I was up at the crack of dawn so headed down to breakfast early. Let me just say that this was the best breakfast I have ever had, at ANY Hilton-owned hotel. The experience was more like a 5-star hotel in a major city. I spent over an hour, grazing on many of the food items that were laid out for the guests, but I think I only got to about half of the choices! They catered to Asian and Western breakfast styles, all for NZ$15 which is US$8.50 – this is a bargain!
I delayed my ride start until 11am to take advantage of the warmer temperatures, as the day started out decidedly “cool”. There was no rain in the forecast, but I packed rain gear all the same – this is New Zealand after all! The weather can change quickly, especially because I was planning to ride the Summit Rd, as Graham had recommended yesterday. Here’s the route and elevation.
The route from the hotel to Sumner is flat, and mostly on cycle pathways segregated from the vehicles which is safe. That said, riding on the roads is definitely faster and relatively safe as the drivers are considerate – not sure that statement also covers the tourists, but I am hopeful 🙂
After Sumner there is a pretty hard climb that starts out at 9% and gradually increased to 13%. This initial part of the climb to the Summit Rd is the hardest. Once I turned onto Summit road the gradient was 5%-6% most of the time, with the occasional 10% for a short distance. The climb was definitely worth it for the views!
As the climb progresses, the wind becomes stronger, but some of the time you can be shielded by the mountain until you round the next corner then… there’s the wind in your face :-). The sound of hundreds of sheep bah’ing was carried by the wind and I could hear flocks that were on the next hillside! I didn’t hear much birdsong as sheep-song was the genre of audio accompanying this ride!
Once at the top of the climb, Summit Rd just undulates, going down then up again, but it’s fun as you can keep up a decent pace. The road was quiet, hardly any cars, no motorcycles, and just a handful of other cyclists. I will state that the couple of cyclists that overtook me on the hills were ALL riding eBikes :-). The road is twisty and the surface is moderate to good in most places.
I met a young couple, Mitch and Ginny who were traveling around New Zealand in their van full-time – no fixed abode. They had been on the road for about a year, working when they needed to and then moving on. It sure beats a 9-5 job!
I eventually found a good place to stop and eat lunch, out of the wind. I was just unpacking the food when another cyclist came up the hill from the opposite direction I was traveling. He stopped to chat for a few minutes, another welcoming New Zealander! I tell you they are everywhere, this is such a nice country. Callum mentioned that he is another Brit from the UK but now lives in the Christchurch area. We exchanged emails and he went on his way.
So while I was enjoying lunch another 2 cyclists dropped by for a chat! The first guy was on a rugged looking eBike made by FatBoy – the Harlem model https://www.fatboybikes.com.au/. Apparently this brand is well-known in Australia. The second guy, Peter also lived in the area and was on another eBike. He retold a story about the area we were in, saying that about 100 years ago 2 boys had died while walking over the mountain to get to the good fishing spot on the other side. Apparently they must have died of the cold and a metal monument was erected on the hillside where they were discovered.
I finished up lunch and continued my ride which for the most part was either flat or down some serious descents! Payback for the brutal climb to get up to Summit Rd. I was having fun and picking up speed and had just flown around a left-hander when what did I see? A road full of sheep coming toward me!! BRAKE!!! I stopped in time then I heard one of the herders in a truck say – “Carry on through them”. So I did. The sheep were cute, grazing on the free grass at the side of the road but when they saw me and the bike they quickly parted to make a way for me to push through the flock. There were hundreds of sheep, maybe a thousand, it was hard to tell as you know what happens when you count sheep? that’s why I can only estimate the number :-). I have a great GoPro video of this that I will make available if you email me.
From up high, there was also a great view of the inlet from the Pacific Ocean. Initially I thought it was a lake as I could not see the exit to the ocean.
The remainder of the ride following the decent to sea level was uneventful. Just riding through neighborhoods to stay off of the main roads, plus I added a trip to the Hub Cycles bike shop (https://hubcycles.co.nz) as I had forgotten to pack my tire levers! This time I was served by an ex-pro level cyclist who’s career had come to an abrupt and unfortunate end due to a really bad crash. He was thankful to be alive.
In conclusion, the first day of riding was filled with good encounters, some solid climbs, sheep! and great weather. All in all, a very good day out I would say!
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2 responses
Very cool reading about your experience
Thanks Craig, I will send you a link to the raw, unedited videos too so you can see the GoPro footage from the bike.