To Jackson Bay - Tackling the West Coast of Te Waipounamu - CycleBlaze

March 23, 2022

To Jackson Bay

From Haast, it's not possibble to travel any further south (or strictly, south-east) by road than Jackson Bay. To head down to Wanaka, Queenstown and Milford, the highway swings inland at Haast and meanders down to the southern lakes.

Jackson Bay is at the end of the road, 48km from our hotel. There is a wharf, a crayfishing industry (and an officious fisheries officer), the delightful Craypot Cafe . . . and loads of atmosphere.  The latter is helped by the unnatural run of warm, sunny weather we're experiencing on this tour. These photos show a side of the West Coast that many, many tourists have never seen.

River crossing on the way to the bay. The milky- blue hue is the result of suspended ground rock, courtesy of the Southern Alp's glaciers.
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Scott AndersonSuch incredible color. We’re among the many who have never seen this. We crossed over the pass from Wanaka to Haast but then just went north. Maybe some year.
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2 years ago
Robyn RichardsTo Scott AndersonWell, I wish you fine weather if you ever revisit the Coast. The old adage is - if it's fine on the West Coast of the South Island, the rest of the country will be having terrible weather. And that's so true: rainstorms, slips and evacuations right now in the North Island.
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2 years ago
Jackson Bay settlement, seen from the wharf, with the Craypot café's distinctive colour scheme.
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Dawn HunterLooks beautiful. Lucky with the weather guys
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2 years ago

The ride out to Jackson Bay is at an easy tempo. We have two big rides ahead of us so few riders are keen to go all out today. I'm fortunate to join a small train, led out by one of our ebike riders. He sets an ideal pace, with the occasional photo stop. Nearing Jackson Bay, we spot Bruce who has dropped off his train to ride solo and enjoy the section of road that runs through native bush. He's a happy chappy!

Lunch is outdoors under sun umbrellas at the Craypot - whitebait fritters, brownie and coffee. As we keep saying to ourselves on this trip, it doesn't get much better than this!

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Today's ride: 48 km (30 miles)
Total: 625 km (388 miles)

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