New Zealand Journal

Journal - New Zealand Trip 2002

I always wanted to go to New Zealand and finally we made a commitment in early 2001 to go. I met Warren at work, a New Zealander working in Canada and also a motorcycle fanatic. He would boost of the great twisty roads in New Zealand. I believe that this was the time when the idea took root of motorcycling New Zealand. We had started surfing the net for renting or buying a couple of motorcycles in New Zealand. I don't think Warren believed us that we are actually were going to go until I booked our flights early September 2001. It was confirmed we were going to leave on December 28, 2001 and return on January 27, 2002. This left the question of motorcycles. Rentals were horrible expensive and the bikes offered were not what we wanted. Twisty roads needed a sportbike. We started looking at buying a couple of used 400cc bikes, when Warren came to us with a suggestion. He was thinking about shipping over his Kawasaki ZX7 and if we paid for the shipping he would let us ride the ZX7 as well as his old race bike a Yamaha FZR400RR. Perfect. Warren always keeps his bikes in excellent condition. By the end of October the ZX7 was on its way to New Zealand. While the bike was sailing away on the ocean, we were getting our gear packing. We had acquired two (2) chatter box communication systems for $650 for the trip in case we would get separated. We started piling stuff into a large army bag. Since both motorcyles in New Zealand came with Ventura bike racks, we finally broke down and ordered two 60 litre travel bags made by Ventura, which we would pick up in New Zealand. Packing for a one month trip on a motorcycle is quite challenging. In the end we took to many cloth anyway. We decided to wear our leather jacket and boots on the flight and take the helmets and cloves as carry on. We were a bit worried of our luggage not making it to New Zealand especially since we were going to change airplanes 4 times. The ZX7 was supposed to arrive on Dec. 4, 2001, but it didn't. We were notified that the ship was delayed. Since it still had to go through customs and all the paperwork had to be completed, we decided to get Warren Kawasaki ZX6R road legal. Yes we had a contingency plan. We arranged insurance of both motorcycle over the internet.

December 28, 2001 finally came. The night before we went for dinner with Warren and Jenni (soon to be a proud mom). I could tell that Warren wanted to came as well and we also had hoped that by some miracle they would. Of course, the day we left it had to be miserable outside, blowing snow and cold. It took us only over an hour at the teller to check in. They could not get our luggage to New Zealand, somehow the computer cancelled our luggage in Honolulu. I was getting concerned, at least I was wearing the essentials for motorcycling. Actually we looked quite funny. We left Calgary at 4pm, arrived in Vancouver an hour later and were off to Honolulu by 6:25pm. Due to security reasons every plane change was a big hassle. In Honolulu we actually had to go through American customs, even through we were in transit. New Zealand Airlines was great, they picked us out of the crowd and expedited us faster. We had sewn the Canadian flag on our motorcycle jackets, and yes it helped. We left Honolulu around 12:45pm and landed in Auckland, New Zealand around 9 am Dec. 30, 2001. We were both beat, but still had to fly to Christchurch. The international airport was separate from the national, so we took our trolley and went for a 15 minute walk outside. It was overcast and had just rained, we didn't care. The grass was green and it was warm. Finally 27 hrs later we arrived in Christchurch and we were greeting by an army of Warren's family. It was nice to see familiar faces. Billie, Kim, Donna and Mahala all had been to Canada to visit Warren. Actually Mahala was not yet born, but Donna was three month pregnant when she was in Canada. They also laughed at our motorcycle attire. Luckily they had brought two car's, because we had a lot of luggage. Billie lives outside of Christchurch along Lyttleton Bay. The drive there was an experience. Besides driving along the left (wrong) side of the road, the road was twistier than hell. We climbed out of Christchurch, along a high pass ridge and down the other side into an old Vulcano crater. All I could think of was, "if all roads in New Zealand are like this I won't make it very far on the motorcycle". Billie told us she would take it easy around the twisties, but it still seemed like she was flying. Arriving at Billie's and Greg's house, we were awed. The house is a three level split, each level overlooking the beautiful ocean. Decks were wrapped around each level. The lawn looked like it went right into the ocean and we were surrounded by mountains. Our room had a direct few of Lyttleton – a harbor town. The walkout windows led to a deck with a spa (Jacuzzi). Could life get any better. Since Greg has worked all his life in Lyttleton harbor the design of the house and yard reflects his love for ships. Both Billie and Greg made us feel at home. After an awesome home made supper with the whole family and exhaustedly made it to bed.

