We've been wanting to do the West Coast Wilderness Trail for a while & had a holiday booked for April 2020 so we could do it but along came the Covid-19 lock-down and we had to stay at home. Joyfully, whilst under lock-down, we noted that the week we had planned to do was wet everyday on the Coast. So thank you Jacinda &Ashley, we've been able to enjoy days of fine weather for cycling in June.
We travelled over on Friday - Caroline's birthday - after spending an hour at Heidi's gym class followed by the usual cuppa t the Mt Pleasant Centre. After confirming the passes were open we returned home for a shower back at home before packing the car quick smart & then we were off on our roadie to Hokitika. 
Went via West Melton so we could have a bite to eat at the French style cafe there ... always yummy treats there!! As we neared Porter's Pass it was obvious that there had been a good snow fall but the road was clear so the journey over the top was easy ... there was absolutely no snow from just before Castle Hill onward so the storm must have just touched the eastern side of the Alps. Stopped at Arthur's Pass for a cuppa - gawd awful!! How can such an amazing place have such terrible cafes!?
Arrived into Hokitika around 4.30 & checked into the Hokitika Beachfront Hotel. Threw bags in the room then headed straight over to the beach to watch the sunset. Delicious hues! Lots of others doing the same. Walked all round the town to find the Thai Takeaway caravan .... the smell of coal fires was almost overpowering .... and once we did we sat at a picnic table out front of the i-Site to eat. Well wrapped up against the chill I might add! 
It was still sunny in Kumara so we spent a bit of time reading the history boards on the main street. Reminded me that 'King Dick' - RJS - was not a particularly nice person really despite his longevity as PM. He could be quite misogynistic & was not kind to the Chinese - one of the boards explained how he ensured one Chinese market gardener was removed from his land. Anyway, Kumara is very proud to have him as one of their founding fathers alongside many other stalwarts & well-known families of the community over time.
The evening was spent in the hotel reading & watching TV. Didn't bother to dine out as not much to choose from for vegetarians & had plenty of victuals of our own to keep the wolf from the door.
Sunday .... the shortest day of the year. We headed off by 9.30 on our bikes from the hotel heading to Lake Kaniere. The first few kms following the Kaniere Tram Road is just delightful as it's pretty flat with a number of historical info boards dotted along the way (I love these whilst Caroline gets a little bored by them!).
It was very chilly & a bit dull cycling the road bit to Hurunui Jacks (13.7km from Hokitika; watch for icy roads of a winter morning) where we were able to turn off the road & begin a really interesting leg following the Kaniere Water Race hand dug during 1875 .... they really were tough buggers in those days!! We couldn't ride this bit too fast as the track was narrow with a steep drop off into the deep water race on one side & down the bank on the other side.... I didn't fancy a chilly bath!
Just before the 83km marker I noticed I'd lost my odometer & my Free West Papua badge .... bugger (We scanned the path on the way back but I only managed to retrieve the badge!) so I was no longer able to record our actual distance. Never mind (feeling quite peeved as have had this odo for years & clocked up heaps of kms. BooHoo!) ....we checked out the beaut vistas of Lake Kaniere before heading through a lovely bit of bush along the gravel road to Milltown (does that place even exist!?).
The view down to the Arahura River was gorgeous - the river running clear & blue over white gravels. We stopped for lunch at 1pm just past the 69km post overlooking the river. From there we turned back to make it back to Hokitika before the Stella cafe & cheesery closed at 3.30pm .....I recommend their cheese scones & they make an excellent almond milk hot chocolate!
All up a 60.2km return trip.
That evening we thought we'd eat out at the local Indian restaurant, Priya, but after sitting for 5min at a table with no one coming out to greet us, despite the fact they saw us enter, we left. We walked across the street to the Chinese EastEat for an aubergine & rice meal. Yummy but not cheap. Returned to hotel for cuppa & C's birthday cake before heading to Regent Cinema to watch The Assistant ... we were the only ones in the very comfortable theatre ....not an easy movie to watch!!
Monday: After yet another hearty hotel breakfast we packed our car with gear & bikes & headed back along the same route as yesterday, parking the car at Milltown (still don't think it exists) where we could start the ride up a zig-zag trail to Cowboy Paradise.
While we were readying our bikes for the ride a cheeky weka tried to snatch anything we hadn't already attached - such a gorgeous creature with an intelligent eye. The ascent is a wonderful trail with just enough camber & twists in it to make it interesting - I looked forward to the ride back down. The bush we passed through is regenerating nicely though in parts it has been knocked around by slips caused by raging torrents of water - huge boulders mark the routes.
At the entrance to Cowboy Paradise it looks like extensive earthworks have been undertaken to ensure access to the place is maintained. The settlement is geared for shooting with rifle ranges all along the hillside whilst the cafe & accommodation overlook the view down the valley. We just rode right on through as nothing we'd heard from others who had stopped there previously had recommended it to us.
The ride to the pass & beyond it pretty special - if you do nothing else just do this bit from the Kawhaka Pass to Milltown Valley Road. The bush is lovely - old podocarp - and the electricity generation engineering is pretty interesting. At one of the intakes we heard a strange call & what did we see but a blue duck-whio couple enjoying a nap on the side. We stood watching them for a while until it was time to ride on in search of a sunny lunch spot. Lunch done we cycled back the way we had come, stopping to enjoy the mid-afternoon sun on the seat overlooking the Arahura ... finishing with the swooping descent to the car. A 28km return journey.
Drove back to Hokitika via the back road from Lake Kaniere. Stopped for a swing & paddle at Hans Bay (good DOC camping spot there) then followed the dirt road through the bush coming out onto farmland of the Kokatahi Flats. Loved the bush & the waterfalls (Dorothy Falls) we saw on our way through. Again saw the obvious results of severe flooding not that long ago - must cost a bit each year to keep these routs open.
