Gentle Annie

November 21, 2023

An Epic Day

River camp to Napier: 100 km / 990 metres ascent.

Today was a wet, hard, long spectacular day of cycle touring. Intermittent showers keep us damp for most of the day and the renowned ‘Gentle Annie’ climb had us walking for quite a few kilometres.

However the mountain scenery more than offset the discomforts. It was amazingly beautiful countryside. The only downside was the frequency of logging trucks. Extreme caution is needed to avoid these. For our sake and theirs. Especially in wet road conditions.

Two major ascents and descents, and numerous undulations comprised the first half of today’s ride. The second part was much flatter and faster as we entered an alluvial valley closer to Hawkes Bay.

Unfortunately we missed a turn at Fern Hill onto a bikeway which would have taken us on a traffic free route to Napier. Instead we powered in via a busy highway. Fortunately it had a reasonable shoulder.

We found a cafe in pleasant downtown Napier to recuperate, and then cycled around looking for accommodation. Within an hour we found an excellent cabin within a few kms of the town centre.

Lots of these today. They are big and fast.

Fast rivers, high bridges and big mountains.

Out of grazing country. Into vineyards and orchards.

Surprisingly busy road into Napier. A complete contrast to where we were for the past two days.

The excellent accommodation in Napier. Cabin at Kennedy Road Campground. It enabled us to fully dry our sodden clothes and tents.

Today's ride: 100 km (62 miles)
Total: 372 km (231 miles)

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Joel Krewaz"Luxury, and very welcome"
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5 months ago