TA Day 1 - Cape Reinga to Apihara

 We woke early and packed up, heading up the steep road to the cape Reinga lighthouse. Leaving our bikes, we walked out to the lighthouse at the northern tip of New Zealand, captured the requisite photos, and chatted with other brevet riders. After a short briefing, we were off down the hilly road on our way to 90 mile beach.

When we hit the stream bed next to the sand dunes, it felt surprising. We took a few photos and continued down to the beach which had a lot of surf. There was a head wind and a marine layer keeping us cool, but we made reasonably good time down the coast. After a while, it became clear that 50 miles of beach riding in a headwind was going to be a challenge. Besides the ~60 cyclists in the brevet, we saw people who drove their cars down to fish or recreate.

By mid day the winds were increasing. Cyclists were really spread out. For a while we hopped on an echelon and rode with a German couple among others, but soon we were on our own in the headwind, passing the occasional cyclist. By the time we reached Apihara, we were beat. Fortunately we got there before the tide rolled all the way in and stranded us. The sand blowning towards us looked like fog from a machine, covering the ground in swirls.

Apihara is pretty and small, and we welcomed the chance to clean our drive chains, shower, and do laundry. Many people had arrived there ahead of us, and many after. Our « cabin » was very hot in the sun, so we opened all the doors and windows, heading down to the common area.

Market options were extremely limited, and there were no restaurants, but the local bait and tackle shop was selling fish and chips. The meal was enormous, wrapped in several layers of newspaper, forming a mound the size of a throw pillow. Ed balanced it on his handlebars to bring it back to the holiday park, and it made a good dinner.

Tour Aotearoa - the Journey to the Start

 Our journey to the start of the Tour Aotearoa  brevet included 3 flights, a shuttle, and a short bike ride. Because flight times changed after we booked them, we had longish layovers, but this helped us adjust to the time zone and make sure none our bags went astray. It was comforting to have apple air tags on our bikes so we could see that they appeared to be on our planes.

Ed made wheels for our bike boxes to roll on as he did last summer, and while the boxes came off a couple times over cracks and bumps, they were great for moving thru the airport, between terminals, thru long lines in customs. We carried the wheels in our carry-on during flights and tossed them when we arrived in Kerikeri and assembled our bikes.

New Zealand customs was very particular. We had to open our bike boxes to inspect for dirt on the bikes (washed well before packing)  with specific questions about the tires. They also took our tent to a lab for quick testing, checked a freeze-dried meal that contained meat. Other travelers had their hiking boots inspected. It was impressive how much care the kiwis take to keep pests out of their country.

Our airport hotel (Heartland) was comfortable and had good food. We will be riding past it on our route in about a week. We had a long day free, so we ubered downtown to spend time outdoors and see the capital. Auckland seems very cosmopolitan though a lot of restaurants appeared to be shuttered. We saw the harbor and some public art with lots of references to the Māori culture. The trees and bushes look very lush in contrast to the Sonoran desert. 

For the domestic flight from Auckland to Kerikeri, we didn’t need to show ID or go thru security. On arrival, however, Sarah’s bike box had been opened, frame bag unzipped, tire pump (formerly in the frame bag) was loose in the box, and the frame was scratched. We assembled our bikes outside the airport paying NZ$5 for the cardboard disposal. Another brevet rider, Mark Bradley from Wellington, was doing the same. We followed him into town to the local bike shop where we aired up tires and got chain lube and air cartridges. There are two days for the grand depart of the brevet, based on low tides so we can go down 90 mile beach on the firm sand. Mark departs on Saturday and we are on Sunday.

Kerikeri is beautiful and green, looking like a resort town. Our hotel had a swimming pool and green lawns. We had a swim, dinner, and bought groceries for the next two days. Our driver, Talz, picked us up Saturday morning. We took the front wheel off each bike and managed to get them both in her car. Much of landscape looks like it could be the west coast of the US but with large exotic trees and drivers on the other side of the road. We stopped once for a break on a beach, and after ~3 hours we made it to Tapotupotu camp site. It will be a big climb up to the lighthouse for the departure in the morning. 

There were 2 other cyclists when we arrived just after noon, but the campground filled with more cyclists and campers. The cove was gorgeous with a small wave break and one person out surfing. It was very windy, hard to cook, and doubtless tough for the day 1 brevet riders. 

Talz pointed out Tea Trees to us, the same ones used for Tea Tree Oil in cosmetics in the states. She said the wood is used to heat rocks and cook hangi, literally « food in the ground ». Meat is wrapped in tin foil with potatoes and sweet potatoes and cooked in the ground for hours. If we see a sign for hangi we must try it.