I woke at 5:30, and got my new saddle set up properly. It felt good, almost exactly the same as my old one. Just in case, though, I strapped my old saddle to my front harness so I can go back if I need to.
We then packed up and went out for breakfast. I had the "master breakfast", the biggest meal on the menu, as well as a hot chocolate. The meal had bacon, eggs, bread, a cooked tomato, a sausage filled with cheese and a hash brown. Urgh...not what I'd normally eat. I felt like the fat was dripping down my throat afterwards.
We had decided to stay a bit longer in Wanganui and see if we couldn't get the things we needed, including visiting a Spark store to hopefully sort out Greg's phone.
After breakfast we went back to the bike shop we had been in the previous evening. Luckily my front light was there, so I got it back. Yay!
I also bought a new pocket knife cum multi tool and a stuff sack to replace the ones I'd lost. The multi tool is pretty useless, but Ruth is sending me a new one to collect in Wellington so it only has to last until then.
Greg's phone couldn't be fixed, so he bought a new one with a new number. We then headed back to the backpackers and got ready to leave.
We left at about 10:30, having had breakfast about three hours earlier, and I was already hungry again.
Our trip started with a ride up the Drury Hill elevator. It was fun riding down the tunnel. The elevator itself was antique, and had someone running it, collecting our $2 and discussing the history of the elevator. It was fun, and the easiest 100 metre climb I've ever done on the bike.
From there, we headed out of town, leaving (as Greg so eloquently put it) the "armpit of the north island". The roads were hilly almost right from the start, and never let up.
After about 15 km we reached Fordel, where there was a shop. Great, I thought, a chance for a second breakfast, but when we went inside they only had candy and soft drinks, so we pressed on, hoping to find another shop somewhere along the way.
It was 63 km from Wanganui to Hunterville via the TA course, and it was getting hot. I began to get really hungry, and a little light headed. I ate two muesli bars to keep me going, but I just felt like I was running on empty -- the cooked breakfast hadn't done anything for me at all.
As I was riding past a patch of bush, a voice called out Hello. It was a cycle tourist from Napier; he had just been eating lunch in the shade. I rode with him into Hunterville, thinking of food and milkshakes all the while.
We finally reached Hunterville at about 2:30, and I immediately ordered two milkshakes, a burger and a huge custard square. The two milkshakes didn't last long, and I was still thirsty so I bought a bottle of iced coffee. That finally satisfied me.
Greg and I then headed off again. The course followed SH 1 for about 5 km, before nipping off onto some quiet country roads again. After a few km the road became unsealed and we had a hilly stretch of about 20 km on the gravel.
From there, the road undulated before climbing some more. I saw a kingfisher up close for the first time in my life: it flew just a couple of metres away, and stayed with me for a few seconds before turning and flying away. I say it's amazing blue-green back, and didn't recognise it as a kingfisher until it turned and I could see its beak. It was a beautiful bird.
Greg and I then headed off again. The course followed SH 1 for about 5 km, before nipping off onto some quiet country roads again. After a few km the road became unsealed and we had a hilly stretch of about 20 km on the gravel.
From there, the road undulated before climbing some more. I saw a kingfisher up close for the first time in my life: it flew just a couple of metres away, and stayed with me for a few seconds before turning and flying away. I say it's amazing blue-green back, and didn't recognise it as a kingfisher until it turned and I could see its beak. It was a beautiful bird.
The road climbed and climbed, then crossed about 3-4 huge river valleys where the road fell and then climbed about 200 metres each time. Finally it began to descend, and we made good time on the final few km into Apiti.
The pub in Apiti had shut down, and there weren't any other shops, but as we arrived a woman said they had a few treats we could buy. She had just bought the old petrol station and she and her partner were in the process of renovating it. They had chippies, bars, and drinks, and we bought plenty of each.
We camped in a paddock behind the hall just 100 metres off the course. Two other riders were also there. We had dinner of flavoured rice (two different packets), salami, carrot and onion (Greg had carried these last two all day). It was hilariously difficult cutting onion and carrot with a cheap knife with a 2 cm blade. Dave Ryan, one of the other riders, took pity on me and lent my a big knife. We gave him some of our cooked meal in exchange, then finished it off with a carton of coconut water and a packet of chippies.
Once I was in the tent, I discovered that my battery pack wasn't there. Then I realised I'd left it, along with my USB charger, back at the backpackers in Wanganui. Damn -- so much for having my gear finally organised!
As I typed up my blog, I got peckish again so I nibbled at a Snickers bar I had purchased down the road. Incredibly sweet, but yummy. How decadent: eating chocolate in my tiny tent typing up my notes for the day.
Unfortunately, without my battery I have no way of charging my Garmin. But the cue sheets have been so good that I can just follow them and guess the distances. I'll buy a new charger and battery pack in Palmerston North, and get the old one sent home.
It was a fantastic day's riding. We had covered 126 km and climbed over 1,800 metres through some amazingly beautiful country. Even better, my new saddle felt really comfortable, no problems other than the usual aches and pains of being on a bike seat for ten hours a day. No new hot spots or saddle sores, which is fantastic.
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