Saturday was my last day in Queenstown for riding on this trip and I wanted to make the most of it. We planned Friday night to get up early and try and get in as many runs before I had to head to the airport at mid afternoon.
I awoke to bird chirping, sunshine and blue skies at 8:30am it was straight to breaking down camp. No time to laze around. I packed up all my gear; tear down tent, prep bike for day of riding, find some clean clothes for flight and pack it into the car. Then it was into Bob’s Weigh for breakfast to charge the fuel tanks for a fun fuelled day of downhilling. After some eggs benny and a couple coffee’s it was off to the skyline for some riding.
We were first riders up on the day! Just like the other days it was non-stop action. We managed to squeak in 12 runs in just 4 hours. I wanted to hit each track at least once more and we easily did so. No crashes on the day either, which is always good for the last day of a bike trip. The bike gods were taking care of me!
At 2pm I had to get ready for my flight, so we went downtown to grab some lunch and then I went to the park to break down my bike and get myself ready for my flight. My mate left me at the park and he returned back up the hill to ride – lucky bastard. I broke down my bike for the airplane, changed out of dirty/stinky riding gear and into jeans and a t-shirt for my flight home and then caught a bus to the airport.
Once at the airport I checked my bags, had a celebratory beer, read my book and then it was time to board the plane. On board I easily fell asleep dreaming of returning back to Queenstown to ride once again. I should be back in Jan or Feb to ride again… it cant come soon enough.
With this trip now done it is time to start planning the next. So what is next on the ride radar? Of course there will be a tonne of rides around Auckland; Woodhill, Riverhead, Maraetai and hopefully Dome Valley. But I really want to make a long weekend trip to Rotorua and Taupo in the near future. Ive ridden Rotorua heaps, but Taupo is completely new to me so it’s on my ride radar!
The tracks in the morning were closed since it rained last night, which didn’t really bother me. After riding a full day prior a half day up the hill was sounding pretty good. The morning consisted of eating day old Indian for breakie, cleaning and checking my bike and finishing my book. Nice chill way to start the day – let the body rest before thrashing it again!
At 11:30am we headed into Queenstown to grab a lunch at Bob’s Weigh – my favorite café in Queenstown. You will also get a good coffee and feed at Bob’s! All fuelled up off to the skyline to huss some tracks.
We got out first ride in around 12:30 and managed to get 12 runs in throughout the half-day. Same as the other days; we rode everything. I did manage to have a pretty good crash on Rock Garden. Somehow I went over the bars and head first into the ground. I was pretty lucky not to hurt my neck and am now considering getting one of those neck braces for riding DH – probably a smart move. Our plan was too meet up with a mate at 5pm who was willing to show us a bit of the Fern Hill Loop. You can access it from the trails with a bit of pushing the bike. We met at the bottom of the track at 5pm and hit up a couple of runs together. There were 4 of us, which was pretty sweet. On a couple of tracks we all broke off and headed different routes which pretty cool seeing all these guys rolling together and then all of sudden they flick off in different directions – it reminded me of a bike movie. We waited until the last run up the skyline to head up the Fern Hill Loop. This way we would have an extended day of riding, which is always good!
The push up was about half-hour and being that it was the end of the day it felt like an hour. There was even a river crossing in the middle. The track was steep, rooty & rocky – similar to craigieburn. It was all native bush so lots of beach trees, which means a tonne of roots and slippery ness. Walking up it and seeing what I would be riding back down left a happy/nervous feeling in my gut – it will be fun but there is potential for a good crash ehehe. The thing with roots is they can spit your bike out from underneath you very easily. To ride them you want lots of speed and to be light on the bike so you sort of just skip a long the top of them. Fun eh! After the exhausting push up we had a bit of a breather taking in the amazing view and then it was time to ride. Helmet on, goggles in place, drop in and start hussing. All the apprehension that I felt walking up was instantly gone. My bike was just skipping a long the tops of the roots and the suspension was getting a full work out as I tried to keep up with my mates. A couple of times the back of my bike went sideways, but I always managed to stay on it and keep rolling. Exhilarating! What an amazing trail. I think it is better then some in the park. Definitely worth the push up.
