A “tour de friends” cycling troupe came for the scenery and left with a deep appreciation for the kindness of the Tasman Bay locals.
The group of 41 friends, largely hailing from Christchurch but some with connections to the top of the south, spent three days traversing the 175km Great Taste Trail loop over Anzac Weekend.
Kaiteriteri bach owner Neil Walker spent close to a year stitching together the logistics, booking beds – a challenge at points for such a large group – and organising a trailer for bag transfers so that pedal power could prevail.
Neil says the self-funded troupe was made up of a mix of e-bikes and “muscle” bikes, and with an average age of early 60s and some members into their 70s, the group was on a mission to prove that experience was still a match for youth on two wheels.
Their adventure began in Little Kaiteriteri, where they hugged Tasman Bay to finish 65km later at Tahunanui Beach Holiday Park. Day two sent them south through the hops and orchards to Tapawera, while the final leg closed the loop back to Kaiteriteri via the Motueka River Valley – all beneath flawless blue skies that felt like an apology for Easter’s wash out.
Beds for 41 proved almost as challenging as the kilometres, Neil says. Kaiteriteri alone required two member owned houses, campground cabins and a line of caravans. Tāhunanui was easier, with everyone corralled into motel units, but tiny Tapawera took a community wide jigsaw: six at Kohatu’s Flat Rock Café, a full takeover of the Tapawera Hotel, a dozen at Tapawera Settle campground and two more in a nearby Airbnb.
Neil says the “amazing Tasman locals” showed their generosity over and over again. Fairfield Orchards donated two boxes of export-grade apples to fuel the peloton. Carol at Beachside Conference Centre happily catered for “only” 41 diners when her website required 50 plus, plating a superb first night feast.
