Kiwis/New Zelanders

[Lise]

Dear gals from the land far, far away from me...

I was just reading a post from Road Raven. In her little profile, it says she's from Middle Earth, which got me to thinking about LOTR. Seeing those movies on the big screen, especially the first one, I felt an incredible surge of love for our planet. In the first movie, the first panoramic shot of New Zeland...my heart leapt and swelled and sang (the hills are alive...! Wait, no, that's The Sound of Music. Anyways...)

So my question is...can it truly be that beautiful? Sigh. Makes me glad to be alive. What a wonderful use of the land in that movie. It made me want to take up a sword and fight Sauron and Saruman, too.

What's the best part of biking in NZ? The worst?

Just enjoying the thought...from here in the land of cornfields and cement...and the beautiful Lake Michigan, but still...

Lise

[Trekhawk]

Dear gals from the land far, far away from me...

I was just reading a post from Road Raven. In her little profile, it says she's from Middle Earth, which got me to thinking about LOTR. Seeing those movies on the big screen, especially the first one, I felt an incredible surge of love for our planet. In the first movie, the first panoramic shot of New Zeland...my heart leapt and swelled and sang (the hills are alive...! Wait, no, that's The Sound of Music. Anyways...)

So my question is...can it truly be that beautiful? Sigh. Makes me glad to be alive. What a wonderful use of the land in that movie. It made me want to take up a sword and fight Sauron and Saruman, too.

What's the best part of biking in NZ? The worst?

Just enjoying the thought...from here in the land of cornfields and cement...and the beautiful Lake Michigan, but still...

Lise

Hey Lise - Im not from NZ - Aussie here but I have been there on holidays and yes it really is that beautiful and between you and me so those Kiwis dont get big heads so are the people.

[Lise]

Just realized I misspelled "New Zealand" (good grief, now that doesn't even look right). I'm counting on the lovely personalities of the natives to forgive me, and I'll just call you Kiwis from now on, OK? L.

[crazycanuck]

We can forgive you for misspelling NZ...

I'm not a LOTR fan and refused to spend $50 to see the little village at the beginning of the film on our way down to Rotorua...

You've made me homesick..Now i want to go to Ohope beach or Piha...

Best part of NZ is the biking ....The mtns,hills and green, something Western Australia is missing...

Biking on the North Island is awesome...We'd normally visit my dear's parents in Rotorua just to go mtn biking...They're holding the worlds there next year...

The 42nd traverse...it's 44k's through mud, clay, very very steep hills, and beautiful scenery...

The south island..I'll leave that up to the mainlanders to tell you about...

Best part of living in Western Australia...having a kangaroo pass me (on the track the perth mtb do thier 12hr event...) and the bike paths...

c

[heliotropenz]

Well, I like it. But then someone was showing pics of the Potomac Valley and I liked the look of that too. And of course, Crazycanuck raised the perennial problem......which is best, Nth Island vs South Island. Weren't they inspired when they named them ?

Anyway, I'm from the South Island (known as the Mainland). Most of my riding, at the moment, is on my daily commute from one side of Christchurch to the other and I have to say that traffic is traffic and drivers here aren't any more courteous than I've seen them described elsewhere.

At Christmas, however, my sister and I are going to do the inaugural "Big O". It's a ride starting from Oamaru to Ophir via the Danseys Pass, Naseby, Oturehua (where we join the Central Otago Rail Trail to Omakau and over the Danial O'Connell suspension bridge to Ophir where we will spend a week at our place there. The return journey will be via the Pig Root to Dunback then over the Humtucker (we usually only walk that from the top down so it will be novel to go upwards) to Otepopo and then back home to Oamaru. It's the part of the country I was born and raised in and it's sort of off the beaten track but it isn't a very "green" ride in that it is mostly thru tussock country so it's more golden but there is something very beautiful about the hills covered with tussocks.

Anyway, I'm sure google will bring up info on most of those places if you want to look at pics .

