Where to next?

So, from late October, it looks like I’ll be touring New Zealand on a pedal cycle, and once again, sleeping in my trusty little tent. Bugger; my poor old bones, but  the more I think about it, the more I’m getting used to the idea, and anyway, its either that or Shanks’ pony, so I’ll just do it.  Long story short, my funds are no more, donated to somebody who was in dire need. But no matter, as on the bright side, I will be able to eat whatever I like and still stay slim: yipee. ( if I can afford to eat that is, lol) Actually, I realised long ago that I don’t really need ( or want) very much to live, and the less I have to carry, the less I have to worry about.

I bought a pushie in Townsville a few weeks ago. It’s a basic trek hybrid thing which will do the job and wasn’t too expensive. It’s fairly light, has front suspension so my previously broken wrists will have a bit more comfort,. It also has quick release wheels, is easy to maintain, tools and repair kit are light, and its pretty but not too posh. I’ve got a helmet ( you have to wear one on the road anywhere in Aus; if you don’t, you get booked) and lights, a lock, and I’ll get a rack and two panniers, and that will be me sorted. Gerty will stay in Aus, but I will be back for her a few months after I leave.

I’ve even got a bit of a plan forming too, which is more prep than usual. If I keep my kit light, which should be easy given that I now own very little, I should be able to include the pushie in my check in luggage, providing that the whole lot comes to under 30kgs, and that I box the bike up, and thoroughly clean her before I do so. NZ won’t allow any Australian germs, soil or plant debris imported on tyres or frame. I’ve found a bike shop which will give me a box, and Air NZ  and Virgin Australia look quite accommodating on the bike in luggage front. 

So I’ll go from Brisbane to Auckland, then head north up to Whangarei. It will be spring in NZ and the north is the warmest bit of course, given that its all back to front and south of the equator. But I’ve sort of got used to seasons being in the wrong months, although Christmas in the heat of summer is till a complete no no for me. However, NZ has wild and dodgy weather just like the UK, so it could be cold, hot, wet, dry, windy, calm, who knows. But if I head north and then pedal south, I’ll have a better chance of getting better weather. I hope.

NZ is also quite hilly, ( mountainous actually) unlike Oz which apart from a bit of NSW, Vic and Tas, is flat. But that doesn’t matter, I wont be on a time limit and I’ll be quite flexible in terms of where I go, and I’ll quite happily get on a bus if I feel like it. The distances are also shorter than in Oz, so water and food won’t be such an issue as towns are closer together. 

I’ve found a couple of interesting looking routes to explore already, the Forgotten World highway and Gentle Annie, so they’re a must just because of their names. And while travelling around oz, I’ve met quite a few Kiwi’s who have told me to contact them once I’m  on Aeoteroan soil, and I will. That is one thing I  have really learnt since I’ve been travelling longterm, especially on my own; people mean it when they  say’ come and see us’. And if they don’t and I turn up, its down to them! The trick though is not to overstay of course.

Anyway, after NZ, my plan is to go to the Falkland Islands, via Chile. I’ll fly from NZ to Santiago, do a bit of Chile on the pushie if its still in one piece ( the bike that is), and then either get a boat from Punta Arenas down the bottom of SA to Stanley, or fly. Will have to wait and see how that pans out then with the Malvinas thing. I’d like to go by sea if possible, just because it would be cool, but a while ago, Chile was backing Argentina by blocking ships entering its ports if they had been to the Falklands. 

The Falkland Islands is one of those places I’ve always wanted to go, there and Zanzibar, but as Zanzibar is nowhere near the South Atlantic, then it will have to wait. I’ve got close-ish to it in the past but never landed on its soil. One for the future then.

But the best bit is that an RAF passenger plane goes between the Falklands and RAF Brize Norton, refuelling in the Azores. Civilians can use the service too, so if I can, I’ll head back to the UK on that as I have a few things to do and a few people to sort out back in Blighty. I'm not sure how the pushie will have held up by then or if I'll take her back to the UK with me. Might donate her to an unsuspecting local.  

Then I’ll either head back to the Falklands and NZ and onto OZ, or go to Canada, ride across it into the States and to San Fran, and then fly back to Oz from there. Or I might  carry on down the western coast of the Americas and back to Santiago, and then to NZ and OZ that way. All depends I guess on how things work out, how I feel, and other things that I need or want to do. That’s why being flexible with plans is so important; if they’re too rigid, you miss out on opportunities, but if they’re too fluffy, you end up not doing stuff either. I might even do a bit of walking and catching public transport. Not sure yet.

And I’ve decided to call the pushie Verity because its sounds like ‘veritas', which is what an old Italian bloke in Townsville exclaimed when he asked where I was heading on her and I said ‘ London. And Veritas was the mother of Virtue in Roman mythology, so why not.