Life with the Redwoods

sat/sun.......

So, with me back in the roll of president of I.M.L (international man of leisure) there was only one way to kick start things: off for a mountainbike with a few familiar faces and one new one. Tom and James, myself and Chris (from Wellington, fellow Vorb member) packed ourselves into Tom's Subaru, strapped probably $30,000 worth of bikes to the bikerack and headed southeast to Hunua for a spin around the "low tracks"
The first thing we did was ride up a hill.
And then back down. So much for flat trails then.
Then along the river trail, I presume there is a river below the track then. I've never seen it.
Next was the usual ambling trails to the far end of the valley where Tom demonstrated not once, but three times how to gracefully go splat.
Chris hadn't ridden any of these trails before, nor the bike he was on, but thought the company was grand and the ride quite spiritual.
Or was it the coffee beforehand or the Sassy Red (beer) afterwards?
Sunday dawned much the same, Tom the taxi arrived, another new face (Mark the Canadian, from Canada), coffee and then back out to Hunua-but around the other side this time, for a little "off piste walking track riding" this time-Tom's infamous Mangatangi Dam ride.
Unfortunately the Ranger told us otherwise as per the sign saying "no mountainbikes"
As he said we couldn't ride up the hill, I politely asked if he could give us a lift up the hill instead. Not surprisingly he said no.
I insisted we had to go anyway as I had dropped my keys on the trail yesterday and we needed to go back and find them.
Next thing you know we have the bikes in the back of his ute and we get a free ride right to the top of the hill !
My legs have never felt so fresh for such a climb!
With a hearty thanks we left the ranger, didn't waste any time looking for the keys as they were in my Camelback the whole time and hooked into the downhill walking track for 4.5 km of fairly challenging trail back to where we started.
Sensational stuff.
While we were out, Emily was asleep because she stayed up till 9pm the night before and Keighley cooked up a storm in the kitchen - cake and cookies for our return.
No photos this time - can't get the card to talk to laptop at the mo. Better luck next time.
Oh, and Tom didn't bin it today.
But he did stick to the sheets last night.

posted by Redwoods @ 12:43 PM