We left Queenstown on Saturday morning, via a nice gravel pathway along a river - I felt like a a 10 year old out riding bikes with a pack of pals! We did get a little confused as to where the route was while we were still in Queenstown, and had to ask a couple of real 10 year olds out scootering for directions. They were alarmed that we intended to go all the way to Clyde (96km away) and asked in all seriousness if we had tents! We managed to find our way to Clyde, and my only regret is Wayne and I had already ordered our dinner when we saw the chalkboard with specials - "Bluff oysters"! We missed out, but plan to enjoy lots of them at the next opportunity, whenever that may be. We are only 3 riding days away from Bluff and the end of the road!
Yesterday we started along the Otago Central Rail Trail - a perfect example of what a rail trail can be. Directional signs wherever they are needed, loads of informational signs, refurbished buildings, a few tunnels, and a nice unpaved but hard surface to ride on. Plus, little boxes every 10 km or so with a stamp to add to your rail trail passport. Or, you can cheap out and use your daily route instructions sheet, like we did. Despite the many bike tourists the rail trail brings in, we are definitely getting off the beaten track now, and the hotels are getting more and more interesting. Last night we were in Ranfurly, at the Ranfurly Lion hotel, whose claim to fame is its Art Deco design. Tonight we are in Middlemarch (fittingly, as Wayne pointed out today, as it is the middle of March). With bathrooms down the hall, and it is not a big enough hotel for all 25 of us to be in, so some are down the road at the motor camp cabins, and some are out back behind the hotel itself, in what looks like a container, divided up into three windowless rooms. So I am quite content to have a room with a window that opens a little bit!
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