Back on the Bike!

Well, the bike isn't fixed, but the nice bike mechanic let me borrow an old wheel that was sitting in the corner of the shop so we could go out for a day ride. Three days off the bike isn't a long time, especially in the middle of "winter", but when you are on a "bike trip" it seems like ages.

The day was beautiful. Sun was shining once again, the clouds continued to lift, and the air was cool - perfect for a ride. It felt wonderful to get back on two wheels and be able to explore outside of Wanaka. We headed back west... on the route we had come on a few days earlier by bus... but this time we had a chance to see our surroundings a bit more. And, of course, they were beautiful. We headed up to Lake Hawea and rode beside the lake for most of the ride. I couldn't pick a better backdrop to ride alongside. Once we approached the end of the lake and had enough ups and downs for one day, we turned around and headed back. Usually out and backs are a bit boring, but I was happy to ride the same route back home.

In fact, after riding just a bit, we pulled down a dirt road to stop, rest, snack, and enjoy the view some more. We pitched our bikes into some bushes and headed down a steep dirt slope to the rocky beach below. We took off our shoes and walked on the warm, smooth rocks down to the cool water. The view in front of us was spectacular. A lake of blue water rolling with ripples from the wind, still mountains in the distance, and a calm blue sky painted with fluffy white clouds. What's more, we had the beach all to ourselves. Not a person, nor boat, nor car could be seen or heard in any direction. I found a couple pieces of driftwood, made myself a seat at the edge of the lake and stretched my legs. I then took in the view before me and munched on some trail mix while the busy waves played with my feet.

While part of me could have stayed seated all day looking at the magnificence in front of me, the wind began to cool us and we decided to head back to our bikes. The road home was filled with the pleasant view of the lake. For a while, we also had a nice wind pushing us towards Wanaka, but soon it tried to push us off the road and then it tried to keep us out of Wanaka. The last 10k was quite a battle with the wind, but we made it safely back to the town that has become our home for a bit.

When we arrived to town, Mally and I pulled up to Lake Wanka and threw off our shirts for a swim. As I began to wade in and contemplate dunking myself into the cool water, Mally came running through, dove under the waves, and began flipping and performing headstands. It wasn't long until we were both immersed and enjoying the pleasant dip in the lake. Now that the clouds had lifted fully, we could see more and more hills in the distance and the peaks were capped with soft white snow. Ahhh... what a swim. As we began to cool off, we jumped on our bikes and made a dash back to our campsite for a warm shower.

We spent the rest of the evening wandering around town, picking up dinner, and reading by the lake. Being stuck in Wanaka is certainly not a bad thing. However, I still hope the courier comes tomorrow so that I can move on.