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Travel: New Zealand Top Down Tour

Those who had visited NZ had said how nice it was, so the seed was set. When I got home from Canada I visited the Ayres Adventures website. The website showed all the tours for 2009 and 2010. I was going to be 40 on 22 November 2010 and there happened to be the ‘Top Down Tour’ starting on 20 November. How fantastic would that be, my 40th while on a motorcycle tour in NZ with my mum and dad. Ayres Adventures is a premium motorcycle tour company so it wasn’t cheap but having just completed a tour with another premium tour company I knew to expect excellent service, staying in five-star hotels and eating top class meals each day, so it was well worth the expense. We booked the trip in February 2010 so knew it would really happen and could start getting excited. A week before leaving we received our itinery, together with a T-shirt and shirt from Ayres to wear on the trip.

On 18 November we flew to Bangkok, then on to Sydney and finally arrived in Auckland, NZ on 20 Nov. Chris our tour guide was at the airport to pick us up. We had been emailing Chris since we booked in February so he felt like a friend before we even started the trip. We drove to the Crowne Plaza in Auckland and our bikes were waiting for us. I would be riding a Suzuki V-Strom 650 and mum and dad would be on a BMW R1200RT. We stayed in Auckland that night and would start our journey the next morning.

November 21: Distance to Coromandel 151 miles

I was up early ready for the day’s riding to Coromandel, East of the north island. I looked out of the window and unfortunately it was raining so I had to put my waterproofs on, not what I expected on the first day. I was a little nervous as I was having to ride a strange bike out of a strange city in a strange country while it was raining but I do like a challenge so took it in my stride. From Auckland we rode east to the beautiful Coromandel Peninsula, the scenery reminded me of riding through Yorkshire so I felt quite at home. The road signs were near enough the same so there was nothing to be afraid of. For lunch we stopped at a lovely cafe near a hot water beach. The weather had changed completely now and it was lovely and warm so the waterproofs soon came off. On the hot water beach you can hire a shovel and dig your own personal hot pool in the sand. That part of the beach was very popular as you can imagine. After lunch the roads got a little more twisty but the road signs told you what speed you should be going to take the bend so you knew what to expect.

We reached the Anchor Lodge apartments, in Coromandel at about 3pm. They were lovely new apartments, very spacious with an added bonus of a Jacuzzi. The jet lag was catching up with us so we went for dinner at a lovely restaurant called the Pepper Tree quite early before collapsing into bed at 8.30pm.

November 22: Distance to Rotorua 157 miles

We were all up early as it was a special day today, my 40th, we had a card opening ceremony and then breakfast outside on the balcony of the lodges. We had another quite easy day’s riding ahead of us. Ayres had designed the route so you don’t end up riding long distances while you are tired with jet lag. We had a briefing of the day’s ride from Chris at 8.15am and then got on our way at 8.30am. The sun was shining so I had a massive smile on my face. Most of the route in the morning was down a coastal road, the water was a lovely turquoise colour and the roads were good with long sweepers, the hills were covered in trees, it was just fantastic. There was hardly any traffic on the road but that is normal as there is only a population of four million compared to the UK with over 60 million.

If you do catch a car up usually there is enough room on the road for it to pull over to the left so you can go through without having to complete an overtake manoeuvre. Halfway we filled our bikes up with fuel which cost me $12.50, approximately £6, if only it cost that much back home! We stopped at Kati Kati as some of dad’s relations live there. They invited us to stay for lunch which we did. They live on a Kiwi farm in a lovely spot looking over the hills with the sea in the distance. We then headed for Rotorua which is built on a geothermal area and is New Zealand’s cultural home. We visited a Maori village which had geysers and bubbling mud pools. Our Maori tour guide was called Paul which I thought was quite funny. We arrived at our hotel at about 5pm and had a quick shower as at 5.45pm we were being picked up by another Maori family to attend a Maori cultural evening, including a meal cooked in a ‘Hangi’ which is a traditional earth pit oven. Everyone who attended the meal (170 people) were asked to sing Happy Birthday to me which was the icing on the cake (no pun intended!) to a fantastic day.

November 23: Distance to Greytown 275 miles

We had a long day’s riding today so we were up early. While leaving Rotorua we again passed through some geothermal activity so lots of clouds of smoke rising from the earth plus the smell of sulphur (rotten egg smell). After about an hour’s riding we reached Lake Taupo, it was the most gorgeous spot, we had a coffee and cake looking over the lake with the tree covered hills and snow capped mountains in the distance. We then headed round the lake so had a few twisties to tackle. While on this road we encountered the first lot of road works. This is where I prefer riding in the UK, in NZ they repair the road and then put a large layer of gravel down before they Tarmac but expect everyone to ride/drive over the gravel, which I found very unnerving and didn’t enjoy one bit – especially when going up the twisties.

