came bounding over to the fence to say hello. A big sign said “Say hello to Peppy, our friendly alpaca”.

Peppy, the friendly alpaca

After Harcourt Park, three people went off to Upper Hutt station to take the train back to Wellington, and the other six decided to bike back to Petone. Colin and George sped off, and we didn't see them again. Sue and Gottfried, and John and I stayed together.

Near Heretaunga we watched a group of young people involved in a river crossing exercise. And near Lower Hutt, we diverted to Janus Bakkerij for another coffee and scone.

Teamwork to cross the river

For the last stretch back to Petone, Sue, who had been trying to convince Gottfried that he should get an e-bike, got him to swap bikes with her, so he could try an e-bike. A bit of a hassle, as Gottfried’s seat was too high and couldn’t be adjusted down far enough for Sue. So in the end, Gottfried rode Sue’s (full-size) e-bike, Sue rode John’s e-bike, and John rode Gottfried’s bike.

It was quite late by the time we got back to Petone, nearly 5 pm, and we had done 51 km. I was feeling quite tired, so we picked up some fish ’n chips for dinner on the way home.

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Now, the sad story about my “huga huga” bike horn.

On occasion I have said that I would love to have a loud horn on my bike – one of those that goes "huga, huga!" – to warn people walking on the track who don't hear my warning bell when I want to pass, because they have their ear phones plugged in. A nice loud one, that would scare the bejeezus out of them!

Well, I had recently had a birthday, and my daughter had given me a fantastic bike horn – it was gorgeous, with skulls and roses on it. I was utterly delighted.

My beautiful bike horn

John installed it on my handlebar. There wasn’t a lot of room for it, what with the throttle control, the bell, the bike computer, and the front bag. But it looked great, and sounded good. Not quite the “huga, huga!” that I had talked about – more like a “Beep, beep”, but that was OK.

Installed on my bike – there wasn’t a lot of room for it

This ride was its first outing. I showed it off at the station and gave it a few beeps. Then later on, when we had walked up the steep bit before the tunnel, and were regaining our breath, Gottfried gave the bulb a squeeze, and no sound came out! It appeared that the noise maker thingy had fallen out of the trumpet, and was rolling around inside the bulb.

When we got to Stonestead I mentioned it to John, and suggested he take it off, and fix it when we got home. As it happened, he didn't take it off there, which sadly spelled the end of it. Because when I next looked for it, the bulb had fallen off altogether. I think it just got knocked off somewhere along the way, as every time I got on or off the bike, my jacket brushed against the bulb.

What a disappointment! And I hadn’t even been able to frighten one single person with it!

Paekakariki to Paraparaumu, and Kapiti Aeromodellers Club

I’m a few blogs behind. I’ll catch up in the next day or so.

Thursday 16 March was a glorious day, fine and calm, so we drove up to Paekakariki for another ride on Te Ara o Whareroa and on part of Te Ara Kapiti (the track next to the new Kapiti Expressway).

Getting the bikes ready (photo by John)

An idyllic scene from Paekakariki’s waterfront (photo by John)

Though there wasn’t much wind, John had to attend to his eye, which must be protected from airflows to stop it drying out.

John had to stop to attend to his eye

Much of the time, the cycle track runs parallel to the Kapiti Expressway, but some distance removed from it. However, there are several bridges on the Expressway where the cycle track runs right next to it. I noticed signs before these bridges saying that horses were not allowed “beyond this point”, and I wondered why that was. Then I figured that because you are so close to traffic rushing past, a horse could easily be spooked by a passing truck, which could result in a pretty nasty accident.

Most of the time the cycle track is well away from the Expressway … (photo by John)

… but on the bridges, it runs right next to the rushing traffic (photo by John)

At the bridge over the Wharemauku Stream, we diverted from the Expressway and headed on the track towards Paraparaumu Beach.

The bridge over the Wharemauku Stream – looking towards Coastlands shopping centre
 (photo by John)

The track goes past the back of the airport, and just before getting to the beach it becomes a quite unpleasant, bumpy and narrow rut through a paddock. I don’t enjoy this bit, but fortunately it is not very long.

The track runs past the back of the airport … (photo by John)

… and then becomes a narrow rut as it goes through a paddock (photo by John)

We made our way safely to Paraparaumu Beach, where we had lunch at the 180 Degrees Café. On our way back, we stopped near the beach for a few photos.

Kapiti Island (photo by John)

The tide was in (photo by John)

Back on Te Ara Kapiti, we diverted temporarily to follow a sign pointing to Kiwi Road. Here the track went around a substantial area of wetland, and we saw that lots of waterfowl had already made it their home. We saw geese, ducks, paradise ducks, pukeko and stilts.