Once back at the car it was time for a beer and then we headed off to Fergburger for a feed. This time I got the Cod Burger… good as! Definitely give it a go! After the feed it was back home for a couple more beers and then bed. Another exhausting, but epic day!
My prayers were answered and I awoke to blue skies and sunshine on Wednesday. The lifts weren’t opening until 1pm, so I lazed around as long as I could at the hostel and then went back to the library to jump on a computer and read.
At about noon I headed back to the hostel, changed into my riding gear, built up the bike and then it was off to the skyline for an afternoon of riding. Being that it was mid-week there wasn’t too many people out riding so no waiting to get on the skyline! Last time I was down I managed 12 runs in a half day so that is what I was shooting for.
My mate wasn’t arriving until the evening so I rode solo just getting used to the speed of riding downhill again. Around Auckland it is mostly single track so it does take a few runs to get used to flying down a hill with trees, roots, rocks and drops all over the place. I warmed up on Hammy’s track, which is the easiest, but one of the most fun trails. It is pretty wide trail, but it littered with HUGE berms, lips, tabletops and jumps to pop off of. Also hit up Vertigo, Armageddon, Original, Shit Sandwich and Thingymajig. I managed to get in 11 runs in about 4.5 hours. Not bad, just one short of my goal of the day.
At 6pm the skyline stops taking mountain bikers up as it gets pretty dark in the forest, so my day was done. Complete success, no crashes just heaps if fun. My mate arrived just at 6pm and met me at the bottom of the hill as I was coming off the trail. He was all geared out and ready to get up the hill, but he missed the last run of the day.
Hungry from riding we hit up Fergburger for a feed and then we head out to our accommodation to set-up our tents. We are staying on a mate’s front lawn about 20 mins outside of Queenstown. The location is stunning – over looking the lake surrounded by the mountains! One of my favourite things about this place is the outdoor shower. Nothing beats a steaming hot shower while gazing up at the stars.
Since my mate didn’t get any laps in he was itching to ride so we quickly tossed up our tents and headed out to 7 mile to get some runs in. We were told of a short cut to the trail head, but in typical fashion we ended up in the middle bush just making our own track through the bush. We ended up going to high in elevation and had to ride our way down which was an adventure in itself. We soon found our desired track; Kochong, which is one of the best tracks at 7 mile as it is super flowy with jumps. We were able to get in 3 laps as the sun fell. Once back at home we drank some well deserved beer. I was beat and was wondering how my body was going to feel the next day. I had a full day of downhill a head of me… fawk yah!
What an epic day – 11 laps at the bike park, 3 laps at 7-mile. Sweet!
I took some time off this week to head down to Queenstown and do some downhill mountain biking on the skyline. As usual it was an early flight, I like to make the most of my time off so I usually fly really freak’n early to maximise my time riding. Well this time it didn’t quite pan out! I flew into some real shit weather. We are talking about a southerly that has just covered the entire country – cold, wet and windy. Not ideal for riding. When it rains hard and the ground is muddy and soft it is best to stay off the tracks since you just end up destroying! So my day was a wash. The skyline wasn’t taking bikers up, so what was I supposed to do with my time?
Yes Queenstown is the adventure capital of the world and there is heaps to do, but when you don’t want to do a bungy, jump in a speed boat or get drunk there isn’t a lot going on especially on shit weather days. So what do I do? I go the library and read. I spent 3 hours at the library and then another two at a café reading and chilling. It’s like when people go to tropical spots to rest on the beach and read… Well I didn’t have the nice weather, but I read.
By mid avro I checked into my hostel and continued reading. I’ve pretty much polished off my book, which is – ‘two seats left’ the story of contiki travel. Good read! I also hit up the local book shop to read and cruise through some magazines. Also I sent a couple post cards… I didn’t bring my lap top so jumping online isn’t readily available. Now I am just praying for blue skies, sun and dry trails!
I guess my question to you is – what do you do when you are travelling and the weather has gone to hell? Also got any good books you can recommend?
