Hi everybody,

This is just a quick overview of our cycle tour for you to peruse over if you wish, hope you enjoy, we had a great time:)

The cycle tour was a great success, we left Christchurch unfit and nervous for the two months ahead, and what we would be capable of achieving, but 6 weeks and 1962.8kms later we are back home, feeling fit and great and a few pounds lighter.....yay!
We saw some of the most amazing things, Keas in the peaks of Arthurs Pass National Park, torrential rains in Golden Bay and Nelson of course. We cycled for two hours and over 11kms climbing 810metres over Takaka Hill, and ate a whole packet of jelly sweets in the process...
We also got to see some of the most beautiful scenery, noteably, Lake Rotoiti in Nelson Lakes National Park, although the sandflies left something to be desired! The cycle through Waimakariri Valley into Arthurs Pass National Park, with the river and beautiful purple and pink Lupins. We saw the sunset on Wharariki Beach on the northern (ish) most point of the South Island, and that was stunning. We spent a wonderful Christmas with great friends in the beautiful City of Nelson. That was really special for us, spending Christmas with some special friends...plus we had am amazing bed and the hostel was fantastic! We were subject to the floods of Pelorous Bridge and were evacuated at 4am, but well looked after by some wonderfully generous and kind people, and we certainly didn't come off worst at all! But it was quite and adventure regardless.
On New Years Eve we made it to the North Island, we got a bus to Wanganui, and spent News Years night in a forestry block on the Whanganui River...we were asleep by 9pm! Then we meandered up the river, experienced extreme heat, and gravel roads. But the scenery was again beautiful different to the South Island, it seemed a little more wild and tropical, but with huge jutting gorge walls all around us, but you felt much more immersed in the landscape as apposed to looking out over it, like we felt in the South Island! One of the best experiences of that section of the road, was climbing all day trying to get ti Raetihi, the heat was unbearable, then we turned a corner and there was Tongariro looming over the landscape, still snowclad, and looking magnificent!
We spent some time in Tongariro National Park and even made it up to Mt Ruapehu, with a little help from the Ski Lifts! From there we explored the Forgotten World Highway, and made it to the West Coast, with black sanded beaches, great fishing (giant Kawahai, and we got to try Pipies too), and sunsets, great swimming.....just generally great! The road from Mokau to Raglan was a real suprise and a treat, and quite possibly a real highlight of our trip, it was so rolling, and green and beautiful.

We have had a fantastic time, some highlights include, getting a lift BACK over Takaka Hill in the rain, and being taken to Nelson for a beer festival, having to wait to let a sow and her piglets cross the road....Taking an outdoor bath in Murchison. And generally being able to eat whatever we want...including Pete eating an entire Macdonalds Family meal to himself. Cooling off in rivers and lakes after long hard days cycling was the most pleasing thing of all I reckon!