Anybody want to join us?

Oh, we mostly call ourselves kiwis but we call kiwifruit kiwifruit.

[crazycanuck]

Hey helio..nice to meet you. Are you a ground effect chick??

What's the rail trail like?? Also Any news on when mtn bikers will be allowed on the heaphy??? Ian (My OH) walked/tramped it years ago but would like to bike it.

We never did get to bike on the sth island...would love to..Not this christmas though, we've got ozzie to discover....

c

[RoadRaven]

I am in a rush... have to wake kids for school and get dressed for work but had to say... yes it is, yes it is... I shall be back to RAV-ON about my lovely home... thanks Lise for a legit way for me to ramble...


Raven

[kiwi girl]

The August edition of the Ground Effect newsletter (link attached) had an update on Heaphy access - it looks like there is still a bit of work to do

http://www.groundeffect.co.nz/underground/underground-2.htm

[kiwi girl]

Oh yeah you asked about the rail trail as well

Here is the web link to info about it

http://www.centralotagorailtrail.co.nz/

My BF and I have done it twice and had a great time both times. The first time we just did the trail itself (from Middlemarch to Clyde) the second time we went the other direction and detoured off to go to Naseby (which has some great mountain biking but the forest was closed due to fire risk when we were there in the height of a very dry summer) and St Bathans. We took three days over it the first time and four days the second time.

Its nice, entirely traffic free riding. The surface is dirt and gravel. We used mountain bikes. I've seen people do it on touring bikes but I think that would be tough. The scenery is really very spectacular in places. If you avoid the summer school holidays it is very uncrowded (both times we have done it in late January we have seen less than ten (and maybe as few as five) other groups of riders. Accomodation is adequate but not spectacular (in some places there is only camping and very basic pub or backpacker style accomodation).

[RoadRaven]

K... back... is it really that beautiful, Lise?
Yes, it is...

I grew up in Northland (on a map look at the top of NZ, above Auckland, and find the Bay of Islands) - sub-tropical bush, ocean and clear water, and native bush full of noisy pretty sounding birds, clear beaches, safe swimming... dolphins including the little tiny Hectors dophin if you dive (which I used to) and just as many pretty fish as anywhere else with clear warm water. I miss the Pohutakawa trees at this time of year... NZ's own "Christmas" tree... It flowers the most beautiful crimson over summer... stunning

I have lived in Hawkes Bay for most of my life and have holidayed at Mt Doom (Lake Taupo) frequently.

HB is fabulous for cycling because there are plently of good hills if thats what you want (there are mountains running right down the back bone of NZ). However, where I live are the Heretaunga Plains (you'll locate them by finding Hastings and Napier) which are just that --- flat...

Much of the country is very close to rural and semi-rural land... Hawkes Bay is known as the "fruitbowl" of NZ as it has so many orchards, although it is pretty populated by vinyards and winaries too... also hepas of farmland still (like what I live on) so most cycling is in beautiful scenery, the weather is fairly consistently mild.

I have only really been cylcing here, but my partner and I plan to do some cycling tours when the youngest children are a little older.

Is it beautiful...?... yes... and so much of it seems untouched and natural still - European/English settlement here happened only some 200 years ago... everything is new...

I've been to Sydney, Australia... I've been to California, USA...
I want to go to Canada, to Scotland, to France and to some of the African countires...

But I doubt I would want to live anywhere else...


For some nice pics of this land...

http://www.mosaictravel.co.nz/photo_gallery.htm

http://www.bigfoto.com/pacific/new-zealand/


Links to pages about where I live and work...

http://www.hb.co.nz/

http://www.hawkesbaynz.com/

[RoadRaven]

Whoops...

Vital question glossed over in my travel promo!

Whats the best part about cycling here?

The air is clean... cycling in summer eveings is stunning... you can see forever...

The smells... plants, animals, rain on the earth and freshly cut grass... very few "people" smells.