It’s been pretty wet in NZ lately! All this rain has kept me inside, meaning I can work a some new videos. I recently took the video camera out to Woodhill Bike Park to shoot one of my favorite trails, Afterglow. It’s a 2 min downish single track ride packed with lots of berms… sweet!
20 year old Kiwi Jed Mildon pulled of the worlds first triple back-flip on a bmx over the weekend in Taupo. Looks like kiwi’s can fly and from what Jed has said, this is only the begining. Who knows how big this kiwi will go in the future.
The best time to visit Arrowtown is in the fall. The colour of the leaves reminds me of Canada.
After my bunge and canyon swing I met up with a mate from Auckland and we checked into the the Queenstown Nomads for the night. We grabbed a case of beer from the grocery store and sat on the balcony drinking and talking about the plans for the long weekend. For dinner we hit up Sombrero’s, a shitty mexican restaurant in the heart of the town. The service was shit, the food was average and the prices were outrageous. Never go to Sombrero’s! We had a couple more beers out on the town and then headed back to the hostel.
The alarm sounded at 7:30am and it was going to be a busy day. Michelle was flying in from Auckland at 8:30am so that gave us a enough time to pack up our bags and drive to the airport. A coffee at the airport later and Michelle had arrived. We loaded our packs into the trunk and headed back into Queenstown. We wondered around town and the lake front for a couple hours and then headed off to Arrowtown.
Arrowtown is an old gold mining town founded in the mid 1800’s. When the gold ran out it became a farm service town. Although the population declined after the gold rush it soon became a popular holiday destination. Now Arrowowtown is a popular tourist destination and one of the fastest growing communities if all of New Zealand.
This town is as pretty as they come. All of the buildings have kept the original style, so it really takes you back in time. The town is situated a long a river and is renowned for its Oaks, Sycamores, Cork Elms and Ashes trees. These trees are not native to the area, but were planted by the early English and Irish settlers who missed the landscape of home and planted trees in 1867. What is great about Arrowtown is that it experiences seasons! Fall here is amazing. All of the trees turn yellow and orange and the the hill sides look stunning. It is a beautiful town and definitely worth a stop on your travels in New Zealand.
Arrowtown Bakery... good eats and treats!
We wandered through town and chilled out by the river. It has to be one of my favourite little towns in New Zealand. You have to hit up the bakery for some great bake goods and pastry. They had really tasty pies and deserts which we snacked on for lunch before we hit the road to our next stop, Mossburn.
One of my mates spots.. great place to have beer and take in the beautiful day!
On our way to Mossburn we hit up some backroads and went to one of my mates favourite secret spots a long the shotover river. It was super picturesque and another great place to stop, take some photos, chillout and have a beer! Nothing beats travelling with a local! You get away from the tourists and see hidden gems like this.
Mossburn is a sleep country village with a pub, hotel, dairy and that is pretty much it. If you were to blink you would miss it. It is here where we would spend the night with my mates brother who works in the area. The reason for staying in Mossburn is that we had a cruise booked in Milford Sound the next morning and it is half way in between Queenstown and Milford, saving us 2 hour drive in the morning and of course the cost of a nights accommodation. The evening was filled with beers, rugby and and endless ribbing of being Jafa’s (just another fucking aucklander). It’s kind of like home where the rest of Canada hates on Toronto. NZ doesn’t like Auckland unless you live in Auckland.. something’s are universal I guess – hatred towards the ‘big city’. It was a fun and entertaining night with a bunch of kiwi’s taking the piss out of each other while watching rugby. There is nothing more of an authentic kiwi evening than that – it was a great!
How do you start your day when you are visiting Queenstown, New Zealand? How about jumping off a 134 meter bridge and following it with the worlds largest canyon swing.. sound good? That is exactly how I started my day in Queenstown. First I headed into the A.J. Hackett office and registered for the bungy and canyon swing and then it’s a waiting game. They have videos playing of all of their jump locations and free use of computers so you can facebook all your mates around the world letting them know that you are about to do something extremely adrenalin filled.
Once you board the bus, the driver pokes a little fun at the situation, puts on some tunes and then it is off to the Nevis Valley. The ride takes roughly 40 minutes and the bus was pretty quiet, a nervous silence you could say. You could see the fear in the eyes of some and excitement in others. I was pretty stoked and a wee bit nervous too.
