Completing the loop

From Nelson, I glided up Whangamoa hill and belted down to Pelorus, met Dave for moral support in Havelock, and was back in Renwick within the blink of a swiveled eye (102km). I had a relaxing new year and an early start out to Picton, catching the first ferry to Welly (40km).

That's a total of 1,345km over 14 days of cycling, and the liberal amount of off-days I afforded myself turned the endeavour into a pleasure. Putting things in perspective: The lunatics that enter the Lake Taupo Extreme Endro event do eight laps, which is the same distance in one sitting. The current record holder completed it in a mere 55hours. When would the poor guy find the time to blog?! Tasteful pictures? Thoughtful prose? I don't think so. The defining characteristics that differentiate these freaky heroes from plain nutters seems to be their natural disposition not to sleep nor feel pain. There is not enough anti-chafing cream on this planet to tempt the nether regions into such a folly, but it would have saved on accommodation.

It's been a rewarding adventure, providing the opportunity to reflect, relax and take a decent amount of holiday snaps. I have been observed communing with nature, speaking with animals and arguing amongst myself.

Roadkill update: No animals feature this time - at least not directly. The amount of rubbish in the verges of most roads I cycled was pretty bad. It is voluminous and, unfortunately, speaks volumes. I suspect that eco-tourists and the locals who publicly pick their noses and flick into their foot-well don't see the irony of ejecting cans, plastic wrappers and glass bottles into hedges.

Thanks: I'd like to take this opportunity to thank my unofficial sponsors: All the amazing people that I stayed with - it was great to catch up; The bakeries of New Zealand for producing sufficient quantities of steak and cheese pies; The Cookie Time corporation for their fortifying One Square Meal; The cycle gods for safe passage and no punctures.