Days Three and Four – reached the coast

Greetings, friends and relations, from Middle Earth. There have been moments these last two days, my third and fourth in NZ pedalling first into a ferocious hidwund (sorry, headwind) some 45 miles from Wanaka to Makarora, and then today a further 50 miles through blazing heat and increasingly rainforesty mountains to Haast on the South … Read more …

Made It! Over Highest metalled road in NZ

Boy, do I need a faster laptop for my next big bike journey (and maybe some classier shades?) Lovely little Acer netbook, but it gets into the biggest spin (as Sue found out in India in the spring) when you ask it to do more than two things at once. It’s taken me nearly three … Read more …

Tornado-delayed, finally in Queenstown

Well, that was a bit of a journey. But I’m here, as are bike and luggage, and the stunningly lovely NZ Adventure Capital of Queenstown even arranged a rainbow of welcome for us all. But not before, first, my Primus fuel bottle was halted and turned back at UK check-in security; then my pedal spanner … Read more …

One week left, Raven packed – and ready to star in The Standard

So, Raven is readied, panniers, tent and bags test-mounted and photographs taken for an article on the pending adventure scheduled for next Thursday’s local Standard newspaper in the Cotswolds. Fame at last… Below right is how my study looked with everything piled up in one great heap before being packed. (Note that Myshkin, aka Wussum … Read more …

Cycle Trip Preparations – 2 months to go

With less than eight weeks to go until I set off on April 3 from the front door of our Wychcroft home in Cirencester (Sue, as a writer of books on the Old Ways, wanted to call our new home Witchcraft, but that really was a step too far), it’s time to start blogging more … Read more …