Upon arrival to the jump location you are briefed, geared out with a harness and then it is time to head out in a cable car to reach the jump pod which is hanging over the Nevis Valley. It’s high, really high! Once in the jump pod the fun begins. People get twitchy and even a little funny. Tears, laughter and excitement and is a common site. You sit and watch as people toss themselves from the jump pod. It is great to watch and then it’s your turn. I personally love doing bungy’s. They feel extremely safe to me and are a great shot of adrenalin. It’s crazy how plunging toward the earth with the ground rushing towards you makes you feel a live.
After the bungy it was off to do the worlds largest canyon swing. This was awesome. You first get to walk across a seriously wicked suspension bridge that sways with the wind! Since I had did the Nevis first, they said I should do it upside down and backwards.. sounds good to me! Strapped in, wave to the camera and then whoosh you are off screaming through the valley at mind blowing speeds.
Both the bungy and canyon swings are a must do! If it isn’t on your bucket list, added it! New Zealand is the home of the bungy, so you must do at least one while here and with the largest canyon swing right there why wouldn’t ya make it a doubele shot of adrenalin! Thanks Queenstown for the new addiction – my name is Mike and I am a adrenalin addict!
Is the Canadian Moose somewhere out there in Fiordland, New Zealand?
In 1910 ten Canadian Moose were introduced to Fiordland’s Supper Cove in New Zealand. The conditions werent as good as thought and it is said the moose had all died with the last sighting was to be in 1952.
Over the years there has been ‘sightings’, bedding spots & antlers found, hair tested for DNA and plenty of tracks, but no photographic proof has ever come of it. I for one hope the Canadian moose have eluded everyone overtime. In a week I will be down in Fiordland and with any luck I may get some photographic proof which could net me $100,000! Hallenstines, a mens clothing store is offering $100,000 for a photo of the elusive Canadian moose wandering around Fiordland.
Woke up way to early – 5:30am. Not sure why as the hostel was quiet, but for some reason I was up. I watched The Big Lebowski and managed to doze back off to sleep around 7ish. I woke up at 8:30 and packed my bags. I then dropped it in the storage room and headed off to find a coffee.
At 10am I was first mountain biker on the gondola and up the hill! I knew that I wouldn’t get the full morning session in as I had to break down my bike and get to the airport by mid afternoon, but I was hoping to get in at least 10 runs.
I started the day by riding Hammy’s track twice… what a fun trail! It is so wide open that you really don’t have to worry about crashing. It is not technical, just fun! I did see one mountain biker run into a tree, wrecking the front wheel and dislocating his shoulder. Shitty for him it was only his 2nd run down and he came up from Christchurch for the weekend. If you didn’t know – Moon Man, Ken Ring predicted that another earthquake would hitting Christchurch around the 20th of May, so a lot of locals left Christchurch trying to avoid another major shake. There was never another quake, but I did meet quiet a few mountain bikers from Christchurch in Queenstown. To me he was just being a fear monger!
I did a circuit of tracks like earlier in the week. Vertigo, Hammy’s, Ants, Thingymajig, The Oringinal, Shit Sandwhich.. I was taking advantage of all the amazing downhill tracks before I had to pack up.
The end of my riding came too soon. By 2pm I had managed to get my 10 runs in and it was time to head back to Nomads and grab my backpack. I then headed to Fergberger for one last amazing feast! I love that place! I took my burger to the park across from the bus pick up ate it and then broke down my bike, changed out of my riding gear and repacked by backpack.
I was at the airport only a ½ hour before my flight, not a good idea when flying with a bike. In the end I made it on my flight and I was off back to Auckland after 5 days of glorious downhilling!
Even if you do not downhill mountain bike you should give it a go in Queenstown. It will cost you roughly $100 for a full suspension downhill rig, full protection gear and your lift ticket for half a day. Queenstown is the adventure capital of New Zealand, so while you are there bungee jumping, sky diving, canyon swinging you may as well huss down a hill on a bike! You never know you may just love it!