We then reached the desert road where the scenery changed again. There were miles of flat with rye grass, the road was straight so it was quite tempting to push the speed up a little but we saw a police car looking out for speeding motorists so soon slowed down. Before arriving in NZ I had heard the police were quite hot at giving out speeding tickets. On the way through we stopped at an army museum which was interesting. After leaving the museum the terrain changed again, we had some twisties, sweepers and long straights. Unfortunately about one hour from Greytown it started to rain so the waterproofs went on. We arrived at the the lovely White Swan in Greytown where there was a complimentary bottle of champagne waiting for us from Ayres Adventures which was a nice surprise.

November 24: Distance travelling to Nelson 85 miles

We left the hotel at 9am after a lovely English breakfast to head for Wellington to catch the ferry to go over to the South Island. We encountered lots of twisties along the way as we were going over the mountain roads so it was quite a challenging ride. Ayres Adventures ask that you have two years riding experience before booking one of their world wide adventures and I can fully appreciate why. We reached Wellington in good time so had time to visit the museum. John Britton’s bike was there as he was a New Zealand legend, it was nice to see and read the history of the bike.

From Wellington we caught the ferry and arrived in Picton about 3.5 hours later. The view is stunning during the last hour on the ferry, the sky and water were blue, the hills were covered in trees and there were houses with no roads leading to them as they’re only accessible by water. We rode off the ferry and headed for Nelson, Chris our tour guide lives in Nelson so he was going home. On the way we rode through miles of vineyards. Mum and dad recognised some of the names of the vineyards as they love drinking NZ wine. We reached Nelson at 8pm so went straight to a Thai restaurant before heading to the apartments we would be staying in for two nights.

November 25: Free day in Nelson

Chris had a white Goldwing called ‘The Fridge’ so asked if we would like to go on a ride round some of the great scenery close to Nelson. Dad and I said yes but mum wanted to visit the shops in Nelson as it looked a lovely place. We set off on the ride at 9.30am and went round the lake to a place called Kaiteriteri for coffee which was the other side of the lake from Nelson. After coffee we went to the top of Takaka Hill and stopped at the top to look over Golden Bay. The ride was great but again the twisties were challenging, it even made me feel a little sick going to the top, the ride down was good though. We then rode to Motueka for lunch via Motueka River Valley. After a lovely long lunch we headed back to Nelson. We really had a great day and thanked Chris for taking the time to show us some of the fantastic scenery round his home town.

November 26: Distance to Punakaiki 179 miles

We had a briefing and then left the apartments at 8am. Chris told us to expect fantastic scenery today but I don’t think we were prepared as to just how fantastic it would be. We crossed the Southern Alps, the South Island’s mountainous backbone. It is some of the best motorcycling to be had anywhere in the world with light traffic, awesome scenery and superb roads. It was quite easy to get a little emotional as it really is so amazing. We entered the Upper Buller Gorge which had a beautiful ride through a twisty gorge with thick native forests. When safe to do so we had to keep stopping as the photo opportunities were endless. It had it all, snow capped mountains, the forest, lakes and streams with waterfalls. We reached Punakaiki at about 5pm. The lodges we stayed in looked out at the ocean, when I walked in my room the view of the ocean was amazing. Ayres really do their homework and find the most unique fantastic places for their clients to stay. The apartments are a short walk away from the Pancake Rocks. The restaurant on the complex didn’t let us down as we had a wonderful dinner, the Seafood Chowder was the best I have ever tasted.

November 27: Distance to Franz Josef Glacier 106 miles

Today the ride was through lush semi-tropical rainforests and through dairy farming areas as we rode south to Franz Josef Glacier. Along the way we stopped in Greymouth to fill up our bikes. We did a 100km detour around Greymouth as 29 miners had been killed a few days before and the world’s press were there. We stopped just outside the town to have a look at one of the old mines which was very interesting. We then headed to Hokitika for lunch. The Arahura River which enters the sea 8km north of Hokitika is a traditional source of pounamu (greenstone) for the Maori people and still yields a large proportion of the coast’s continuing supply. We reached Franz Josef Glacier, one of New Zealand’s two glaciers. We stayed in luxury log cabins with a rain forest one side and the glacier the other. The view from my log cabin windows was breathtaking. We left our bikes for the night and went into the town for dinner and to go and have a closer look at the glacier. There were several helicopters flying to the top of the glacier taking passengers and landing on the ice at the top. We also visited the reflection pool which was a great photo opportunity with the glacier in the background.

November 28: Distance to Queenstown 204 miles

We started the day by going for breakfast at 7am. Wales were playing the All Blacks at rugby back in Cardiff so we got up and watched the second half. Unfortunately Wales lost the game but put up a good fight. We then carried on our way to Queenstown. Today’s ride took us through Mount Aspiring National Park an area designated by UNESCO to stand alongside other places of natural significance such as The Grand Canyon, Mount Everest and the Great Barrier Reef. I thought the scenery couldn’t get any better than previous days but I was wrong. Again there were spectacular lakes, flat land, coastal roads, twisties, sweepers, snow capped mountains, it was just incredible, I can’t describe how beautiful it was but those who have visited NZ will know what I mean. We crossed the Haast Pass and then onto Queenstown. Queenstown was very popular as we actually had to queue up for a couple of minutes when entering and after hardly seeing any traffic on our travels to date it was quite different. We arrived at the Crowne Plaza Hotel about 4.30pm. Ayres had requested we get the best rooms looking over the lake. For dinner Chris took us in the vehicle round the coastal road to another village and he knew of a lovely restaurant there. That is the beauty of having a knowledgeable tour guide.

