Kia ora, adventure seekers and armchair readers!
Meaningful bike trails, epic book sales, funny hike fails and super giant snails: it’s all been happening here. Where do I begin?
Back on the bike!
After seven months living at the ‘Top o’ the South’, Zoe and I finally took some bikes out on Tasman’s Great Taste Trail. It’s a mostly-flat, easy to follow cycle trail between Nelson, Kaiteriteri and Tapawera (this is the more challenging section, we didn’t do that bit) and makes stops at some fine Kiwi locations.
It’s suitable for e-bikes, acoustic bikes and anybody of reasonable fitness wanting to give cycling whirl in a largely road-free setting. Be warned, however, that the Nelson to Rabbit Island section once part-inspired me to cycle around the entire coast of Aotearoa. (And threw it back in my face with torrential rain when I came to do that part!)
Booked out
Talking of cycling the entire coastline, I am stoked (and a little teary) to tell you my book about that adventure, The Big Loop1, is now SOLD OUT in first edition form. There are currently no plans to bring it back into print2.
Luckily for you all, I am a total goof and trawled Trade Me for copies, so that you don’t have to! You can read about my interesting finds in this post. Or just search Trade Me for yourself.
Well-known book retailer Amazon also has a copy for sale, at the opportunistic and frankly unrealistic price of $302.14. Want to form a partnership with me selling them on Amazon? Apply in the comments.
In all seriousness, Christmas is just around the corner now and I still have some copies in my inventory. Hit me up if you want to secure one for Aunty E-bike or Dirtjumper Cousin Gregg.
Walking on snail shells
In my eyes, the greatest freedom is walking. But you’ve got to have range. Subscribers on my YouTube will know I recently set out to measure my range. I stepped out the front door and sought to see how far I could toddle in a day. A simple challenge, on paper at least.
Along with some worn foot pads, creaky knees on a hefty descent and an all-round level of confusion after ten hours on the trails, I clocked up 46 kilometres. A reasonable score for this ageing endoskeleton. You can watch the befuddlement slowly brew here:
In a more recent trip, I set out to find the summits of two very prominent maunga in the Nelson area. Saddle Hill (1210 metres) and its no-name sibling (1168 metres) are visible from lots of angles around the city. Lumpy, bumpy and neatly formed, they sit there looking all tempting, with their native bush crawling all over them. I see them and just want to get up there!
Unfortunately, some of the tracks were closed and following their unmaintained remnants proved difficult and slow. I did make it to the 1168. However, a second closed track stood between there and the car, so I opted to forego my chance at Saddle Hill and spend the remaining time battling that. It was the right call, since the gate my car was parked behind was locked at 5pm. I made it back with 15 minutes to spare. The track was incredibly overgrown, with missing markers and an array of obstacles, causing me to wander off-route on multiple times.
On the plus side, I stumbled across numerous shells of the Powelliphanta - the NZ giant snail. Some were even in un-cracked condition (pictured, top). It’s prompted me to research these beasts a bit and I’m amazed at what I found. According to DOC’s quick facts here:
they are carnivores that eat earthworms like noodles;
they are hermaphrodites that can mate with any other Powelliphanta;
and there’s a giant species found around Kahurangi National Park that can grow to 9cm across and weigh up to 90 grams!
Being furnished with this knowledge is a sweet reminder that adventure missions don’t have to depend on reaching a location. Sometimes learning a cool, new thing is enough.
Let’s go England
And, just like that, I’m in London. I’ve Brentered for the month. First time back in England since 2019 (BC - before Covid) and - aside from that gentle cruise to Fiji - my first time overseas in 4.5 years. Expect updates as I:
work through the entire Tesco vegan cheese range;
attempt a walk that is much further than 46 kilometres;
find the people camping in the local woods;
and visit all (not just some) of the legendary spots of my childhood.
Did you know, as kids, my mate and I found a bag of bullets stashed under a tree in our local park? That was an evening I’ll never forget. I wonder what that tree is doing now?
See ya,
Dx
Linked to Good Reads, in the hope you’ll click through and then spend more of your valuable time rating it. Only being honest!
I’m going to do everything humanly possible to get a second edition out, but for now, hold that copy tightly. Or stick it online at an exorbitant price!