Monday January 20, 2014

This morning was very foggy and 4.5 degrees.  A very chilly and damp morning, but I could see that the sun would burn the fog off and we would be in for a good day of sunshine.  This is summer in New Zealand in an area that records the highest and coldest temperatures throughout the year.

We had decided last night to make the side trip to Ophir to check out this small historic village.  Like so many towns and villages in New Zealand in the 1800’s the villages relied on the rail way being built and going through their Town or Village.  If the railway didn’t go through the village, then more often than not the village died.  Not this one, it is still going strong with a post office, small village school, church, a tavern and a café and a small butcher shop.

We asked the camp site manager for directions as we knew there were two entrances to the village and we needed to return to the rail trail.  He directed us about 2 ks outside of the village so that we could see the historic bridge, which we didn’t know about.

The bridge was well worth the extra two kms.  This route would then bring us back in a circle to Omakau and the rail trail.

We started the rail trail with more cyclists than we have seen on this trip in one single day.  There was a family of 6, (Mom, Dad 2 kids and grand parents).  There was another family of 4 mom, dad and 2 teenage daughters.   The first part of the trail was crushed gravel, similar to yesterday, and had some great bridges and interesting features to look at.

By the time we got to our lunchtime stop, which had an historic general store, it was getting a little boring, – straight, flat so we decided to come off the trail and take the road.  The road was a little hillier but at least we got the reward of the down-hills as well.

My first accident of the trip – Usually when I come up to a cattle grid I clip out and scoot across, well I negotiated a cattle grid successfully without un-clipping and thought this is easy, so when I came across another grid I thought no problem, well I miscalculated and my front right pannier rubbed against the side of the gate and down I went or actually not down more stuck in the cattle grid/gate.  What an idiot, I managed to un-clip and get out from the cattle gate and wiped my bloody leg and scraped arm.  No major harm done but hurt pride.

We got to Ranfurly and found another nice little camp site, with a fully equipped kitchen, very clean place and not too far from the downtown.  After dinner we went for a little wander around the town and stopped in the local hotel for a glass of wine.

Ranfurly is the second Town in New Zealand with an Art Deco history.

This is the guy we can blame for the zig-zag roads, we have been following.  Roads as crooked as a dogs hind-leg.  He was the fella that surveyed these lands in the 1800\’s.

We met a lovely Danish couple with 2 little girls.  They had cycled New Zealand pre-children and looked on a little wistfully as we discussed our route and talked about the Grand Adventure.  Lise said it is different travelling with children, you have to get used to stopping and visiting every playground in New Zealand.