Stratford to Cape Egmont

Day 6 - Friday 4th March

Stratford to Cape Egmont - 96km

1. Stratford to Plateau Car Park (20km MTB)
2. Dawson Falls to Cape Egmont (68km MTB + Road Bike)
3. Cape Egmont to Ruddocks’ Resort (8km Run)

The forecast was right - the rain and wind hit Stratford about 4am. It was going to be a wet ride up the mountain. We got away about 7.15 and nosed up Pembroke Road toward the Plateau Car Park with the gusty wind and showers driving in from our starboard quarter. The gradient was obvious from the start as we struggled to reach double digits on the speedo. We were glad to have chosen the MTBs which are far more stable in the wind and actually have brakes in the wet, essential assets as the wind got stronger and the rain intensified as we climbed slowly up the mountain. We resorted to riding on the right hand side of the road, tucked in against the hedges when we could and leaning our bikes into the wind.

Once we reached the tree line - the National Park boundary - we were sheltered from the wind but there was no let-up from the rain. This 20km leg should have taken about an hour… two hours later, after negotiating ‘rivers’ powerful enough to carry rocks down the road, in the middle of a torrential downpour we finally popped out of the trees and into the scrub country, and back into the gale!

It was about now that it dawned on me that our planned run from the Plateau car park to Dawson Falls had probably been thwarted by the weather bomb. There are several creek crossings on the track and we made the call that it’d be too dangerous to risk. So, after 2 hours of busting our butts to get to the top we promptly turned around and beat a hasty retreat to the DoC Centre where we jumped in the car to drive around to Dawson Falls to catch up with Keith in the camper for a stunning hot breakfast.

As we ate, as if by magic, the rain eased, the clouds parted and the summit of Mount Taranaki burst into view. It’s a great perspective from Dawson Falls - very close and ‘in-your-face’.

With the day brightening, we rolled down the mountainside with full stomachs, saddle sores and frozen fingers toward our final destination - Cape Egmont. The easy road and slight tail wind helped us make good time and before we knew it we’d clocked of 30km on our MTBs and it was time to change up to the road bikes for the final leg. Our legs were pleased about the change since the road bikes roll along a lot easier but our butts protested as we settled in and started clicking off some fast kilometers along Wiremu Road. Finally it was time to swing west, drop toward sea level and attack the last 10km directly to the Cape. It was surprising just how much energy we could muster (I think someone said the race word) and we cranked up to over 40km/hr, sweeping the bends and cranking the short climbs and suddenly the lighthouse appeared in front of us.

We backed off, sat up and rolled quietly toward Cape Egmont amongst a flotilla of ‘Britz’ campers eager to get their photo at the lighthouse. We’d made it! Over 700km in six days, of biking, running and kayaking across New Zealand’s widest point. Another one ticked off!

After the compulsory photo, thankyous and congratulations, we decided to run the coastal route from the lighthouse to our accommodation - it was only 8km, shouldn’t take too long. Another two hours, five swollen river crossings and one entanglement with an electric fence we arrived at Jeff’s resort.

What a perfect way to round off a brilliant week of adventure. Keith Brodie arrived with cold beer, the mountain cleared and we witnessed a stunning red sunset over the Tasman - brilliant.

I’ll add some photos and trip stats over the weekend when we get home. Tomorrow is a travel day back to Waihi.

Life is for living after all…

Eleanor Roosevelt

Taumarunui to Stratford

Day 5 - Thursday 3rd March

Taumarunui to Stratford - 158km

1. Taumarunui to Canoe start (13km MTB)
2. Canoe start to Ohinepane (15km Kayak)
3. Ohinepane to Stratford (100km Road Bike + 30km MTB)

Fog hung around the Whanganui River at daybreak today but Metvuw.com promised sunshine so we knew that once the fog lifted we’d be in for another great day.

Kel and I rode the MTBs from Taumarunui Canoe Hire HQ (where we’d stayed the night) paralleling the river to the canoe launching spot 13km downstream. After the safety briefing and a few paddling and river instructions Adam, Reid, Shari and I boarded the Canadians and slid away from the bank into the fog. Kel took the opportunity to gain some more whitewater experience in his Eclipse - the section of river we paddled was ideal training. We’ll be back!

As an aside - we discovered that the river and picnic scenes from the recent “Yogi Bear” movie were filmed right there in Taumarunui, and wouldn’t you know it, the Canadian kayak that Reid and I paddled was the actual one used in the movie.

It wasn’t long before the sun broke through and we enjoyed the serenity of the river as we negotiated the rapids and quietly paddled the bits in between. An hour later we landed at the Ohinepane boat ramp and camp ground all agreeing that the river was a great interlude from the road bikes and traffic.

Back on the bikes, we headed west on the Forgotten World Highway toward Stratford. This route is very scenic, very hilly and very long but very worth the effort. The lack of traffic was a nice treat too. We wound and climbed and descended and wound some more, occasionally catching a view of Ruapehu back over our shoulders to the east as we gradually gained elevation. Eventually we arrived at the 12km gravel section where we switched to the MTBs for the tight stretch to Whangamomona.

