Day 19 Clyde to Cromwell

Sau Keng has been looking forward to this ride. It

was a major accomplishment for her two years ago. How will she find it today?

We have another nice day. Cool but fine. There is a wind again and it will be against us, but is not too strong. If it stays like this it will be fine. We find our way down to the bridge, cross the river and are on our way.

All four spillways are in use! So much water coming down the river they can't use it all for generation. The dam is an awesome structure.

The warnings for the track are a bit overdone I think

As we get into the gorge the scale of the landscape becomes apparent. Everything is huge. A pity we can still hear the vehicles on the other side of the lake.

Sau Keng is over there

This is a great ride. Sau Keng is a much more confident & capable rider than the first time she was here - and I think the track has been improved too. Anyway, it's no problem for her now.

Riding up to the high point is a grind, but not too hard even with the extra weight on the bike. The wind is strong up here so we find shelter behind a large rock with another group of riders. This is a great place for having lunch.

The track from the high point down to the coffee boat, 'Cairnmuir Ladder' is steep with many tight corners. We make our way down and get to the boats - (Closed today and the business is for sale :-( ) Sau Keng asks "Where is the difficult tight winding section?" "You have just ridden it!"

From here it is relatively easy going along the lake shore, another 5 kilometres or so to the end of the gorge. Cromwell is just over there, across the lake, and it feels like we have finished. But the nearest bridge is 8 kilometres up the Kawarau arm of the lake. We have a way to go yet.

This is nice riding, but the main event - the gorge - is over. I'm looking forward to finishing. The bridge is in sight and getting near, but again no, the track turns a right angle to traverse around the Bannockburn inlet... where we come to the Carrick winery and cafe. It was closed last time we were here but it's open today - and it's our duty to support places like this on cycle trails!

Around the inlet, rock climbing here! So nice to see climbing on real rocks - instead of a 'rock wall' inside a large building.

We cross the bridge. Just 6km to Historical Cromwell now. There are particularly nice wildflowers here, some that look like a variant of Californian poppies, a couple I have not noticed before and a few albinos. They are beautiful.

Cromwell historical area. We have been told a shop here might have the coasters we are looking for - and that they are out of production so our chances are not good. We found one in Clyde, just one... perhaps we should have bought it, there are none here. (There are much cheaper feeling versions painted onto a thin bamboo base)

Never mind. Time to go home and shower. Another 4km.... not far.

Statistics

Distance 46 km

Climbed 631 m

Time 3:41