Saturday January 4, 2013
Today should have been an easy run into Kaikoura. However, the cold that I have been fighting off since Christmas Day finally caught up with me. It was an horrendous day of cycling for me. We didn’t have a tail-wind nor much of a head wind but I struggled almost the whole of the 77.78 kms. My legs felt really strong, I was just having a problem breathing and that equates to a problem when trying to cycle!!!
It was a beautiful winding and slightly undulating road, enough bumps (hills) in the road so that you didn’t get bored. The Pacific Ocean was on one-side of us and mountains along the other, it was beautiful. The temperature was perfect for cycling, although at one point we did stop to put on our windbreakers, the wind was a little chilly off the ocean. Actually when we stopped to put on our windbreakers a lady came out of her camper van and offered us a cup of tea. We gratefully accepted and chatted with her for almost an hour. The kindness of New Zealander’s should be marketed and sent around the world – it would be a much better place.
Unfortunately due to my cold, I didn’t enjoy the ride. The cars and trucks seemed to come too close, the shoulder at times seemed non-existent, I was just stressed.
Ralf however, said it was a beautiful stretch of road.
The Ohau Point seal colony along this coast is huge, we took photos, but I think it will be a hide and seek venture as you could hardly spot the grey seals against the rocks. There is an area along this stretch that has a stream that comes from a waterfall, when the seal pups are a few months old they go up the stream and play in the waterfall. The lady in the camper said we were probably a couple of weeks too late to see the seals playing in the waterfall.
Although the ride seemed long to me we were cycling for 4.5 hours an average of 17 kph however, we were on the road for 6.25 hours, the hour long stop with the lady camper made up for some of that time.
When we arrived in Kaikoura we cycled to the iSite and then back to the Top 10 Holiday Camp, it was 2:45 and almost full. They had room for one more tent……. then another, then another. When the reserved numbered sites were full they added tents to almost every spare piece of grass they had. It is a very full site tonight. Beautiful sunset.
We took a rest day here, a paddle in the Pacific Ocean and chatted to neighbours. Some campers bring everything, even a queen size bed, fridge and ‘chest of drawers’.
We were going to go whale watching but we couldn’t do it today and we need to get going tomorrow, now I am feeling better.
The water is cold, but look at the cyclists tan!