The calorie count must have been pretty high for the morning - or at least that was our justification for scoffing a pie, a muffin and two coffees at the Whangamomona Hotel.

Back on the road bikes again for the final 63km (with 3 saddles) to Stratford, we were looking forward to catching our first view of Mt Taranaki, the first sign that we were arriving at the west coast. The bonus was finding that at the summit of Strathmore Saddle we could look east and see Mt Ruapehu and look west and see Mt Taranaki. Brilliant.

The last push to Stratford took us from sheep farms to dairy country and finally back to suburbia at about 6.30 in the evening. A big day, but very cool.

Taupo to Taumarunui

Day 4 - Wednesday 2nd March

Taupo to Taumarunui - 132km

1. Taupo to Taumarunui (132km Road Bike)

Our decision to abandon the dawn kayak leg across Lake Taupo proved to be the right one. Although the rain hadn’t arrived, the wind was getting up and blowing off-shore which would have made it a tricky and possibly hazardous crossing in our multisport kayaks.

So it was a long day in the saddle; starting at 7 we pedalled out through Taupo and out toward Kinloch, westward on Whangamata Road to the Western Access Road.

Keith found another gem of a spot overlooking the lake where he excelled again with another poached eggs breakfast - yep, on deckchairs with a superb view south to the mountains.

The next few hours were quite tough going due to the gusty head wind and constant climbing. It was hard to get into a rhythm but eventually we reached the main road and it wasn’t too long before we were sipping on a coffee at the Te Miro Trading Post. Great coffee - comical service!

Luckily we picked up a tail wind once we turned south toward Kuretau because we gained quite a bit of elevation on this stretch and the shove from the wind eased the workload. Once we had reached the rest area/lookout it was all speed and fun as we blasted the last 9km to the Kuretau turnoff for lunch.

I had warned Kel that all the hills up to now had just been practice for the grunt over the ranges from Kuretau to Taumarunui - he wasn’t disappointed. We climbed in first gear for 45 minutes to the highest point over the pass - imagine the Beach Gorge carrying on all the way to Waikino! The good part of course was that there was an equally long and steep downhill on the other side before we reached the Whanganui River and the flats heading in to Taumarunui.

We arrived in peak hour traffic, just as school was getting out and then biked out to Taumarunui Canoe Hire where we arranged the boats for tomorrow and checked in to our accommodation. Not long after we arrived, so did the predicted rain - nice timing!

Tomorrow we’ll mountain bike to a kayak launching spot 14km downriver from town, then board Canadian Kayaks and paddle for about an hour and a half before biking off down the Forgotten World Highway to Stratford.

Lake Tarawera Outlet to Taupo

Day 3 - Tuesday 1st March

Lake Tarawera Outlet to Taupo - 115km

1. Tarawera Outlet Camp to Tarawera Cafe (10km Kayak)
2. Tarawera Café to Lake Ohakuri, Waikite Valley Arm (45km Road Bike)
3. Lake Ohakuri to Orakeikorako (19km Kayak)
4. Orakeikorako to Taupo (41km Road Bike)

After a few evening showers, Tuesday dawned fine and warm with just a light breeze. A perfect day to paddle across Lake Tarawera. The sun was just peeking over the horizon as we set off across the lake, destined for the café 10km away on the western shore. We skirted around the southern banks, keeping in touch with dry land in case the wind got up and enjoying the scenery. There were only two other boats on the lake for the entire journey and an hour after set off we beached on the sunny shore right outside the café. The sun was well up now so I took a swim while we waited for Keith in the glamper van to arrive with breakfast. 30 minutes later we were enjoying poached eggs on toast, sitting on deck chairs looking back across the sparkling lake to where we’d come from. Superb!

It was the sort of scene that you don’t really want to leave but we had to get moving since we had a big day ahead. The next leg was a road bike to the headwaters of the Waikite Valley arm of Lake Ohakuri 45km away to the west. It was a pretty easy ride and the valley is quite scenic - we arrived at the lake boat ramp, looked over our shoulders, and the support crews drove in behind us. Perfect timing.

We refuelled with another good picnic lunch, then paddled off toward the Waikato River and Orakeikorako. Sadly there was some sort of algal bloom going on. The water was thick and soupy and smelt gross in some places but gradually cleared once we got to the main river and swung south with a tail wind helping us to our landing point. We caused a bit of a ruckus as we landed because apparently it’s private land and we didn’t have permission, but turning back certainly wasn’t an option and once we explained what we were doing to the owner everything got worked out. His comment was “no, you’re not supposed to land here but you guys are mad so go for your life”.

The last leg of the day was a road bike in to Taupo. The original plan was to finish the day at Kinloch so that we could start paddling across Taupo from there the following morning, but it was becoming obvious that a Lake Taupo kayak wasn’t going to happen due to the approaching dodgy weather. So we changed the plan and braved 15km of SH1 madness, finishing at the Spa Road Top 10 motor camp.

We treated ourselves to a bit of luxury and splashed out on a cabin and dinner out at a local restaurant. A well deserved reward after a long hard day.