Alpine Crossing

Today is our first day on our Backroads tour. We met the 20 other travelers at the train station in Christchurch, then boarded the TranzAlpine train (note the ‘NZ’ they like to slip in whenever they can). We disembarked about 20 miles from the west coast and biked through constant rain for 20 miles. We rode through verdant farmland but didn’t stop for photos. Our hotel at the Arthur’s Pass National Park provided free dryers — whew! It took some work to get the water out of the shoes though.

The others on the tour are mostly pretty avid bicyclists, but they are all friendly and well-traveled, and interesting to talk with.

Shuttling up to the lodge after our ride, we were treated with some sunshine and a rainbow. A good omen for our next day!Read more