Monday October 15, 2012, 25 miles (40 km) – Total so far: 91 miles (146 km)
>We were up early but I had forgotten about a Skype appointment with my wife Andee. I have never used Skype before and really wasn’t interested but Jocelyn did talk with her mom for quite a while. I was busy wanting to get on the road. So by the time we did pull out the sunny morning gave way to clouds and wind. I figured we didn’t have too far to go as it was only 20 miles to Hanmer Springs. It was a nice Monday morning but the weather was threatening so we didn’t stop much except for more sheep and cow pictures.
The climbing was easy to 1200 feet but the last few miles were very narrow and twisty. I’m glad we didn’t attempt this on the weekend. We rolled into Hanmer Springs around noon and found Hanmer Backpackers. It is a really laid back and cool place to stay. Since there is a lot to do here we decided to stay two nights. We also decided to lose the camping gear as it was really slowing us down. Besides it is too cold for camping. We mailed the rented gear back to Natural High and mailed whatever Jocelyn had brought out home to Florida. Traveling should be a lot easier now and we don’t want to miss anything. There are backpackers all over and they average $50 NZ ($40 US) for a twin room. I really like them and you meet so many interesting people from around the world. Good times.