Dec. 31, 2001, first actual day in New Zealand. Billie and Kim took us for a tour of surrounding scenery, we went through Lyttleton habour, stopped in to see Greg and the ship yard, on through Sumner, looked at where Warren grew up and into Christchurch downtown square. We had lunch outside, as well as the famous ice cream. We stopped at Warren's grandma. Her garage is a storage haven for Warren motorcycle stuff. The ZX7 was still sitting in the crate. We needed to get the pack rack out of it as well as check if the bike made it in one piece. After spending a half an hour unscrewing one side panel we confirmed that the ship could have sunk and the bike would have still been in one piece. On our way back to Billie's we stopped at ???? motorcycle store to buy some chain lube and order the Ventura bike racks for Luke GSXR1000 and Lisa CBR900. We also visited Warrens Nanna. On the drive back Billie took us over the summit road. Late afternoon both Greg and Mike moved the bikes out of a neighbors garage. We couldn't wait to take them for a spin. And off we were. Driving on the left side was quite weird, but the bikes handled awesome. I was in love with my FZR400RR. And Mike was off doing wheelies on the ZX6R. We ended up taking a wrong turn and on some weird ash fold. New Zealand roads are build differently, they pour hot tar down and than gravel and compact it and that is it. A lot of loose rock to look out for on the motorcycle. Since it was New Years Eve, we were invited to go to the Pub to meet Greg and Billie's friends. Unfortunately, by the time 11 pm came around we were quite beat. Kim who was flying back to Australia at 5 am in the morning gave us a lift home and that how we ended up in front of the TV with some Champaign almost missing the countdown to the New Year.

Jan. 01, 2002. New Year's day Greg and Billie had decided to take the boat out for a spin at, yes, 7am. Life jackets and picnic at hand we were off exploring Lyttleton Bay by boat. We went right out to the ocean and even saw Hector Dolphins, which is a rare occasion. We angered at a small deserted beach and had mustard and ham sandwiches for breakfast. How else can you start your New Year. A large freight ship was entering the habour. Greg explained to us how the ships know where to go in the small habour without running on ground. We followed a green light and if you went to far to one side it changed to red. We checked out the habour itself and were than off to the little island across from Greg and Billies place. In the afternoon we were invited for New Year's Turkey at friends of Greg and Billies. We decided to take the bikes and after lunch head out to Akoroa. We were welcomed with open arms at this family, we expected a small dinner, but it was actually more like a family reunion. By the time we were off on the bikes, they were more exited for us than we were to explore New Zealand. During our month in New Zealand we met some super people. New Zealander seemed not yet spoiled by tourism. We were invited home to stay with many New Zealanders. We had many people walk up to us on our journey, expressing their desire to do what we are doing. Not only New Zealander, but also other foreigners in their motorhomes. Coming from Canada where people call the police on you when you speed by them on the motorcycle it was an refreshing change, to have people come up to you and instead of giving you "S%*t" for riding too fast, they would comment on how great they found it that we were traveling on the motorcycles. New Zealander's are also very aware of motorcycles. They always have you in their rear mirror and courteously move over to let you pass. Double solid lines don't exist in New Zealand. It is the drivers percussion to pass when reasonable. Some stretches of road are impassable for 100km, but car drivers will pull over right away if they know you are behind them. Another neat rule in New Zealand for motorcyclists is that you can pass inside the line, cars will pull over about 1m and with on coming traffic you can pass inside the lane. I remember way back giving Warren "S%*t" for passing on the inside lane in Canada. As we left Billie's and Greg's house we unconsciously went to the right side of the road. For about 1 km we were having fun in the corners when we saw oncoming traffic in our lane. First lesson learned. Think left. Greg draw a left arrow on my speedometer. The ride to Akaroa is about 90 km of fun twisties and a must for the motorcycle. We made it to Akaroa without incident and actually were flagged down by another GSXR 1100 rider. He thought we were locals and wanted to race us back to Christchurch. We laughed and told him that this is our first ride on the left side of the road. After an awesome ride, we returned home and started packing our gear. We were ready to hit the road. We finished the day with a dip in the Spa overlooking the Lyttleton habour.

