Day 4 - Thu 20 Nov

Looks like it's going to be a beautiful day - but who knows. This is New Zealand after all!!
Sat on the balcony with a cup of tea - can see Mount Doom in the distance. The sun is shining on the slopes, looks harmless from here!

8am, just made a cup of tea - Louise gone back to sleep. Phoned Dave at Wanganui Aero Work when we got here last night to make sure the flight was still ok, no clouds over Taupo at all so fingers crossed.

Nice lakeside ride - more like coastline - the lake is huge.
Broke off the SH47 onto to the SH41. Lovely ride over the mountain then dropped down into Ithilien on the edge of Mordor. Gets a bit colder!
Stopped for breakfast at the Station cafe. Coffee and brownies (cake for Rik!). Fab view of Mount Doom - loads of snow. On the way to Ohakune, amazing u-bend in the road over a bridge.

Picked up by Dave and Matt in the helicopter for the round trip around Mt Ruapeho and Mt Doom. Absolutely fab!!
We couldn't get directly over the crater of either mountain because of cloud cover, but decided to go anyway.
What a thrilling ride - the crew (LOTR) must have had so much fun on the ski-fields etc when not filming. Must also have been freezing!

Poor Frodo and Sam - it really is desolate!!

Rode over to Waioaru for a coffee and toastie for lunch - appears closed! Army bloke asked about the V-Strom as he was planning to go across the States on one.
Desert road to go - in the dry - what a novelty!! 4 hrs to Napier........long trip ahead.........

Leaving now after refuelling at 3:30pm.
After a quick chat with the cafe "boy" (note to self to go back and punch his lights out) we decided not to go to Napier via Taupo but take the more scenic and shorter route - the Tiahape Rd over "Gentle Annie". Apparently 2 1/2 hrs worth of riding versus 4 hrs.

So, the road starts through beautiful Shire-like rolling green hills - dotted with friendly sheep - then ascends up through spectacular steep inclines with beautiful valleys. At the top, that's when it gets interesting. We were warned that there were unsealed roads - however, we weren't expecting to find Sauron's Orcs making roads through Mordor for his armies. The farmland that the "road" passed through was stunning, even if oxygen might have been a good idea! The "road" then went through a series of amazing valleys, all forested, to rival the views of any we have seen.
After approx 40 mins of effectively off-road riding, we stopped for a cig and hand warm-up. Fortified, we carried on riding through clouds again for 20 mins or so and came to big signs saying "End of Works". The cheer raised by us both reached heavenward and shook the summits around us. We survived!!
Before we had finished congratulating ourselves on this small achievement - the torment recommenced! Fools we were to believe that was it......

After another 1/2 hr or so, we stopped again each telling ourselves that of course we could do this - it would be fine. Having braced ourselves for the next leg, we got on the bike again and set off,
50 yds down the £road" we reached the road proper again. Too afraid to tempt the gods and cheer again, we kept our joy deep inside, We made it!! Total car count = 7 cars, 2 mad quad bikes and 1 logging truck twice (yes, the Kiwis really do hate to be overtaken!)
After that, Rik didn't hold back. We motored on toward Napier and the landscape flattened out into beautiful countryside, with wonderful weeping willows everywhere. Good chance of flooding on these plains. There were loads of grapevines (this is Hawkes Bay), orchards and kiwi plantations.
Made it into Napier - it is lovely. Found the Fountain Court Motel at about 7:30pm, dropped off the bags and had a mosey on through the town. Fab buildings. Stopped off at Countdown - my first visit to a Kiwi supermarket and picked up pate, rolls, coke and brekkie. Now sat on the sofa in a cosy room winding down nicely.

Note: Definitely a road to do again....when it's finished, sealed and speed signposted!!
Great motel - huge bed, nice room and a great shower

Mileage today - 358km (222 miles)
Mileage total - 1422km (883 miles)