The Big Pannier

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THE BIG PANNIER Paul Hughes a The Ocean Beach Track to Corner Creek Brian Johnston "Well", they said, "let's beat the Big Coast and do it as a porch, and then the ultimate experience, a bobby calf sneaky club trip". box. Have you ever tried eating your macaroons while hunched over in a fertile- smelling box that has a "You mean overnight camping on a bike!". I wouldn't lingering aroma of death? know how to ride a mountain bike with more than a halffull waterbottle on board, I travel real light. Down to the coast and along the surging surf to Corner Creek where it is in full flood and the others are eagerly From Wellington Railway station, we caught the train to beckoning from the other bank. In one plunges, so that Upper Hutt and disembarked in light drizzle, oh no! A all the gorse branches in the water can clog up the spokes quick slog up the Wallaceville Hill to remind us that it's and threaten to have you washed out to sea. not a doddle, then we cruise along the pleasant rural Mangaroa Valley to the Mangaroa Station, where we start We camped at Ocean Beach for a damp night. on the forgotten part of the Rimutaka incline. Up through pine trees, through the tunnel at "Tunnel Gully" Next day was superb, so it was off with the storm gear, practising seeing walls in the dark, and along through the out with the shorts, into the sand traps, across the sheltering pines to Kaitoke where we rejoin the highway flooded Mukamuka Stream and around this beautiful for a few honks before entering the real beginning of the coast. A quick stop to look at the oldest raised beach, Incline. followed by Barney's Whare, and it was lunch at Cape Turakirae upwind from the seals. A quick blast around to A gentle plod up the Incline to the Summit Station for a Coast Road and over the bridge, up and over the hill to breather reveals that the Wairarapa side looks like Fitzroy Bay and it's sweeping beach, and past the lakes to Struan's (the prince of rain) shade of weather. Various Pencarrow Head. torch arrangements were constructed before disappearing into the summit tunnel for the ultimate balancing act, Once we rounded Pencarrow Head we could see the end following someone's high tech blinking-rear-red-light of our safari in sight, and an all out race developed with that causes you to have an epileptic fit. Once heading the front pack of six keeping up speeds of 30 km per hour downhill we come to appreciate that panniers make wet before people started dropping off the bunch. Rob blew a brakes even more useless as Robbie decides to do a head fufu by sticking his pannier in his spokes byeeee!. A plant in Siberia Stream while following luckier riders. few bevvies on the terrace at "At The Bay" before we Then it's on to the big blast on wet grass, and as one departed on the ferry back to Wellington climaxed an speeds up, the holes where the sleepers once were start to eventful big weekend. vibrate your eyeballs out. So!, it does take a little more than a day, but it's one of After lunch in the shelter at the bottom, it's full-storm- the best off-road distance camping rides you can make gear time as we're off south past Lake Wairarapa in a around here. Try it! raging southerly. Stops were made in the old school