Cycle Touring on the South Island of New Zealand

by Susan Otcenas

Sunday, January 9th, 2005 - Fox Glacier to Greymouth

Distance: 53.1 km
Average speed: 16.4 kph
Time in saddle 3:13
Max speed - 40.6 kph
Departure (from Hokitika) 1:30 am
Arrival 6:00 pm
Sun, Rain, Wind, and a flat tire.

Since we skipped riding yesterday AND since today's ride was supposed to be fairly long (110-120k), we decided to take the Atomic Shuttle to Hokitika to make up the distance and get back on schedule. Atomic is a classic New Zealand shuttle bus service. Small, older buses with a trailer pulled behind for backpacks, bicycles, etc.

We arrived in Hokitika around 10:15 and decided to spend some time jade shopping. We'd been looking at pendants in various shops our whole trip, so I had a good idea what I wanted. The area from Hokitika north to Greymouth is where much of the country's pounamu (Maori for jade, also known as greenstone) is extracted, so this seemed like the right place to make a purchase. There are many jade shops in Hokitika - everything from small, gallery-like shops to large, commercial tourbus-driven stores. We wandered in and out of 4-5 shops before I found just what I was looking for - a small understated piece with a "mottled" green-tan color. It will be my treasured memento of the trip.

After lunch, we visited our last geocache of the trip and dropped a second travel bug in a cache at the Hokitika Airport.

Sending off our Kiwi in Hokitika

It was 1:30 or so by the time we set off down the pancake-flat road to Greymouth. The sun was shining, the road was flat, what's not to love?

If things don't work out at the hospital…

This route featured two long one-way bridges that had railroad tracks down the center. I mean, ponder this…. This is the primary north-south road on the West Coast of New Zealand and carries almost all of its traffic. We've been on the same road for days! And these bridges (200 meters and 300 meters long) are each only a single lane AND carry rail traffic!

Sharing the one-lane bridge with trucks AND trains.

Oh, and did I mention that they are old wooden bridges with eroding asphalt on the road surface? And yet, traffic seems to flow smoothly, with cars waiting patiently at each end. Except the trains, of course, which are exempt.

Trains Exempt

Cyclist beware

About 8km before Greymouth, we turned off to Shantytown, a "historic mining village" that is really just a tourist trap with a collection of both authentic and replica buildings with interesting old daily household items, shops, fire engines, hospital equipment, etc. The "town" also has a restored 1800's train with a real coal-fired steam engine. Stinky, but fun to ride.

Shantytown street

Restored Train

An Iron Lung!

While we were in Shantytown, the sky clouded over and rain started to fall again. 6 km before Greymouth, in a torrential rain, Jeff got his third flat of the trip. Conveniently, this happened right in front of a motel, and the owner reluctantly let us pull our bikes under an awning so that we could change it.

Fixing a flat in the rain.

In Greymouth, we reached Sanford's Guest Lodge, described in our guidebook as "an excellent value small hotel" with "airy" rooms. Actually, we thought it was a bit of a dive. Mushy beds, old linens, cramped, shared baths and the place reeked of cigarettes. But it was clean, and the room itself didn't smell so bad. Not wanting to go back out in the rain on a hotel-hunt, we decided to stay.

Gotta love the linens

NEXT PAGE: Greymouth to Christchurch