The track around the wetland at Kiwi Road (photo by John)

Some of the birdlife in this wetland (photo by John)
Click to enlarge

Thoughtfully provided seating ovelooks the wetland (photo by John)

In Queen Elizabeth II Park, we turned off the cycle track towards the beach. John wandered off to take some photos, while I sat on a bench and chatted to a campervan owner who had come from Upper Hutt, just to sit in the sun and enjoy the day.

The Whareroa Stream exit to the beach (photo by John)

We heard the sound of small planes buzzing overhead, so we went to have a look at the Kapiti Aeromodellers Club, which has its clubrooms and airfield nearby. We parked our bikes by the entrance, and asked one of the men if it was OK for us to come and have a look. “Yes sure”, was the answer. There was a lot of activity going on. There were more than a dozen vans and cars with large trailers, and a lot of men – mostly older, probably retired, since it was a weekday – assembling or tweaking their planes, and indulging in their hobby.

Kapiti Aeromodellers enjoying their passion on a fine calm day (photo by John)

I was amazed at the size of some of the planes – large enough and realistic enough to have a figure in the pilot’s seat. We chatted to some of the men there, and watched as people took turns in using the runway to fly their planes. One of them explained that when there is more than one plane in the air, each plane has to have two people – one piloting (i.e. working the radio controls), and the other spotting (i.e. keeping a watch that it is not on a collision course with another plane).

A Piper Pawnee (one-third scale) is readied to tow a glider (photo by John)

Getting the tow-plane and glider ready to fly. Two pilots: one for the tow-plane, the other for the glider.
(photo by John)

John was loving all this

John revelled in all this, and it brought back a few memories for him. His father was an aircraft engineer, working at one stage at Paraparaumu Airport. He remembers as a young boy being allowed to go with Dad to “put the planes to bed” when they had to be tethered to ground cables to stop them being blown about by the wind. He tells of how he sat in the co-pilot’s seat, while his Dad fired up the engines to taxi the DC3 or Lodestar to its tethering point. Once tethered, he would help his Dad to put newspapers over the wires “for the plane’s bedtime reading” (actually to stop anyone tripping over the wires).

A collection of war planes under a camouflage canopy (photo by John)

Before a plane can be launched, it is positioned behind two posts while the engine is started up. Then it is carefully manoeuvred and backed up by hand before being directed towards the runway by radio control. 

This model is a Rumpler Taube dating from 1909  (photo by John)

We spent nearly an hour at the Aeromodellers Club, before heading back to Paekakariki. A quick stop for a photo of a newly installed seat overlooking Te Ara o Whareroa, but we didn’t linger. It had been a good ride (34 km), nicely side-tracked to do some mini plane spotting.

A new and very sturdy-looking seat overlooking the track (photo by John)

Kapiti Expressway cycle track

Last Thursday, 9 March, we had our second try at riding the cycle track alongside the new Kapiti Expressway. 

The Expressway had an open day for the general public on 18 February, and the celebrations included people being allowed to walk and cycle on a 5 km stretch of the new road between Paraparaumu and Waikanae. Unfortunately we weren’t able to go, so the following Tuesday, after biking from Paekakariki to Raumati, we wanted to try out the new cycle track that runs alongside it. But it wasn't open for use yet.

Access to the new cycle track at Raumati was still blocked off (photo by John)

We talked to one of the people still working on the completion and he said it would be opening at 3am (!) the following Friday, provided the weather didn’t throw a spanner in the works.

He told us the track would be open the following Friday (photo by John)

By diverting via a couple of Raumati roads, we managed to find a few stretches that were not blocked off, but then we met a man on a tractor, who told us we really should not be there, so we decided to come back another day.

This foot/cycle bridge over the Expressway could be reached from an access road alongside the track,
 but was still blocked off too (photo by John)

So last Thursday, we had another go at it. We drove to Raumati, parked the car in Leinster Ave, just off Poplar Avenue, and biked up to the start of the cycle track.

I was disappointed to find that the track was not completely smooth. It consisted of seal but with a fine gravel surface. We stopped to talk to a couple of surveyors, and asked whether the track was like this all the way. “Yes, and a few bits are worse” they said. I wondered why the track had not been properly sealed, and the short answer was “cost”. Of course.

Two surveyors still working on the track (photo by John)

We were now able to get onto the Rongomau Footbridge. It is an impressive black construction, with a sinuously curved ramp, designed to resemble an eel. It leads to the houses along the old SH1. The signpost pointed across the bridge to “Paraparaumu Shopping Centre”, but I wouldn’t go that way, biking along the old SH1, if I could go on the cycle track instead. However the bridge provided a great view on the Expressway.

The Rongomau Footbridge over the Expressway (photo by John)

View from the bridge looking south … (photo by John)

… and looking north (photo by John)

The track is nice and wide and in most places is a respectable distance away from the Expressway. There are lots of small areas of protected wetlands. We spotted a pukeko and a few ducks already taking possession. No doubt, in time, these areas will become home to more water-loving birds.

