Autumn in Central Otago

It was yet another clear day in the Maniatoto area.   It was a nice drive from Dansey’s Pass Hotel which is at the bottom of the road that takes you over the pass.   The road back to Naseby and Ranfurly is on relatively flat land with a landscape that is predominantly beige in colour.   Since January they have had so much significant rain and the parched landscape shows it.   In a stark way it is rather beautiful especially in the morning light.   Bev's new friend - an old sheep dog at the hotel We stopped at Ranfurly for a coffee and breakfast.   The village is like something out of the fifties apart from the mostly modern utes of which there are many.   Life is slow and quiet apart from the infrequent travellers and of course the riders from the cycle trail.   There is a wonderful little museum there full of retro memorabilia and well worth a look. Music from the era adds to the atmosphere. Near Naseby in the early morning Our primary de...

  We had a slow start as it was cold outside.   After breakfast we wandered around Clyde.   There are some very nice cafés and as the sun was out there were a lot of people sitting outside drinking coffee. There was one large group of women cyclists who looked like they were out for the morning because when we went past about an hour later they were still there enjoying themselves.   The undertakers I had in mind that I might get some dried apricots which I knew were along Earnscleugh Road but the place was not to be found.   We continued along the road and a sign said Black Ridge Wines were open.   I remembered the vineyard as it was featured on Country Calendar a couple of decades ago.   The then owner had used dynamite to create the holes in which to plant vines and was a pioneer of wines in the district.   The residence at Black Ridge We received a lovely welcome from Pam who ran the shop.   She took us through a t...

  At one point during the night, I woke up and heard what I thought was a little critter scampering across the bedroom.   Then there was the crunching sound of something near my head.   By the time I woke for good this morning I was convinced that a rat had taken up lodgings in my cycling gear in the drawer beside my bed.   I was even sure I could smell the rat’s urine.   So it was with some trepidation that   I gathered the courage to open the drawer expecting a grey furry animal be either snarling at me or more likely leaping out of the comfort of my smelly cycling gear.   I took out each item slowly but fortunately no creature emerged and the urine smell was definitely a function of my overactive imagination. The Hotel   In contrast to the previous day it was overcast, windy and quite cool.   After breakfast we went for a ride through the village of Ophir and a little further along to the Ophir Bridge which is a suspen...

We awoke to another clear crisp day.   We packed our bags and then walked to the car rental depot to pick up our vehicle.   I had one or two problems getting the car due to credit card problems which did not allow me to pay a bond for some peculiar reason. Eventually we were able to get the car but I had to get a different level of insurance.   Irritating and more expensive but otherwise it solved the problem.     We had a lovely trip to Clyde.   The colours of autumn were on full display for us and contrasted brilliantly against the stark grey and brown landscape.   Bev got carried away with the camera clicking off photo after photo.   The Cromwell basin was shrouded in fog but as we drove into the Cromwell Gorge the fog dissipated.   For us the most interesting part was seeing the new Dunstan Cycle trail that follows the gorge. It looks quite challenging with some potentially decent climbs.   It will make it ...

  Autumn down south for our trip looked promising except for Tuesday when showers were predicted.   After a wonderful trip to Queenstown during the summer we thought we might have a look at the area during winter.     It took a little while to decide on the itinerary but in the end we decided on a night in Queenstown and then two days doing the first section of the Otago Central Rail Trail, then a night at Dansey’s Pass, with the final day spent in Cromwell, Wanaka and the final night in Queenstown.   A quick trip!   The weather for the trip looked promising although, Tuesday (our second day on the cycle trail) looked to be a little wet. We decided that would not be a deterrent!   Our flight south (although slightly delayed to due to congestion on the tarmac in Queenstown) was perfect.   The Southern Alps had a sprinkling of snow on them which had them looking stunning.   The lakes were all showing their beautiful colours. ...