Mileage: 165
Wind wind go away, come again another...actually, I don't care when you come back, just not when I'm riding. Thanks, much appreciated.
Today dawned with crystal clear blue skies and wind, lots of wind. I didn't check the wind speed but I wouldn't be surprised if they were 35-40 mph winds with gusts up to 50 mph. It got pretty hairy in some parts.
I was pretty excited because this morning I get to go on the Lord of the Rings tour! Woohoo! A quick breakfast at a local cafe bakery of poached eggs and toast with a latte (no bacon thank goodness) and we headed off. It was a nice change to not be in a hurry to hop on the bike and be able take a leisurely stroll across town, which took all of 8 minutes.
There were four of us on the tour, Matt, myself and two Aussies. We all hopped into a van and the lady took us first to the river where Gandalf was racing to Minas Tirith. This was the river he splashed through on his journey:
We then drove over to the field where they filmed much of the Battle of the Pelennor Fields.
I took this video to show just how vast this area was.
The tour was really cool in that she had a dvd of the film and showed us exactly where specific scenes were shot and how mountains were superimposed into the final production. She also brought replicas of the gear they used in the film.
Then she got us dressed up to re-enact some of the scenes. The first was the battle scene of the Rohirim charging the orcs on the Pelennor Fields. We were all screaming "DEATH!!!"
I got to kill the Matt the Witch King, haha!
Then we dressed up as orcs. Dorky, yes but entertaining as hell.
After we had our fun at the tour, we headed to Mt. Cook. The wind was insane and I was very happy to be on my 500 lb beast. Even so, I got knocked around quite a bit. The view was worth being tossed around. The road to Mt. Cook snakes around the West side of Lake Pukaki. The tour guide for LOTR shared that the water looked pale blue or white because of the glacier rocks that got pummeled into bits as the water melted and took them down to the lake. It was beautiful and I took plenty of photos.
Lake Pukaki filled with glacier water
About 3 miles from our final destination on Mt. Cook, the road led into a mountain pass that looked ominous. Not only do we still have ridiculous winds but there was literally a curtain of rain across the entrance to the pass. We decided not to venture any further and turned around. In this pic, you can see the haze between the two mountains where the road headed.
We turned around and headed for Wanaka. The ride was similar to yesterdays in the long sweeper, vast valleys surround by mountains on all sides and rolling hills. Beautiful. We arrived in Wanaka around 3:30pm and checked into my timeshare. It was pure luxury, especially after being in hostels for the last week. I don't have to use my micro fleece towel! I can unpack! I have a room bigger than a closet...I HAVE a closet!
Wanaka is definitely a tourist town but I don't mind. It's situation on Lake Wanaka and surrounded by beautiful rugged peaks on all sides. The condo is a mile outside of town and about 600 sq ft. Tomorrow we have the longest ride of the trip, 324 miles. Tonight, I finally have a comfy bed....ZZZzzzz....
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