Jan. 02, 2002. We woke up to pouring rain. We had planned to get an early start. Instead we moved all our gear into the living room, and had a leisure breakfast. Billy and Gregg said Good-Bye and headed into Christchurch. We were set on leaving on our journey rain or shine. The Ferry from Picton to Wellington was booked for 9:30 pm. Due to the big Holiday rush, all Ferries leaving during the day were booked solid for two days. We ended up on the slow Ferry the Inner Islander. By noon the sun was trying to come out and that was our que, we loaded the bikes and were on our way. A quick stop at the Pharmacy in Christchurch (since I had caught a wicked cold) and we headed north. We took the main interstate, which is actually a regular two way highway winding along the east coast. The scenery was just amazing. It felt so good to be back on the bikes and going somewhere, anywhere. We stopped for lunch in Kaiakora, famous for whale watching. And yes we had fish and chips. Most of New Zealand's towns, cities have Mauri names and me being a hopeless case in languages had a hard time pronouncing the towns. During lunch we met a couple from New Plymouth (North Island), who had visited British Columbia the previous year. They were so impressed by the hospitality they received in Canada, that they wanted us to stop in at their place for a couple of days. He is a fish & wildlife cop and she was training for an extreme marathon. Throughout our journey we met many New Zealanders who showed us great hospitality. We arrived in Picton at about 6 pm and made ourselves comfortable at a seaside café. Here we met a girl from Sweden, who rides a BMW at home. She told as there are some amazing twisties in Sweden. I guess we have to check it out someday. The Fish & Wildlife cop also stopped in for a cup of coffee with us. Finally we were able to load the bikes on the Ferry. We each had brought two tie downs from Canada to secure the bikes properly on the Ferry. We new we wouldn't arrive in Wellington until 12:30 am and decided to book a hotel. The sea was relatively calm. Just after 12:30 am we arrived in the windy city. And they were not lying. We new the hotel was somewhere downtown and of course got lost. We ended up asking a cop car for direction. They in turn escorted us right to the hotel. Prior to leaving to New Zealand we decided to sew on the Canada Flag onto our Leathers, throughout our travels this came in handy numerous times. Exhausted we fell into a comfortable bed.

Jan. 03, 2002. Left the windy city heading east, big mistake. One of the best roads in the North Island is between ….. and ….. and we get stuck behind a bicycle race escorted by the cops going 30 km/hr if that. After two hours of being in first gear and clutch in and out, we needed a break and stopped in ….. for breakfast ($28 NZ). Next stop was Napier on the east coast, we pulled the bikes up onto the sanddunes and watched the waves roll in. The weather was perfect. From Napier we took the Interstate 5 west, which has big sweeping corners going through a lush green Mountain range. Our goal was to reach Roteroura. The scenery changed from mountain to rolling hills, we passed a extinguished volcano and arrived at Lake Taupo late afternoon. After a quick cruise through town and fuel up we headed north to Waitiki Valley. At this point it was getting quite late and we planned on staying at this Hot Spring Campground in the Valley. Of course we ended up taking the wrong turn and were speeding along this country road. 30 kms into it we decided to turn around, we didn't meet one car, it was very peaceful. All I remember about the road was no speed corner signs and that we came to hot into one townhill corner, but we made in one piece, we were getting tired. Another scene that sticks in my mind is coming over a hill, Mike leading and because of the loud exhaust system on the ZX6R we had started a little stampede run of sheep down the hill. It looked like a big fluffy cotton ball rolling down the hill. Where is the camera in moments like that. Finally we found the correct turn. The Campground and hot spring could be seen the moment you entered the valley, huge steam clouds covered the valley. We made it, just before 8 pm. It was time to relax in the Hot Springs.