We were impressed with the plantings all along the road and cycle track. Plants must have been put in a year ago or more, as they seemed well established. In areas near housing, there were noise reduction walls, which were very attractive too.

One of the protected wetland areas, and a fenced-off culvert.
Note the surface of the track (photo by John)

Attractive, established planting (photo by John)

Noise reduction walls (photo by John)

Seating is provided every so often (photo by John)

I was in awe of all the planning that must have gone into the whole project – road, bridges, cycle track, plantings, wetlands ... No wonder it took three years to complete. It certainly is a beautiful result.

As we approached Paraparaumu, the Expressway went across one of the many new bridges. Here, the cycle track dips below the level of the road to its own bridge across the Wharemauku Stream. The track crosses another shared path, which leads from Coastlands shopping centre to Paraparaumu Beach, past the back of the airport.

The road bridge over the Wharemauku Stream, and the track between Coastlands and the beach

The road bridge on the far left and the foot/cycle bridge in the centre right

The Expressway bridges fly over several roads – Kapiti, Mazengarb, Otaihanga, and Te Moana Roads – while the cycle track crosses them at road level. Some of the crossings have buttons to activate cycle warnings to motorists. At the Te Moana Road traffic lights, there are even separate crossing lights, with appropriate symbols, for pedestrians, cyclists and horse riders.

Push buttons are provided to ensure cyclists’ safety

Between Raumati and Otaihanga, the cycle track runs on the left of the Expressway heading north. At Otaihanga Road, the track goes under the Expressway, and continues on the right hand side.

The bridge over the Waikanae River must be the longest, and here the bike track runs right next to the Expressway. On quite a few occasions, we’ve watched progress during the building phases of this bridge from below, on the Waikanae River track. It was interesting to see it from the top this time.

The Waikanae River bridge (photo by John)

Looking down on the Waikanae River track. There is access to the tracks
on both sides of the river from each end of the bridge

On the bridge, we met a young woman taking photographs. We exchanged hellos, and she said that a bit further along, we would meet the Prime Minister and the local MP. They were cycling a stretch of the track as a “photo opportunity”. I asked who she worked for, thinking she was a newspaper or TV reporter, but she said she worked for the PM – “I’m the PM’s photographer”.

Sure enough, before long, we saw them coming towards us, looking – as one news report described them – “like a pair of Mormons spreading the good word” in their white shirts and ties. 

Bill English, Prime Minister, and Nathan Guy, MP for Otaki

Mr English saw me taking a photo and stopped to talk. He was interested in my e-bike, and asked how far we were going on the track, and how often we biked. He was very patient while I fiddled with my phone to take another photo of him.

Me and the PM – and presumably a bodyguard? (photo by John)

He stopped to chat – only in NZ ... (he probably just wants my vote!)

Just here the cycle track diverts from the Expressway and goes through a short stretch of Waikanae suburban street. I found out later that this circumvents an area of historic Māori land, a wāhi tapu, belonging to the whānau of the author Patricia Grace. She refused to give up her ancestral land for the Expressway, and in 2014, she won her case in the courts. 

Further along, there is a retaining wall, which is decorated with stylised Māori patterns.

The retaining wall below Patricia Grace’s land

Near the intersection with Te Moana Road, we met a cluster of media people, armed with TV cameras and microphones, waiting for Bill English to return. I watched the TV news that evening, and while he commented on lots of other matters, he did not say anything about the Expressway or the cycle track.

Between Te Moana Road and Peka Peka, the surface of the track became rougher. Hopefully this will be remedied as time goes on. Work on the track is still going on, as evidenced by a small digger we encountered along the way.

The track was a bit rough in places (photo by John)

Work on the track is still going on (photo by John)

We made our way to Peka Peka for lunch at Harrisons. The Expressway ends at Peka Peka and rejoins the old SH1. The cycle track stops here too. Although there is signage pointing to Otaki, there are apparently no plans at this stage to extend the cycle track to Otaki, even when the next section of Expressway is built – something which has the Kapiti cycling community up in arms.

Some stretches of the cycle track are also suitable for horse riders – with a strip of grass running alongside it.

The cycle track also functions as a bridle path in some places (photo by John)

Coming up to the Mazengarb Road intersection on our way back (photo by John)

We biked 34 km that day (17 km each way). After we got back to the car, we drove to Paraparaumu Beach for an icecream, but had to use the old SH1 from Raumati, as there is no on-ramp there. However, we enjoyed driving a short stretch of the new Expressway from Paraparaumu to McKay’s on the way home.

Note: Alastair Smith (of Folding Goldies fame) has also written an account (here) of the cycle track, which he refers to as Te Ara Kapiti.