Back in Hokitika we bought some supplies at New World before heading south to Ross where we stayed at the Top 10 campground in a pod. Another wonderful sunset. Comfy night .
Tuesday was a 'rest' day. We ate a leisurely breakfast after a walk on the beach. Left the pod about 10.45 to drive to Treetops Walkway down the road .... I managed just beyond the first information point before I bottled due to my fear of heights. Caroline continued on while I spent my time looking more closely at the plants & trees near the exit to the walkway. A fair bit of rata in flower. While waited for C to return I was kept company by piwakawaka, silvereyes & at least one riroriro. Whole thing well done with great information signs. View over Lake Mahinapua is delightful as is the one up to the mountains. Ate lunch there - a hearty soup. Sunny sitting outside - had to strip back to one layer it got so warm! Must have been 17C ... we have been so lucky with the weather.
Drove on to the Hokitika Gorge - startlingly blue water flowing over granite. DOC doing some great work to improve the facilities in the area & extending track. Would love to paddle the gorge.
Back into Hokitika to fill up with petrol & grab an ice-cream before heading to WC Scenic Waterways pickup point for twilight cruise. Gavin the owner & tour guide had a laconic manner but gave an excellent commentary about the history & ecology of the place. Had to correct him that it wasn't Jacinda who had set a high bar for cleaning up our rivers but the hard work of Eugenie Sage ... 4 other women on the cruise - all exploring NZ post lock-down taking up cheap deals to hire campervans! Loved the reflections on the tour - light play was fascinating. Well worth doing. Would come again in Summer & bring food for a later evening cruise.
After dinner we went for stroll on the beach & joined others round a fire - a perfect end to a great day.
Wednesday saw us arise late so we didn't set off until after 10am, driving to Mananui Tramway walk parking area then cycling out to the roadway where we cross to the pathway alongside the road into Hokitika. Had lunch at a picnic table next to the Scenic Waterways Retreat before returning along the same path - all up at 18km cycle in perfect weather. The trail is superb - through primeval and regenerating forest, past old diggings and timber mills with lovely side walk to Picnic Point where we skimmed stones across Lake Mahinapua. DOC have established a great boardwalk across an oft flooded wetland; good to get off the bike to have a decent shufti at the flora & fauna here.
We had hoped to have a cuppa at the Treetops cafe but by 2.15pm they already had their closed sign up as last visitors to the walkway allowed in 45mins before they close at 3pm (Winter hours). Onward back to Ross where we grabbed at icecream from the i-Site & museum shop to give us sustenance as we wandered the Goldfield Trail. The interpretation panels certainly gave one an idea of the tough but tenacious life those miners led. Definitely worth doing that 45 min walk.
We stopped at the Ross Dairy to buy a few supplies to supplement our baked beans dinner. Enjoyed another stunning sunset & a yarn round the beach fire, this time to a woman from Winnipeg & her Kiwi husband.
Thursday we cycled to the Treetops cafe for cuppa - took 1H to get there along the trail from Ross. Lots to read on the way about the timber days. I loved the old railcar, the route of which ended in 1972.
On our return journey Caroline got flat tyre just off the Totara Bridge so we took our picnic lunch on river's edge before walking back to the Top 10. I then cycled to end & had my photo taken within the WC Wilderness Trail frame. A 36km return trip.
We ended the day with a walk to the Chinese Miners' Memorial garden - unfinished but will be wonderful when done. We ate another enhanced baked beans/nachos meal - quite yummy. It was while we were looking at more detail of services in Ross that we realised that the Empire Hotel was in fact open and that they provided meals ..... mind you, not a lot of choice for vegetarians!! Would perhaps have ventured in had there been some welcoming sign outside - maybe next time we're in town & with some carnivore friends.
Another evening walk along the beach to watch our last sunset on the coast. The best yet and, surprisingly we saw a plane trail heading toward a sliver of moon.
Friday - This was a leisurely day as we headed to Hokitika for our last night on the coast. We stopped at Lake Mahinapua, walking to the wharf and then to Swimmer's Beach. We disturbed a couple of freedom campers & also saw a couple of other foreign tourists taking in the spectacular reflections on the lake..
Once in Hokitika we wandered round the town; bought gumboots, a head torch, a book (Aue) and ate lunch at Hokitika Sandwich. Visited a stone mat maker & bought a gift for our neighbours who were looking after our hens. That night we stayed night at Birdsong YHA - just five of us in residence enjoying the warmth of the fire. Mind you we did eat out at Kitchen after it was recommended to us. Totally delicious food & excellent service.
On our return to the hostel we enjoy chatting to the German couple who had chosen to stay in NZ after lockdown having arrived in the country at the beginning of March. They spent lockdown parked up behind a church in Geraldine; now they are exploring NZ in much greater detail than they expected. A six week holiday in NZ has become a 6 month stay as they are unable to travel onto Vanuatu, Japan & Kazakhstan (Silk Route?) as planned. They had expected that they could be called home as they're both doctors but seeing Germany had coped well with Covid they were not required so decided to continue with their year long sabbatical.
Saturday
The next morning we enjoyed a relaxed breakfast with the hope an early 'refreshment break' would be at the Kumara Junction cafe but sadly they were not open. On our way out of town we checked out the promotional billboard for the planned Kumara Chinese Garden (see design) - hopefully it will be started & completed at some stage otherwise the two lions will continue to stand as forlorn sentinels.
We stopped for an early lunch at Bealey Pub - a lovely sunny spot. And a really tasty vege soup.
From there the weather became progressively overcast until we arrived home in wet old Chch. Holiday over but what a blessed time we had.
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