Jan. 04, 2002. During the night it started to rain. We suited up in our rain cloth sand left for Rotorua for breakfast at McDonald's. Breakfast in New Zealand is also an experience. It seemed that New Zealand has the notion that we like bacon and eggs. And yes when we are on the road we love stopping at a place and having a hearty breakfast. But the bacon they offered was round rubbery back bacon and the sausages the size of a large banana. Not to mention the prices, it was nothing to drop NZ$25 on breakfast. We both were desperate to find a cheaper alternative. That's were McDonald's comes into play, they actually have a McCafe. Whenever possible we went to McDonald's for breakfast, there is something to be said about consistency. Later in our travels we also found some very nice bakeries. After breakfast the clouds started to disappear and we decided to head to Wai-o-tapu Thermal Wonderland (NZ$30). At this point it was getting quite hot and stopping at the bubbling mud, we realized that we had forgotten sunscreen and some normal walking shoes. The sun in New Zealand is very intense and will burn you within ½ hr of exposure. A couple from Auckland overheard us talking about sunscreen and offered us their sunscreen. We wondered around the Wai-o-tapu Thermal Wonderland for 3 hrs in our alpine boots, shorts and tanktop. Quite funny. It was fascinating to see the different colors of water, steaming lakes, the smell of sulfur and different rock formations. Almost at every tourist attractions we were able to store our motorcycle gear. Back at the campground, we leisurely hung out in the thermal pool. This was probably one of the nicest campground we stayed at during our trip. Thanks Warren for recommending this place. That evening we met a family from Switzerland who were sailing the world for the last 1 ½ years on their homemade sailboat.

Jan. 05, 2002. Tropical downpour during the night. "The weather", something totally unpredictable in New Zealand. When you ask locals about the weather, they really don't know what it is going to be that day. At first we thought that to be strange. The weather forecast always said "fine", which actually meant that the sun will shine and that it will rain as well. We packed up our gear and were of to Russel, the first settlement of the Englishman. After breakfast at McCafe we headed north on highway 27, through Auckland. The main freeway leads you through Auckland without hassle. The only time I wanted to stop was when we crossed the large ….. bridge, it gave us an incredible view of downtown Auckland, reminding me of Vancouver, but unfortunately there was no pull off and I had to be content with a postcard. We were running low on fuel and no gas station in sight, even the 400's fuel light was on for a while. Finally we pulled of the freeway in search of a gas station. It was a long haul from Rotorua to Russel and we were trying to put the miles on. The scenery around Auckland and north of Auckland is mostly rolling hills, we encountered a few campers, but not as many as we had been told. We took state highway 1 through Whangarei to Opua. From Opua to Russel one can take the Ferry or an unpaved road. The Ferry was a nice change. Before hitting Whangarei we ventured of to the seaside to take a picture, that's where I noticed that the YZF400RR didn't want to start anymore. We ended up push starting the bike on the wrong side of the road. Occasionally we would catch ourselves not thinking left. Another time just before the ferry I had stalled the bike and a guy in a Pick-up truck help me push start it. Getting it off the Ferry up hill was also quite a shore. Both Mike and me were worried that the starter had gone and we were in the middle of nowhere. The last 10 km into Russel were fun twisties. Russel, itself, is a small sleepy town, we stayed at the Top 10 Holiday Parks. We had a super Pizza at the York St. The locals informed us that the last 20 km to Cape Reinga is not paved. We decided to book a tour with Fuller to go to the top of New Zealand (NZ$198). Back at the Campground Mike started playing with the 400. It turned out the wire to the start-button had come loose and after some wikeling the bike started without a problem. We were both relieved and felt pretty stupid for not checking it out first instead of pushing all over.

