Length of the South - Day Four

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Route 

Burkes Pass to Sheffield via Fairlie, Geraldine and the inland scenic route (SH 72).

Day 4 Map

Distance: 190    Cumulative: 745

Final adjustments before leaving Burkes Pass Township

It’s a clear sky but misty further down the valley as Sally drops me at a quiet Burkes Pass township for a 0720 hrs departure. It’s a quick and cool trip down valley to Fairlie (21km) then onto Geraldine (46km further) at 1000 hrs - by when it has cleared into a warm and cloudless morning. Geraldine shows all the hall marks of an intersection on the tourist trail with buses and souvenir shops. Sally catches up soon after for a roadside comparison of intentions.

The day heats up and the straights get longer. The high point is stopping at Mayfield, where a couple of Austrian cycle tourists are sitting outside a café. We compare notes: they are taking their time and have travelled through Australia and the North Island (including Whangamomona) and are heading down the South Island to come up the West Coast. She is delighted to hear that Slope Point is the southernmost point of the Island and that they will no longer need to visit Bluff; he still wants to see it though, as he can’t believe it is bad as he has been told. I refrain from comment but note that SH 1 at that point is pretty cycle unfriendly.

They are interested in my lightweight rig but as they are living on the road have to carry a lot more, and have more heavy duty gear, including internal hub gearing. This almost halves their daily mileage, but man they must be fit. The break is longer then needed and the day scorching hot when I set out again.

Hot and dry. Head down on the Canterbury plains

Sally stops by near Pudding Hill (near Methven) and I stretch a point by accepting cold water. It’s dry and hot with a strong head wind and precious few towns to break the monotony, so a good excuse to sit under a tree for a bit.

Still on the Canterbury plains

Moving again but still in Canterbury

Rakaia Gorge marks the end of the long, gradual uphill from Geraldine. It has its share of folk enjoying the river and scenery and I decide not to take the option of turning left up Zig Zag Rd for Acheron and Porters Pass.

The final leg for the day is the push to Sheffield into a head wind. There’s a few more towns (Glentunnel, Coalgate) which give an excuse to pause and rest. Another cyclist stops, he’s heading towards Queenstown with a pretty casual bike set up. I recommend a dip in the Rakaia, which I should have done. A hitchhiker walking in the opposite direction stops for a chat and it turns out later that he also chatted to Sally, who is waiting up the road a bit.

Finally, Sheffield at 1900 hrs and it’s quits for the day. Sally has booked in at a pretty standard motel in Oxford so we chuck the bike on the car and head there. I’m in a pretty poor state and nauseous from the heat, and not eating and drinking properly, so stay in the unit drinking cold water and trying to force down pasta. Also lying on my front due to … well, it’s a bit of a low point.

Options 

I couldn't find realistic options through this stretch that avoided sealed roads and interminable straights. There were a number of possibilities but most involved looping out and coming back to the main road not much further on. I had intended to follow the Rakaia River up to Acheron and back over Porters Pass, but in the end was a bit fed up with Canterbury and decided just to push on up the road to Sheffield. This stretch of the Island is why it is a strong option to take the West Coast despite the amount of tarseal involved there – it’s less busy and better scenery than the Canterbury Plains.

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