Lush Forest of a Kwi Reserve north of Tairua
Today was to be our hardest of the trip to date save for the ride into the high Andes. The days route was 79 miles with numerous climbs. We started early leaving the Motel at 8.00am. As we left Coromandel we started straight up the highest and steepest climb on the Peninsula up Wangapoura Hill.
As we climbed the hill my Cyclo Bike computer with altitude and gradient functions showed gradients of between 10 and 12% for the 2 mile climb. For those living in West Sussex this was like climbing about 6 Duncton hills in succession.
At the top of the climb at 1200ft we met 2 local cyclists on superlight bikes who were amazed at the weight carried on our bikes. They gave us the encouraging news that the route we planned was "a pig of a ride" and one of the toughest in New Zealand.
After many small ups and downs and a big one to 700ft we stopped for lunch at a cafe in Whitianga.
After lunch we rode alongside Mercury Bay Harbour and then many more small ups and downs and a big climb before stopping for a break at Tairua. One last big climb followed to get us to our Motel at 8.30pm over 12 hours after departing.
When we got to the Motel room Peter fell onto a bed and went immediately to sleep. The Motel owner was very helpful and offered to pick up Pizzas for us.
79 miles for the day with 4700ft of climbing and an average speed of 9.1mph and riding time of 8 hours 20 minutes.
Posted by Edwin
at 4:33 PM EADT
Updated: Tuesday, 25 January 2005 8:29 PM EADT