Jan. 06, 2002. We had to get up at 6 am to make the passenger Ferry over to Paihia. A Fuller tour bus picked us up in Paihia. The tour took us north on state highway 1 to Awaniu and than over to the west coast. We entered the 90 mile beach and spent a couple of hours driving on the beach, with the incoming tide and waves hitting the bus. It was amazing. We found a dead delphin, which died of natural causes and were told that this does not occur very often. Half way up the beach we stopped at the left overs of a car caught by the incoming tide 9 month ago. Rental cars are not allowed on the 90 mile beach and insurance is void if something should happen to you. Every year people get their car stuck on the beach and get swept away by the incoming tide. We were told that only 6 days a year one is able to drive up and down the beach in the same day. The tour buses were all specifically build to withstand the rough terrain and constant exposure to salt water. An hour into our journey we were called to rescue another Fuller bus tour who had gotten stuck in a water stream. They had been stuck and shoveling sand for a good hour and were unable to get free. We pulled up with the bus and got the tow ropes out. After two attempts, of breaking the rope, we finally cheeringly freed the bus. Of we went again, the only way off the 90 mile beach is through a creek. Large sanddunes surrounded us on both sides and we were making our way upstream the river for 10 km. We stopped at the sanddunes and our busdriver got the surf boards out . Outfitted with a surfboard each we were surfing down the dunes face first. If you try this remember to close your mouth. It was great fun. Back in the bus we made it to dry ground and yes the last 20 km to Cape Reinga are gravel. We made it to the top of New Zealand, where the Tasman Sea and Pacific Ocean meet. It was stormy, windy day. We walked to the lighthouse, yellow signs with city and distances shown, were pointing in all directions. Vancouver …….km. Cape Reinga has no restaurants or souvenir shops, but a mail box. Lunch was provided by the tour company. As we left Cape Reinga it started to rain, just in time. I also would like mentioned Alex Dow, our tour bus driver, we were blown away by is knowledge and enthusiasm of his Country. One could tell he loved his job, even after 19 years. This was one tour, which we got our monies worth. After stopping at the wood craft store we were off to our last stop the Puketi Kauri Forest, which is protected and has some of the largest trees in New Zealand. The forest was very dense and tropical, a beautiful wooden walkway curved itself through the forest. We returned to Paihia at 6:30pm. Back in Russel we had the best Fish and Chips at a local Pub.

Jan. 07, 2002. It was time to hit the road again. We lubed the chains and fuel up the bikes for NZ$1.25 per litre (Ouch). Stopped in Whangarei for real bacon and eggs breakfast (the Canadian way). Our destination was Waitoma Caves south of Auckland. At a fuel stop we met a guy from England on a brand new R6 (the tits were still on the tire), he was paying NZ$100/day for it. In Waitoma Caves we stayed at another Top 10 Holiday Park. New Zealand campgrounds are very similar to European Campgrounds. Actually they are even better than European ones. Every Campground has very clean shower/bathroom facilities, a washer and dryer room, kitchen and TV room free of charge (except for washer & dryer). Prices ranged from NZ$15.00 to $25.00 per night and we are talking High Season. It was time to do some laundry. During our wait we met a girl from Christchurch who gave us the AA Accommodation Book.

Jan. 08, 2002. We left at 8 am to go black water rafting. This is the only way to see the caves and glowworms in Waitoma. Suited up in wet suits, helmet and a tiretube we entered the caves. We floated along the cave in the dark and saw the glowworms light up. At the center of our trip we encountered a waterfall which we jump down. The tour guides were excellent again. We even got a chocolate fish. Be warned the water is freezing. But it is the most amazing feeling when you come floating out of the cave into dense jungle like forest. Three hours well spend. A hot shower and bagel/soup were on the house and muchly appreciated. Next stop was Taupo. As we set up camp we meet two Germans, Yvonne (22) and Hagen (32). They had started their journey 11 months earlier in Germany and had traveled Italy, Greece, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, India, United States and are now enjoying New Zealand. Over a bottle of white wine some interesting travel stories were exchanged.

