The plan for today was to ride to Owaka, buy supplies for dinner and then continue for a few more kms to a pleasant holiday camp at Pounawea.  What I hadn’t realized is that this part of the route is very hilly, in fact it’s more than that, there are a least four serious climbs along the way. My legs by now are not much troubled by hills, but they do slow progress significantly.

I set out fairly early without eating; planning a return to the delightful Niagara Falls café, but when I arrived at around 9 am it wasn’t open.  So I elected to continue on to the McCleans Falls café, about 20 kms away. But within a few kms I found myself grinding up the first steep climb, and after a rapid descent, ground my way up a second steep climb to reach the café. This is another very pleasant spot, and I lingered long enough for a combined breakfast and lunch.

Approaching Papatowai I came to the third (Florence) hill, with a stunning outlook over the coast, and when I stopped for a coffee was informed that the biggest hill was still to come. And sure enough, soon after leaving Papatowai the road began to rise, and continued on relentlessly for km after a km.  Eventually after a series of false summits I finally reached the top and started a white-knuckle descent.

The final few kms in to Owaka were fairly flat, but by now my legs had had enough, and I decided to go no further. I took a room at the pub and revived with a couple of pints and a steak. 

The view from Florence Hill...