Tawa to Hongoeka Bay

Last Sunday, we set out with a plan to bike from Tawa to Mana, have lunch and bike back. We ended up going quite a bit further, covering a total of 41.5 km.

We started out from Tawa’s Takapu Road Station carpark, riding on Te Ara Tawa, the very nice walking and cycling path that runs along the railway line, through quiet suburban streets, and then along the Porirua Stream as far as Kenepuru station.

On a Sunday, there was plenty of parking at the Takapu Road station carpark (photo by John)

The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo

This was nothing to do with biking, but it was quite an event, so I will write about it anyway.

This past weekend Wellington has been host to the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. It is the second time this grand show has been brought to Wellington. When it was here in 2000, I attended and loved it. This time however, I hummed and ha’ed about going. I wanted to, but John wasn’t interested in going, and anyway, it was very expensive, so I reluctantly decided not to go. Then when reports about it started showing up in the media, I so regretted my decision.

It was very lucky then, that a Scottish country dancing friend rang me on Saturday morning, and asked if I was interested in going to that evening’s show. A relative of hers was not able to go, so the ticket was going cheap. I was thrilled.

Ciclovía, Ataturk Memorial Park, and the Wellington Waterfront

Sunday 14 February was a perfect day for the now yearly event of Ciclovía. For a whole day, from 9 am to 9 pm, the road between Shelly Bay and Scorching Bay was closed to motorised traffic, so that the people of Wellington could walk, cycle, scooter, skate, skateboard, push wheelchairs and pushchairs, ride cargo bikes, tandems and even unicycles, along the 4.2 km distance without the danger from cars.

Again, the day was a huge success, as apparently more than 3000 people, including lots of families with children, took the opportunity to do so.

For us the day was much more than Ciclovía. We left home at 11 am, and got home at 8 pm, having biked 49 km, though obviously we weren't biking all of that time. We parked at Greta Point, and on our e-bikes, we pedalled along Evans Bay and Cobham Drive to Shelly Bay Road.

Shelly Bay Road (photo by John)

Te Ara o Whareroa – again!

When we went on our last ride – the Folding Goldies ride to Te Ara o Whareroa – my sister was going to come along. However, in the end she wasn’t able to make it, so when her birthday came round soon after, we suggested that we could make a special birthday trip one day, and shout her lunch.

This time Aimée was to use John’s e-bike, while he rode the non-electrified Giant. Again we took the train to Waikanae from Takapu Road Station.

On the train to Waikanae (photo by John)

Folding Goldies Ride – Te Ara o Whareroa

Last Wednesday was probably Wellington’s hottest day so far this summer. According to the official records the temperature reached 28 degrees, but in the suburbs, I am sure it went higher. John’s own weather station indicated 29.2 degrees in the afternoon, and lots of people were suffering from the heat and lack of wind. Funny, isn’t it, people in Wellington seem to be always complaining about the wind, but when it’s not there, we miss it!

Fortunately, we were biking in Kapiti that day, and there was a nice sea breeze, which kept us from overheating. We went on the first Folding Goldies ride for 2016, biking from Waikanae to Paekakariki, and riding the newly opened Te Ara o Whareroa – a wonderful track through Queen Elizabeth II Park.

e-Bike Group Ride

Yesterday we went on a e-bike group ride, organised by Switched On Bikes. This is a company set up in 2015 by Ryan O’Connell, who is very keen to promote electric bikes as a great means of getting around Wellington. He has a fleet of e-bikes for hire, and also sells e-bikes, and he runs e-bike tours of Wellington. This ride was one of the free Wellington Region Summer Cycling Events. 

John had met Ryan before, but I hadn't. When we got there, Ryan greeted us with “Hi, I’ve read your blog”. Yessss!

There was quite a good turn out. Twenty people took part, including Ryan and his team of three. We met at the Switched On Bikes premises on Queen’s Wharf (near the Westpac helicopter). Some had their own e-bikes and some used hire bikes. One person hadn’t ridden any kind of bike for a long time. Those who hired bikes had the opportunity to cruise around the wharf for a bit to get the feel of the e-bikes.

Waiting for more people to turn up (photo by John)

Waikanae to Paekakariki and Pukerua to Tawa

Last Sunday, 17 January, we took the train to Waikanae with the e-bikes. As we started to wheel the bikes onto the train, the guard called out that we couldn’t get on as there were already three bikes in the allocated space. And there was only one carriage – because it was a Sunday, I suppose. However, we told the guard we could fold the bikes down. “Ah, that’s OK then”, he said. But he told us to get on board and then fold them, “or else we’ll be here all day”.

