Monday October 22, 2012, 45 miles (72 km) – Total so far: 326 miles (525 km)

We were on the road at 9:30 and shortly pulled over to put on our rain gear for the steady drizzle. It let up after a few hours just in time for our hill work. The very small town of Tasman had a general store so we stopped there for a quick sandwich and nice talk with the proprietor. We asked him which route (the coastal on inland) was better for cyclists. He said it didn’t matter because they are both full of hills – an honest answer indeed. We were soon in the larger town of Motueka which is the gateway to Abel Tasman National Park.

We continued on up a mountain road that seemed to go on forever. There was a couple hiking the narrow two lane road and they said we were on the right track. We both ended up walking as it was very steep. It was about 15 km through the Kaiteriteri Forest. Several mountain bikers passed us and we got a lot of “Good on you mate, that’s a good climb”. We finally leveled off at 750 feet then had an exhilarating ride down the other side into the coastal park. At the end of the road we found “The Barn” our backpacker for the next three nights. We checked in and were shown our tiny cabin. We both sat there and stared at each other and said this was cool.

Fortunately the office sold beer and a little bit of food. This area looks like a fun place to explore and Abel Tasman is New Zealand’s most adventurous national park.