Launching the blog!

Just setting up my blog site in preparation for the Tour Aotearoa, which I start on March 8th

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Day 10: Tuesday - Owhango to Whakahoro

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Strava Stats : I had a 1/2 day off with Chris and Kris in Horopito, and checked my stoat traps in the bush (2 rats caught!). The weather was a bit grim, so I wasn't looking forward to cycling. A moist south east gale was blowing, and had blown a branch from a neighbour's Eucalyptus tree through our roof overnight.   In the afternoon Chris took me back to Owhango - as we entered the rain shadow of Ruapehu the weather fined up, and I had a lovely sunny (if windy) mostly downhill cycle 40km to the Blue Duck cafe at Whakahoro. I stayed in the DOC bunkroom next door, but enjoyed a beautiful meal at the cafe (along with fellow cyclists Matt, Chris, Tim and Jason) of wild (locally shot) goat curry.  Sadly, a large school group arrived at the DOC campground, so I didn't have a altogether peaceful night.
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Day 7 Saturday - Matamata - Mangakino

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Strava Stats : 96.46km, 1452m altitude gain, 6h cycling, average 16km/h From Matamata, back roads took me to the Waikato river trail, and pleasant cycling to Arapuni, and the Rhubarb cafe for lunch. Tom was there, and Millie and Mike arrived as I left. There was a closed section of the trail, so riders had to divert around on country roads - probably a bit easier!! I rejoined the trail 19km before Mangakino, and had a tough single-track ride that went up and down, and up again etc etc.... Hard at the end of the day! Free camping by the lakeside for the night - and a delicious swim in the surprisingly warm water was great after a long warm day! Alan arrived later, and a couple of other TA cyclists. In town, I bumped into Millie, Mike , Matt and Tom, and had an underwhelming (but cheap) meal at the chip shop.
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Day 4: Kaipara Harbour

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Strava Stats 101.2km, but really about 70km riding Elevation gain: 849m Average speed: 16km/h Actually rode about 70km - as the day started with a 7am boat trip from Pouto Point to Helensville.  There were lots of cyclists (about 27 I think) on the boat - some had set off from Cape Reinga the day before my start, and had taken an extra day.  Two guys had ridden 20 hours from Ahipara to make the ferry! At Helensville I made a small detour to have a cup of tea with my tattoo artist Inia Taylor, then rode to Johnny Hopper's house on Old North Road where I was plied with food and drink for the fill section of the day - to Auckland and the photo point on top of Mt Eden.  I did stop for a while at the Mt Eden bike sho, to get an annoying clicking noise in the cranks sorted out before summiting.  I'd never actually gone up Mt Eden before - great views of the city, with rainbows from several showers over the suburbs. I dropped in on my brother-in-law's brother Nik f...
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