Jan. 09, 2002. Surprise we woke up to a cloudy sky, which did not look promising. Our goal was to head to Wellington to catch the Ferry back to the South Island. We were not spared the pouring rain. Soaked we arrived at the Ferry and got onto the Lynx (fast) ferry. It only took us 2 hrs to set over. Once in Picton, the weather stayed miserable. Warren had told us to take the Queen Charlotte Drive. We had phoned Donna and Mark to let them know that we were coming. Richmond was only 110 km away. But the torrential rain made roads almost impassable. Queen Charlotte Drive in the try is challenging at 25/35km/hr corners. Speed limit was 100km/hr, I truly don't know who could break that speed limit. Most corners were covered with water and rock washing down from the mountain side, we were passed by a Range Rover. It took us over 2 hrs to get to Donna's place in Richmond. We did of course also get lost and had to ask a nice police man for directions. Mark and Donna took us, our gear was totally soaked. Our sleeping bag was airing out in the garage. We were glad to have a warm roof over our head.

Jan. 10, 2002. The next morning the sky looked promising. We left Richmond and headed south west on highway 6. Nice twisty roads to Westport and a scenery to match it. At breakfast in Munchison we met up with some hard core bikers. After Westport it started to rain, geared up in rain gear and attached by sandflies we walked in the rain around the Pancake rocks. The tide was just starting to return, and we got a miniature display of what the rocks with all the water returned. On the west coast now, we traveled to Greymouth, were I had a run in with Mike. At one of those famous round-abouts, Mike decided to yield to traffic while I decided to go for it. It didn't help that it was wet, with my front wheel locked I smashed into Mike's ZX6. Luckily we both kept the bikes upright. The poor YZR400 didn't fair so well, the front plastic piece was all broken, whereas the ZX6 was okay with a half attached license plate. At that point I decided that I had enough of New Zealand shit weather and wanted to go home. We pushed on to Franz Josef Glacier and got the last room in town. Our room was located in the middle of our friends the hard core bikers.

Jan. 11, 2002. The amazing thing happens, the weather turns to blue sky and sunny and that on the west coast. We had a clear view of Fox Glacier. Breakfast was in Haast, which consisted of only one Pub. Here again we met up with our Harley friends. We encountered more and more bikers, which were heading to the Glenorchy Rally. The complete west coast was more sweeping corners, turning inlet after breakfast, we climbed Haast Pass. Locals informed us that the road between Wanaka and Queenstown over Cardona is now fully paved. Just before our descend into Queenstown we were exposed to an incredible view of the mountains, lakes and valley. After a coffee in Queenstown, which reminded me of Banff, Alberta Canada, we were off to our final leg of our journey. 44 km along the Wakatipu Lake to Glenorchy. No traffic, a couple of kms turn into single lanes and twisty corners. The last 1km to the Rally was gravel. The Rally was situated in a farmers field with at view of the Remarkables. The only facilities were portable toilets. We set up camp beside Vicki and Wayne who rides an VTR and their 15 year old son Hayden on a CBR250. That weekend we also made friends with Wayne and his brother Lindsey. Wayne pulled up on a brand new R6. New motorcycles are rarely seen in New Zealand. I figured it was some young punk, but was pleasantly surprised to find Wayne, age approx. 50, pulling off his helmet. Not that I would call Wayne old. For the weekend we were taken in by Wayne, Vikki, Hayden, Lindsey and Wayne. We learned all about Possum hunting from Wayne.

Jan. 12, 2002. We decided to go to Glenorchy for a coke-raspberry drink and to check out the Possum store with Wayne. From there we did a run into Queenstown to shop for a tank top. By the time we returned to the Rally the farmers field was becoming a see of tents and bikes. The weather was cool and overcast. At the beer tent we met up with the Suzuki team and VFR team who had passed us on the way down from Nelson. Burn-outs were going on all day and it wouldn't be a biker rally without the wet T-shirt and best full monty contest. We checked out the bikes and found some old Bimota's and Ducati's. The newspaper article stated 450 attendees, but it seems more like 800. We stayed up until early morning making friends.