In Hawkes Bay we have a well-known cycling club and quite big... and many drivers here are quite considerate (though there are still inconsiderate dorks here). For me the club here, Ramblers, is awesome... they have taken in my children and welcomed them and looked after them. They organise events well (such as the Tour of the Bay which was on in October).

Because we are surrounded by oceans, and have mountains down the middle, you can find just about any terrain and scenery you want... forest, bush, highways, country roads, hills, REALLY BIG hills, flats, ocean scenery and mountain vistas...


Excellent cycle events... from homey, family atmosphere fun rides, like the Tour de Beautiful this coming January in Central Hawkes Bay... to major internationally recognised/known events...

- like the Tour of Southland which finished a week ago, a tough week long tour, often with two stages in one day,

- or the K2 in the Corromandel which is probably the toughest one day race here or even in the Southern Hemisphere (200km cycled but it includes 7 hills... 2 over 380 metres, and 1 over 425 metres... a total of 2,300 vertical metres in the 200km of road raced),

- or the Wattle Lake Taupo Cycle challenge which is probably our most participated in cycle event for elite riders to kids with their grandparents (fellow kiwis corect me if I'm wrong) they topped 10,000 riders there in 2004 and expect more this year - its on next weekend.

I know very little about off-road stuff... but I desparartely want to ride through the Redwood Forest at Rotorua one day...

[DirtDiva]

I was just reading a post from Road Raven. In her little profile, it says she's from Middle Earth, which got me to thinking about LOTR. Seeing those movies on the big screen, especially the first one, I felt an incredible surge of love for our planet. In the first movie, the first panoramic shot of New Zeland [sic ]...my heart leapt and swelled and sang (the hills are alive...! Wait, no, that's The Sound of Music. Anyways...)

Lol. That shot of the mountains at the beginning of the second (I think) movie made me feel homesick when I was sitting in a movie theatre all of 15 minutes from my house! I think what NZ really has going for it is that is has a little of everything good all in a pretty small space.

[RoadRaven]

Looks at two own very long waffles... then at Kiwi's succint sentence...

I think what NZ really has going for it is that is has a little of everything good all in a pretty small space.

Um... what TLK said...

[Lise]

Thanks, RR, Cc & tlk! Such beauty, all in one place. Now I need to go back and watch LOTR (not a problem, I assure you) to see--but I think you're right, it is the 2nd movie in which they open with those incredible panoramas. Made me glad to be here on the planet. My sister bought, and I borrowed, the 7,083 disc DVD set (OK, maybe it was only 6 DVDs, but it went on and on and on...), and one fun feature was the discussion of how they picked locations. I am curious about how you'd bike around Mt. Doom. I'd think the tires would melt. I mean. It looked pretty hot in the movie. I'm just saying.

So tonight I was driving to meet friends for dinner, and as I passed downtown Chicago, all lit up, so beautiful, I thought..."yeah, but it's hardly New Zealand." Sigh. You've ruined me. Seriously, though, this happens whenever I go to the east or west coasts of the US. Such natural beauty. Then I come home, and it's hard to live in Chgo for awhile. I love it, it's my home. But still. It also occurred to me that you all have NZ accents (or, Cc, are actually Canadian?), and that I "hear" you in my head with American accents when I read your posts.

If I ever make it to NZ, I know I've got riding partners! Thanks for a little tour of your beautiful country. L.

[crazycanuck]

Hey lise,

Is the windy city really that windy??? I've never been but from what i've seen on ER, it looks nice.

Yes i'm 100% Canadian, have the acent & yes i miss snow...

If you want to see another movie filmed in NZ watch the piano. If you're brave & have a very open mind watch Once Were Warriors..or if you're not so brave...just read the book...OWW is one of the best films i've ever seen however because of the subject matter it didn't do all that well in Canada. I remember seeing in Edmonton when it first came out & very few people were willing to see it...If you do watch it, let me know what you think/thought.

c