One of the folded bikes and a satisfied guard (photo by John)

Upper Hutt to Petone

On Monday 11 January, we had arranged with our friend Pat to take the train to Upper Hutt, and bike back to Petone from there. As we had dinner with my sister Aimée the night before, I suggested she might like to come along also. She hummed and ha’ed a bit, but then decided that, yes, she would come along.

As Aimée does not have her own bike, she would be using one of our Giants. John would be riding the other Giant, and I would ride my e-bike. She came to fetch the bike from us, and we all met up at Petone, to take the train to Upper Hutt.

The trains allow only three bikes per carriage. The front carriage already had one bike in it, so we rushed to the second carriage. But as there were four of us, the guard warned us we could only have three bikes. “No problem”, we said, and John folded up the two Giants. The guard was satisfied.

Paekakariki to Waikanae

We are having quite a nice summer – plenty of sunshine and, despite predictions of horrendous winds thanks to an El Niño pattern, we have had many days with just gentle breezes. Having said that however, as I am writing this, we are indeed being subjected to fierce winds, and I worry for the pohutukawa trees in our garden, which are just coming into flower now (two weeks later than normal). The wind might shred the flowers before they’ve even come out properly. Darn!

Wednesday last week (6 January) it was a gorgeous warm day, and we decided to go and check out the newly built Te Ara o Whareroa cycle trail through Queen Elizabeth II Park. The trail is due to be officially opened on Saturday 23 January, but it was completed several weeks ago.

Summer evening ride in the city

Tuesday 5 January was such a lovely day, that we had early dinner, and went into town with the bikes to have another look at the pohutukawa in Parliament Grounds. When we came here on Christmas Day, it had not yet started flowering. Unfortunately, because we’d had warm weather between Christmas and New Year, and then two days of heavy rain, the pohutukawa was already past its best. We should have gone on New Year’s Day to see it in its full glory. I was disappointed, but it still looked pretty good.

Richard John Seddon, NZ Premier 1893-1906, seems to approve of the massive pohutukawa,
even if I was disappointed at having missed seeing it at its best (photo by John)

Christmas Day City Ride

Christmas Day 2015 was a beautiful day – sparkling sunshine, warm and no wind. As our daughter and her family would not be joining us until a few days after Christmas, we were free to make the most of this one day of the year, on which the city would be completely empty – ideal for biking in places where we would not normally go.

So after pleasant lunchtime drinks and nibbles at my sister’s, we headed into town with our e-bikes in the back of the car.

We parked in Hobson Street, in Thorndon, and biked towards Parliament grounds. One of the aims was to see the large pohutukawa in the grounds, which I was hoping would be in full flower. It is a huge tree, and when it is in full flower, it is a magnificent sight. It has a personal significance for me, as it somehow reminds me of my mother, who died just before Christmas ten years ago. Unfortunately, the pohutukawas seem to be flowering later than usual this year, and this special tree hadn’t even started yet. We would have to try again in a week or so.

To our surprise, we found the Parliament buildings covered in scaffolding and sheathed in shrink wrap plastic and blue netting. Presumably maintenance will be carried out during the summer break.

Parliament buildings are closed for the summer break, but there must be activity in the Beehive,
as the flag is flying on top of it 

Wellington South Coast

This blog post is out of sequence. I've got so many to catch up on, I had forgotten about this one.

On Monday 14 December, the day before we went on our ride with Pat (described below), John and I went for a ride on Wellington's South Coast. They say “you can't beat Wellington on a good day”. This was such a day.

We parked near Lyall Bay and rode along the foreshore. The sea was flat and a gorgeous colour.

Tapu te Ranga Island, off Island Bay (photo by John)

Hutt River Trail, with new convert, Pat

One of the most satisfying aspects of my blog is that it sometimes enthuses other people to take up cycling. Our friend Pat is one of my most loyal readers, and while we were in the South Island, she let people know on Facebook, that she had “surprised herself”, by buying a folding bike – a Giant Expressway (the new improved version of our original folders).

Incidentally, Pat is well used to biking, but had sold her bike many years ago, thinking she would no longer need it. She is also a very fit walker, who has hiked in Nepal, and who thinks nothing of climbing up Mt Kaukau of a morning – something that I stand in awe of, and would absolutely balk at. (PS: Pat says that climbing up Mt Kaukau is still quite a slog.)

Of course, we were delighted at her purchase, and on Tuesday 15 December, we met up at the Petone roundabout carpark, to go cycling on the Hutt River Trail.

Pat and Désirée near the Hikoikoi Reserve (photo by John)

Folding Goldies ride – Moonshine

On Wednesday 9 December, only two days after we had got back from our Lupin Trip, we took part in the last Folding Goldies ride for 2015. 

