Nelson to St Arnaud

The forecast rain never eventuated and with a nice gentle tailwind I rode along the cycleway to Richmond before joining the highway through farming country to Belgrove.



Stopping off in Wakefield for a pee and some banana sandwiches I turned on my phone to have several missed calls and a text message saying "I can't get hold of you" from my sister Libby. Fearing that something was wrong with Dad I tried calling her and ended up getting through to her mother, my step-mother, Kathryn. Nope, nothing wrong with dad, just a letter needed from me to free up the bond on Libby's flat, which I been in for a month in 2006. Welcome to bureaucracy - Africa seems so much easier sometimes.

From Wakefield the road slowly climbs before two big hills after Belgrove, the Wai-iti Saddle and Kikiwa hill. The hills in the South Island don't seem to be as steep as in the North but they are a lot longer and taller. The top of today's ride, only 5km from St Arnaud, was 720m! But I was now in the alpine region and also in danger of attack from kiwis.



The DoC centre at St Arnaud is fantastic with lots of information on the various tramps and walks in the Nelson lakes area. Having seen the huge "Heavy Rain Warning" they had posted for that night and the next day (and the next) I thought about going for a walk around Lake Rotoiti tomorrow rather than cycle all day in foul weather. The walk is about seven to ten hours depending on how high the river at the southern end of the lake is running. If it's low you can ford it, if not it's a further 90 minutes up to a swing bridge.



The campsite, Kerr Bay, is another splendid DoC effort right on the edge of the lake and when I arrived the lake was looking beautiful. the water is crystal clear and it was mirror glass still with the odd duck and black swan idling about.



In the campsite I met Chad (aka Brian) who was in the process of moving to Stratford. His car was loaded up like the Beverly Hillbillies wagon with everything including a kitchen stove. (I didn't spot his sink!) Chad's done a lot in his 60 years and isn't afraid to share his tales. This man could talk both hind legs off a deaf donkey. It was nice to have someone to chat to at first, but after a while I just wanted the serenity to myself. Luckily later on two other cyclists, Toni and Llewyn from Taupo, arrived as did three Israelis so there were others to talk to (and listen to Chad's philosophy).