Timber Trail

Riding the Timber Trail in March was a great pre-wedding anniversary weekend away for Tom and I.  It was a beautiful, social ride, through a variety of country side.  The first morning saw a decent climb through beautiful bush, followed by a nice flowing descent.  At the top, the call of a trig station less than an hours walk away was too great, and I found myself stomping along in cycle shoes to the top with Tom and Chris.

It struck me about 15 minutes into the walk, that I had committed myself to not only keeping up with these boys on the walk, but managing the rest of the days riding and catching up with the rest of the crew who had continued on bikes.

Brilliant to bag a trig - and some nice views also.

The next hour or so's riding was fairly intense though, with both Tom and Chris being fit, male, and  competitive.  Initially we were just ticking along, but then one of them zoomed up behind the other on a downhill, and then it was race on.  A low key race, and I'm sure they'd say they were just riding, but they resembled a couple of boisterous puppies rarking each other up in sections.  This left me, pushing consistently hard, trying to keep up and catch up.  One classic moment with Tom in the front saw him heading for a track, before realising it was actually a drain and he was about to miss a corner.  Brakes squealing, he couldn't recover, into the ditch, for Chris to take the corner and take off.




While the riding was great, possibly this trip will be remembered for dinner?  Will definitely travel with Manu, Chris, Kate and Duncan again, although I may need masterchef lessons first.  Intake was definitely more than enough fuel for the second days riding.  :) 

Day two saw a lot more gravel road cycling, not quite as interesting as the first day, and a more gentle rhythm to ease ourselves into.  Surprisingly, getting back on my bike wasn't as painful as I thought it might be, the legs felt fairly fresh and the seat still had some cushioning!

Gorgeous bush covered valleys with these amazing suspension bridges in the middle of nowhere.  Unfortunately, my fear of heights dictates that I ride these bridges with my eyes resolutely on the wheel in front, no looking into the vortex for me!  Ongarue spiral was also very impressive,

Brilliant ride, I'll go back again for this one.