November 29: Free day in Queenstown

Chris had advised us not to miss out on seeing another of NZ’s gems, Milford Sound. It was 200 miles each way and would take about four hours to get there and four hours back but he said it was well worth the visit. I was a little sceptical as 400 miles is a long way to go in one day but if the scenery was as good as Chris had described it was not to be missed.

We set off at 7am and rode for an hour before stopping for breakfast. The terrain was different again, it was much flatter with fields of cows and deer. We carried on our way and when we were a few miles from Milford Sound we started climbing up the mountains, we rode up lots of twisties and then reached a large tunnel that had been cut through one of the mountains. Unfortunately the tunnel was not like the tunnels I had rode through before, there were no lights and the road was quite wet and uneven, but it was the only way into Milford Sound by road. When we reached the other side of the mountain we then had tight twisties to get down. I did get rather hot with sweaty palms but made it. We could now see what Chris had described, it was a small gorgeous lake in the middle of snow capped mountains with high waterfalls and it was so peaceful. We stopped in the cafe for a coffee and unbelievably met a gentleman and his wife who live about three miles from mum and dad and who I had bought my first bike from. They were completing a bike tour but the opposite way to us, it really is a small world.

When we got back to the hotel I booked my trip on the shotover jet boat, for the next morning. Queenstown is famous for its adventure activities, it is probably most well known for the bungee jump with the bridge you jump off over the canyons with the turquoise river at the bottom.

November 30: Distance to Mount Cook 162 miles

I was booked in for the jet boat ride at 9am so we set off from the hotel at 8am, I was quite nervous as I didn’t really know what to expect. There were 15 of us on my boat trip so after we all got kitted up we stepped on to the boat, I got the front seat which was probably a bad move. The boat only needs 10cm of water to be able to operate. We went fast very close to the canyons and then the driver started doing 360s, it was a good move not to have breakfast before the trip but we all got quite wet. After about 40 minutes ride and 10 360s we headed back to the start point. It had been a great experience but my tummy was churning for at least two hours after.

We then got on our bikes and headed for Mount Cook. We rode through the Linis pass before arriving in Omarama. We hardly saw any traffic and the roads were just a joy to ride on. Chris stopped at a salmon farm on route as he suggested we had fresh salmon and champagne before dinner, as you do! As we arrived in the village of Mount Cook the alpine surroundings were stunning. At the complex there was a life-sized statue of Sir Edmund Hillary who had practiced climbing up Mount Cook before climbing Everest. We had our picnic before dinner looking out at the mountain range; we could hear avalanches in the distance. For dinner we went to the best restaurant and again got the best table in the house. Ayres really do look after their clients. We were looking out at Mount Cook and by the time we had ordered our meal the clouds had cleared so we could see the top of the mountain, again the view was breathtaking.

December 1: Distance to Chirstchurch 225 miles

Unfortunately Christchurch (Garden City) was our final destination. Christchurch is known as the most ‘English’ city in NZ. To get there we travelled through the open spaces of the McKenzie Country and across the alluvial Canterbury Plains. We stopped for coffee at the beautiful glacial blue waters of Lake Tekapo with the mountains in the background; it was yet another stunning view. A few miles from Christchurch the terrain changed again and it was becoming more like my home county of Lincolnshire, very flat and agricultural. When we rode into the city centre there were terrible traffic jams but this was mainly because of the earthquake that had hit at the beginning of September.

Lovely old buildings were having to be pulled down and there were fences and demolition all around, it was a very sad sight. We eventually reached our boutique hotel ‘Hotel off the Square’ and emptied the panniers on the bikes. We then took our bikes back to the hire company. I had enjoyed riding the V-Strom but I would be glad to get back riding on my Honda CBF1000. Mum and dad loved the BMW, it was the right bike for them for this kind of adventure. Our last meal was at a very unique restaurant called the Octagon, an old church still with all the old wooden panels and carvings. All the waiters and waitresses could sing or play a musical instrument and all took their turn to entertain the diners, which was great as they were all very talented.

Over the last two weeks we had ridden on some of the best roads in the world with some of the most stunning views and I was sad to leave. One thing I do know is that I will be back in a few years to do it all again. Ayres Adventures were a fantastic company to go on tour with, down to every small detail they made our holiday a holiday of a lifetime and one we will never forget. Chris is such a knowledgeable, friendly person who is now a friend of the family.

Words and Pics: Paula Maxwell