Jan. 13, 2002. We said Good-Bye to our new found friends and promised each other to meet again at the 100 year Isle of Man event in 7 years. Meanwhile we have been in contact with Wayne and Nikki and the Isle of Man reunion will actually be taking place in June of 2004. Off to Queenstown we were again, setting up our tent at another Top 10 Holiday Park. After a good Canadian breakfast, we were booked for some jet boat fun ($160). A bus took us out to the ???? canyon and after signing a disclaimer we were speeding along the canyon inches away from the canyon walls. Sudden 360 Deg turn soaked us to the skin. Back in Queenstown we took the gondola up to the top for a view of the lake and the Remarkables. We were planning on signing up with the Hanggliding or Paragliding, but it was closed. The view was amazing and it would have made an awesome hang/paragliding experience. Queenstown is known for its outdoor adventures and is mainly geared to tourism.

Jan. 14, 2002. We left Queenstown via highway 6 to Te Anau. Sheep farms are more common in the south and we had to wait a few times for sheep crossings. All sheep crossings are marked with temporary sign well ahead. In Te Anau we stayed yet again at another Top 10 Holiday Park. We set up camp for two nights. We actually had some sun during our arrival, which was short lived and followed by three huge thunderstorms, causing some major floating in the campground. By now one of our communication systems and the cell phone had stopped working, due to too much rain exposure. The on/off button on the video camera broke and our still camera gave up as well. What else could go wrong. We did find a nice Italian restaurant in Te Anau.

Jan. 15, 2002. Rain gear packed we headed out to Milford sound. This is a nice 120km twisty road. We stopped at the Chasm along the way and almost got eaten alive by the sand flies. The famous homer tunnel, a 1.2km long tunnel, chiseled out of stone, just wide enough for one tour bus, was a great stop. Here we had our first encounter with the Kia, who picks on any exposed rubber. We were told that they have the brains of a 3 year old. The decent from the homer tunnel to Milford sound is awesome. The road winds down all the way with many hair pins. At Milford Sound we had a 2 hr cruise booked with Miter Peak Outfits. The weather was okay, and it did spit only a little bit. With only 15 people booked on the cruise, we had the run of the complete boat. The mountains around you are massive, steep and covered with vegetation. Milford Sound gets the most rain in New Zealand, numerous waterfalls can be seen. The tour takes you very close to the waterfalls, ensuring that you will get wet. We headed out to the Tasman Sea, where we saw dolphins and seals. The boat had an underwater observatory, which allowed for some interesting water creature watching. Due to the excessive amount of rain Milford Sound receives during the year the top layer of the sea is fresh water. On our ride back to Te Anau we had some fun on the bikes. At supper we met Lisa and Gordan, two Canadians from Vancouver, who were cycling and sea kayaking New Zealand for two month. Also made friends with two New Zealander who were riding a Ducati monster and Moto Guzzi. They had been taking the same route as us from Nelson to the Glenorchy Rally and to Te Anau. We would meet them twice again in our travels. The day ended with another major thunderstorm.

Jan. 16, 2002. We left Te Anau going south on highway 95 and geared up with the rainsuit. Stopped for Breakfast in the Sausage capital of New Zealand, Tuatapre. Early afternoon we arrived in Bluff, the most southern point of mainland New Zealand. We couldn't resist pulling our bikes up to the yellow signs of the world cities for a picture. We had made it to both the most southern and northern point of New Zealand. We back tracked through Invercargil, over on highway 1 to Gore and onwards on highway 90/8 to Raes Junction and to our final stop Alexandra. Another picture opportunity arose at the Gore – Clinton 44 km road sign. That's when the still camera started acting up and our developed pictures had hallows. We were hit by two major thunderstorms and decided to take a room in a mini motel ($49).

Jan. 17, 2002. Leaving Alexandra behind and heading north on highway 8, we stopped at the Clyde Dam. On our way through Lindis Pass, we said "Hi" to the corner Wayne crashed and kept on heading north along Lake Pukati to Mt. Cook. Mt. Cook is the largest mountain in New Zealand. But due to rain and cloud cover we only could see the base of the mountains. Too bad. We set up camp at Lake Tekapo. By the way, did I mention that it poured again.

