Wandering Wickershams
New Zealand, south island
January 22 - January 31, 2007
last updated: february 4, 2007
But first a word from our sponsors
1/23 Riding out of Nelson, we stop at WOW (World of Wearable-art) a museum of antique cars in fabulous settings: huge printed back drops, metal “fans”, or accompanied by music or film clips that place the car in a time and place. But the amazing part is the wearable art! Every year since 1986, a competition of designers/artists craft exotic costumes that are presented at a choreographed show to best display the variety of entries. The museum displays a selection on a moving runway lit to dazzle. There are a few selections that are displayed in traditional museum manner and a selection that are displayed under black light. There was a video of highlights from previous shows. These outfits are indescribable! Made of feathers, metal, paper, shirt stays, golf tees, some flow, some freeze wind with stiffeners, some move, many include masks or floating parts. I cannot begin to describe the wonder of these outfits – Julie Taymor was an amateur with her Lion King costumes.
Our ride today was beautiful as we climbed a pass, then on the other side we experienced difficulties with the gearing, making it impossible to coast. We had to apply brakes and maintain constant pressure on the derailleur to prevent the chain from leaping into the wheel or catch on Judee’s pedal. We think we’ve repaired the problem. Hope so – horrible to work up a hill and not be able to have the joy of the down!
1/24 Last night’s fix did not work. We got 15k out and up a long steep climb to the top of Hope Saddle and the chain started to throw as the rear wheel spun. Thumbed a ride back to town and a good bike shop. Opps, bent rear axel. Looks like we will be holed up again for the next few days until we can get a new axle or have one made. This start and stop stuff is getting OLD!
Our hitch was a retired Kiwi trucker. He talked and talked about roads, conditions, old poor roads, new straight and wide roads. Art and I both nodding and understanding one out of every third word – his accents was so strong!
The Village bike shop in Richmond tried to help us. We had our bent axle straightened by a machinist down the road that the shop sent us to. The mechanic sort of serviced the hub (not quite as clean as we would have liked), trued the wheel, added new brakes and we tried to test ride it in the relative flat of Richmond. Seems ok.
1/27 Today, after a night of pouring rain, packed up wet gear and took off. After a few miles we thumbed a ride to get back to the saddle we had already climbed three days ago. Art stated he wanted a ride with a Mercedes. Jeff and his son Adam, pulling a trailer with a 1962 cherry Mercedes offered to take us on board and tried to get us to take a ride to Murchison, but we wanted to ride down the other side of the saddle. Jeff and Adam were taking their prize purchase (the Mercedes) back to Christchurch as a father and son project to bring the beauty back to primo working and who condition. Their excitement was infectious.
Dropped at the top, we began the long downhill. At first the bike seemed to work, but in 10km from the top, it was evident the problem was not fixed. We have to brake and peddle to keep tension on the cassette like a track or fixed gear bike because the cassette spins instead of remaining stationary when coasting, pulling chain from the derailleur, creating huge waves of extra chain above the chain stay that flops into the wheel, hanging 4” or more below the chain stay. I am terrified as it erratically bounces that it will get caught in the spokes – stopping us immediately and without warning! We are so disappointed, but for now, we will just peddle, peddle, peddle up hill and down to Queenstown. We are fed up with these constant problems. Maybe we should have bought a Santana! Our old bike lasted 10 years without half these problems, but of course, with half the touring weight, as well.
Despite the problems we are enjoying green hills/mountains, clear, fast running streams and lovable Kiwi’s. Like the couple in the beautiful big motor home who stopped us to see if the could carry our gear. There is much rain and many sand flies, also, not a plus.
1/29 Sun…rain…sun and lots more rain up through the Buller River Gorge. Stop to walk across the longest swing bridge in NZ, then on the Westport on the west coast. Huge limestone cliffs rise out of the river and hang over the road which at times narrows down into one lane into tight curves with the roaring Buller down below. This makes for very exciting riding in the cold rain.
About 15km outside of town we are side swiped by a car. The cars left rear mirror hit Judee’s hand, broke our rear view mirror. We were very short inches from being blown off the road! The car skidded to a stop, lady got out; “are you ok?” NO. “I was only doing 75k!” she said more than once. We were not nice in our response to her lack of caring and told her just to leave and handed her the broken mirror off her car.
Rode the final km’s into town in the pouring rain checked out motel rooms and took one for the hefty price of $90. Took Bici and all our soaked gear into our room. What a wet mess we were. Hot showers. Warm beer. Some TV. Had a Pizza delivered. More TV and light out.
This morning the sun greeted us through the clouds, temps in the low 50’s. The coast road is twisty, turny and up and down. Not very pretty in the first part: scrub brush with few if any houses or farms as we work our way down to the actual coastal area. Rain starts again at 15km so we stop and suit up both ourselves and Bici. So many long climbs. Finally we zoom down next to the pounding waves: big rollers crashing against the limestone boulders, some capped with a small forest of trees and ferns. Foggy, misty, many tones of grey to black. Back up the mountain towering over the Tasman Sea. At the roadside: walls of ferns and small water falls. We roll into Punakaiki village: home of the famous Pancake Rocks. The tavern looked warm and cozy with a covered porch for Bici. Beer, soup and meat pies next to the fireplace and then a backpacker’s hostel double room for $58 with laundry facilities for the wet, wet clothes from the past two days. The afternoon was spent reading, writing and discussing things with a young couple: she, Swiss: he, Argentinean.
Back at the tavern for dinner, we met the Swiss couple, Sabine and Reto we have been leap frogging for the past several days. We first saw them a the top of Hope Saddle and have been passing each, sharing lunches, laughter, a few encouraging words to each other along this rainy route. We learned that we were both in the Palm Court Motel last night where we all sought refuge from the rain. All of us had planned on riding to Greymouth today and it was a surprise to see each other tonight at dinner – all of us again seeking shelter at a welcoming stop after 1000 m of climbing according to Reto’s altimeter.
1/30 Glorious sunny day! What a change. We stopped at the Pancake Rocks to watch the sea drive into the blow holes shoot sea spume high into the air. The geologic formations were unique and according to our didactics: unexplainable. The coast road rose and dipped with vies of the sea and cliffs festooned with greenery were vertical to the road. We rolled into Greymouth seeking a bike shop in hopes of curing our hub problem, but alas, neither shop wanted to work on it. Both saw the tandem and feigned not enough knowledge to fix it. We met Reto and Sabine at the tourist office and invited them to join us at our camp for dinner. Art then asked me if the kitchen had plates and utensil. Ahg – we had to borrow those from nice couple in a trailer.
1-31 Awoke to mist and rain. Packed wet, as usual and rode to Hokitika. Unmemorable scenery and flat. The bike shop here was unable to help. The axle is again bent. So, we will just ride and brake downhill on our fixed
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