The plan was to take the train to Mana, then bike to Pauatahanui around the Inlet, and up to Judgeford, branch off onto Moonshine Road, over the hill to Silverstream, and take the train back to town.

During a chat with our neighbour Sue some weeks earlier, we got talking about biking (of course!) and we told her about our e-bikes and the FG rides. She was very interested, so we suggested she come along. She hired an e-bike for the day, from Switched On Bikes, to see how she would like that. 

So on Wednesday morning, she knocked on our door, all keen, just before we were about to set off. We agreed to meet at Takapu Road Station.

With Sue, at Takapu Road Station (photo by John)

South Island Lupin Trip – Part 4

We’re already into the New Year as I write this up, so I am have some serious catching up to do.

Back in November, during a ride to Waikanae, we got very excited about the yellow lupins that were in full bloom. That triggered the decision to take a biking trip to the Mackenzie Country and beyond, to see the multicoloured lupins that the area is famous for.

It was a great trip, during which we took a LOT of photos, and so I have had to write this trip up in four parts. This is where you’ll find Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

Day 8 – Wanaka

Thursday 3 December. Today we were driving to our next destination, Wanaka. As we left Twizel, it started spitting (raining) off and on, until we got to Omarama, where we stopped for coffee at the Wrinkly Rams Café. We couldn't believe the number of camper vans in the car park, yet there weren’t that many people in the café. Perhaps they were all attending the “Sheep Show” which this place puts on.

There were some magnificent peonies lining the wall around the Wrinkly Rams Café (photo by John)

South Island Lupin Trip – Part 3

In late November we travelled to the South Island, in search of the flowering lupins. We were delighted to find that we had come at exactly the right time, for the lupins were magnificent and they were everywhere!

We were away for 12 days, and took more than a thousand photos between us, so I have had to write up this trip in several parts (No, you won't have to plough through all thousand!). This is where you can find Part 1 and Part 2.

Day 6 – Pukaki Canal and Glen Lyon Road

Tuesday 1 December. On our Pure Trails tour last summer we biked along the Pukaki Canal on our way to the Ohau Lodge. Today, our plan was to bike down the Glen Lyon Road (along the Pukaki Canal), and then continue on this road, up the right hand side of Lake Ohau, along the base of Ben Ohau, the big hill/mountain that dominates the lake. To return, we would go back to Twizel on the road on the other side of the canal.

We biked out of town along the Glen Lyon Road (photo by John)

South Island Lupin Trip – Part 2

Prompted by the sight of profusely flowering lupins, when we cycled in Waikanae the previous week, we made a snap decision to travel to the South Island to see the Mackenzie Country lupins in flower – a long-held wish of mine.

We were away for 12 days, from 25 November to 7 December, and took over a thousand photos between us, so I have to write up my blog in several parts. Part 1 can be found here. 

Day 4 – Lake Pukaki and Mount Cook

Sunday 29 November. We woke to a beautiful day, calm, with just a light but cool breeze. We took one last photo of the view over Lake Tekapo from outside our accommodation. What a view!

A last look at Lake Tekapo (photo by John)

South Island Lupin Trip – Part 1

In my last blog, I mentioned that we had made a snap decision to go to the South Island to see the flowering lupins in the Mackenzie Country. Well, we went at exactly the right time, for we saw thousands upon thousands of lupins in the most glorious colours! What a feast for the eyes.

Thousands of lupins – these were beside the Lindis Pass road (photo by John)

Of course we took the bikes, and we had another brilliant cycling holiday. Hooray for being retired, and being able to just drop everything and take off like this. We count ourselves very lucky…

Waikanae

Thursday 19 November felt like summer had arrived – well, nearly. It was a gorgeous day, but still a little cool. We drove to Waikanae, where we parked – as usual – in the Otaihanga Domain.

We biked around the Waimanu Lagoon, where a class of children was being taught to sail little yachts (sorry, I don’t know the correct name for this size of craft). Conditions were perfect, with just a little breeze.

Half a dozen children at a time are learning to sail (photo by John)

Porirua to Pukerua

Last Monday, 16 November, we went for a ride from Porirua to Pukerua and around about. We parked in Parumoana Street, and got onto the walking/cycle path that would take us across the motorway and towards Aotea. But first the track went underneath the motorway on-ramp, and there we struck a hitch. The tide was in, and the Porirua Stream was running high enough to cover the lowest part of the path. We weren’t sure how deep the water was, so we made a u-turn, and backtracked a bit so that we could cross the road above. When we returned later in the afternoon, the water had receded, but there was a drowned rabbit where the water had been. Good thing we didn’t try to ford the water earlier.

The Porirua Stream is tidal, and the tide was in (photo by John)