Big Matariki Saturday Trolloop

What an effort... Whoooeeee I'm knackered now. 

Headed up valley from the bach, riding all the way past Misty Hills and up to the traffic lights where the first spate of walking started.  Good to get a good look at the washouts etc along here, seeing that the road wasnt undercut and also the sheer power of the floods that had occurred.  Riding a bit, walking a bunch, over an hour to get to the summit road.  

Around the Summit Rd, up and over the flanks of Duvauchelle Peak, bombing down onto the long flatter ridgetops.  Stopped along here and noticed that I'd dropped my orange GE top somewhere behind, so with slight panic I turned back about, climbing back up and over, around 4 kms, to finally find it sitting lonesome on the road a third of the way back from View Hill turn off towards L.A hilltop.  Debated with myself about dropping back down into the bay but decided that would have cut the ride too short at 1.5 hours, so I turned back and climbed back up and over again, cruising and bombing down, down on to Okains turn off.  

If I hadn't had to turn back for the shirt I would have headed up from here and explored out Cameron's Track - gravel road, down to Big Hill Rd into Okains instead, but figured that'd take too long now so I headed down the main road into the bay.  Super bombing hoon down, down valley and eventually parking up at the old Library building for a rest and snack.  A wee explore over the Millenium bridge and back then down through 'town' and left to head towards Little Ak.  

Climbing again, grinding away, walking a little(?), pulling over for a car at one point, grinding on.  An Explore down Boleyn's Rd for a look, then back and bombing down into Stony Bay.  Up valleybottom, over the bridge and climbing again, a bit of walking but mostly staying on top of the gear.  A nice big rest and snack up above the steep corner before the cruise on up past the rich house and on up past Wells Back where I stopped for another wee rest.  Dug deep and climbed again, last bits around into Chorlton, fast bomb down and around to the final climb up to top and finished into the final bomb down into the bay and back to the bach.  Long ride.

Just over 40kms spun with slightly < 1500m ascended. 

Brisk Sunny Day TreE-bike for Canterbury Planting

TFC planting at Englefield Reserve in Northwood, so left home just after 9am into the brisk wintry cold.  Colombo, Stickland, Antigua, Rolleston, Hagley park, where I found the first frostiness, some ice on the path towards the pinaster pines.  Rossall, Strowan and rail trail to the end, and beyond, riding the slick muddy channel along the side of the tracks to Sturrock's Rd, into Barnes Reserve, moseying through to cross Barnes Rd into Aylsham Reserve cutting right to Primrose Hill Lane, out to Regent Spark Drive, then across Styx Mill Rd and up into Northwood to take the meandering straight shot to the park.  

Dug and planted and chatted and had a good sense of community good, ate my sossies and then hit the trail again.  Same way in reverse to Sawyers Arms Rd, where I hung a left and rode home via the Rutland Trafalgar route to Colombo for the straight shot home with a quick detour drop into Stupormarket hell at PaknSlave.  Home and up the hill.

33 or so kms, left me with about 20% battery... (marginally more kms and less battery than the planting Styx couple weeks back)