On our rest day in the small village Manapouri we got the chance to visit the alpacas from Kepler Mountain View Alpacas. We booked a tour to learn some interesting key facts about those whooly guys and could feed and pet them. Afterwards we visited the yard sale of alpaca products and bought warm socks to prepare for more cold New Zealand “summer” nights in the tent. We did a little walk though the town to have some lunch and take some photos. But as we were still tired from the former day, we went to bed early to head over to Tuatapere the next day.
Southern scenic route to Tuatapere
We had to cylce back on the route that we came from and turn into another B-road to get to the Southern Scenic route. We started with perfect sunshine and the route was really quiet. For the first time we could just cycle on the asphalt without fearing for our lifes. We had a relaxed lunch break in the outside area of a closed school. Later on we passed the the historically important Clifden Suspension Bridge. There we had a nice coffee and ate some fries and bakery stuff from a foodtruck. While we enjoyed our meal the local officer chicken inspected our bikes but we were allowed to go on 😉.
After that stop the route got a bit boring with flat fields and not so much to see (only a lot of sheeps and cows…). In addition, the wind turned into a storm and it was really hard to cycle against it. But during late afternoon we finally arrived in Tuatapere and set up camp fast at the Tui Base Camp. We went for some fish burger over the street and treated ourselves some beers at the campsite bar.
What to do in Tuatapere?
On the day of our arrival we did not have so much time to explore the area. But on the next day we asked at the reception for some tipps and got a flyer for the Tuatapere Walkway. It was really tricky to get follow the description on that piece of paper but it was actually worth it. At some point we landed in the Tuatapere scenic Reserve. A paradise for bird watching and exploring the nature. We had a personal little companion: a Piwakawaka (Fantail) followed us around the woods and posed once in a while for the camera. He seemed to be really excited to meet us. Next to him a lot of Tui crossed our way and sang in their typical fantastic style. In the evening we bought some vegetables in the supermarket to use the cooking facilities of the campsite. It was again Pasta time!
Tour
Max elevation: 417 m
Min elevation: 25 m
Total climbing: 748 m
Total descent: -921 m
Average speed: 18.10 km/h
Total time: 06:54:43