KŌPIKO AOTEAROA

Day 3 was a shorter ride of 60 km or so, with a couple of climbs.

The day started with a climb of 100m or so in light rain to the Tahora Saddle, and the Moki Tunnel.

From the tunnel, another fast descent into the Tangarakau Gorge.

In January 1934, my 12 year old father (Geoff), his older sister (Alverie) and my grandfather (Billy) headed out of Whanganui on bicycles (steel, single speed and with panniers) on an adventure.  I suspect as my grandfather was a school teacher, it was an opportunity for my grandmother (also Alveri) to get some peace and quiet.

They climbed up the River Road, through Raetihi to Taumarunui and down the Forgotten World Highway to Stratford and round Mt Taranaki to Hawera, where his journal stopped.  His record started in fairly descriptive style for a 12 year old, but was soon reduced to discussions of people (long dead) who gave them lifts, milk, food or shelter for the night.  He did mention, however, riding down the Tangarakau Gorge, up to the Tahora Saddle and passing through the Moki Tunnel, after which Billy fell off his bike, bouncing three times on the top tube, bruising himself, much to the apparent interest and amusement of his son!

Traveling in the opposite direction to our father, we made our way up the gorge through dense bush and birdsong.  This was one of the prettiest parts of the trip to date.  We paused for lunch and then made our way, slowly out to Ohura.

As we made our way back to the car, I reflected on the first three days of the Kopiko.  I'd been called back to Auckland for a hearing (I was to appear as an expert in a civil trial), and Cyclone Gabrielle was looming.

There's no question that the climbs had been tough, but with time and persistence, they weren't insurmountable.  Certainly my fitness, strength and climbing had improved significantly over the three days.  The scenery, however, and exploring rural New Zealand, had been fantastic.

After Tangarakau, we climbed through farmland - a couple of short, steep climbs kept us on our toes, and after 4 hours or so, we rolled into Ohura.

Ohura is a sad little town.  It was once home to a thriving community, serving forestry, coal mining and the white collar crime prison.  The primary school had 300 pupils, there were three garages and a couple of banks; shops lined the main street.  The remains of the banks, garages and shops remain empty shells, with little disturbing the peace of the main street.  The delightful Michelle runs a b'n'b in a tiny 1950's state house on the main road, and she has a pop up Mexican restaurant across the road.

I punctuated the end of my ride with an ice cream, then we hit the road back to Tauranga, leaving Jeremy, Alex and Jason to push on the next day.  As things transpired, they got one more day before Cyclone Gabrielle hit, killing any prospect of completing the Kopiko.

It was disappointing not to finish the Kōpiko.  As we drove away, Andy suggested we should have another go, from the start, next time.

Sadly, my cycling computer rebooted half way through the ride.  From the Kennet Bros tour description and what my computer did record, the last day we rode almost 60km, climbed just under 1,000m, max speed was 53kph and average 17kph.  Riding time was about 4 hours or so.