Jan. 18, 2002. We woke up to blue sky, which was short lived. We visited the Church of the Good Shepard and were off to Timaru. In Timaru we stopped at the Motorcycle wreckers to see if we could get a new front fairing for the 400. No luck. We decided to get the broken fairing plastic welded and painted. After removing the fairing of the 400, the bike looked like a street fighter. I missed the wind protection. Since we were in Timura we looked up Vikki, but she was gone for lunch. Passing through Ashburton it started to rain and did not stop for 3 consecutive days. We checked out the Christchurch Raceway and ended up staying at a Best Western Motel ($85), since all our gear was soaked. The Grand Prix was scheduled for this weekend in Christchurch and we had some racers staying at the motel. We ordered in Pizza and made ourselves cozy.

Jan. 19, 2002. The rain had settled in for good. We called Warren in Canada to arrange for a new back tire for the ZX6. Don (Warren's dad) invited us to stay with him until the rain stopped. We dropped off our gear and went to Warren's Grandma to get another tire from storage. A bike shop replaced the tire for $20. We had planned to spend the afternoon at the races, but it didn't stop raining. Instead we spend time with Don, Sandra and Laura. We learnt all about cricket (an English Gentleman Game). New Zealand was playing against South Africa, I actually really got into it and enjoyed 8 hrs of watching the game (New Zealand won 246:242). Sandra made us tea and pudding, which translates to chicken dinner and apply pie.

Jan. 20, 2002. At 11 am we decided to brave the weather and headed to the races. After all it was the NZ Grand Prix. We run into Vikki and Wayne again, which was a nice surprise. Also talked the Guzzi and Ducati pair. At the races we watched the gocart, sidecar and 600, 125, 250 and 1000cc races. Suzuki took the big win. A Britten motorcycle was displayed in the pits, which caught everyone's attention. Late afternoon the weather finally started to clear and the long awaited Australia high moved in. Don took us for a tour of Christchurch and showed us some famous sites, we ended up watching cricket again. Very addictive.

Jan. 21, 2002. Left Don's place early and headed north-west over the Lewis Pass. Blue sky as far as you could see. Superb road and amazing scenery. The perfect day. We set up camp at the Maruia Thermal springs and just relaxed in the sun, walked along the river and sat in the thermal pool. Bathing in the sun I could hear the distinct sound of a Ducati and Guzzi roaring in the far distant. Yes, what a coincidence we would run into the motorcycle pair again.

Jan. 22, 2002. The road from Spring Junction to Reefton is excellent, very twisty and fun. From Reefton we headed south on Hwy 7, turned at Stillwater and joined Hwy 73 at Jacksons. Arthur's Pass offers some incredible scenery. Camp was set up at Lake Pearson Lodge. We hiked up the hill behind the lodge and were rewarded by a million dollar view. Fish and Chips were on the menu for dinner with the crew guys.

Jan. 23, 2002. This was it, we had seen most of New Zealand and were heading back to Christchurch. Our final leg of the journey. We were pulled over by the Police just before Christchurch to check for registration, otherwise it was quite uneventful. Exhausted we arrived at Billie and Gregg's place.

Jan. 24, 2002. In town we had the oil changed and I picked up my plastic welded front fairing. It looked like new and only cost me about $300.

Jan. 25 to 27, 2002. We spend most of the day cleaning the bikes and getting them ready for storage. I was in love with the 400 and it was hard to say good-bye. The remainder of the time we just hung out on the deck, enjoying the view of the harbor and soaking in the sun. It was hard to leave New Zealand, we had made many friends and felt at home. We were not ready to return to Canada. On our way to the airport we stopped to pick up some NZ beer at the pub and run into a Bimota and 3 Ducatis. We really didn't want to leave. Upon our arrival to Calgary we were hit by reality and the wonderful Canadian Winter, snow and –30Deg.C.

We would like to thank all of Warren's family for their generosity and hospitality. We will always remember New Zealand for its amazing scenery, great roads and wonderful people (and maybe the rain).

This site was last updated 12/27/05