Hokitika to Haast

I left Hokitika with a very nice feeling and just I was singing on the road with myself and so happy to have some nice stuff to thing about.

There was about 120km to Frenz Josef glacier and I was thinking about visiting the glacier. It is one of a hundreds of nice spots which are worth to visit in beautiful New Zealand. I was planning to cycle about 85 km and get close to the glacier and a on the next day cycle there and a day after that visiting the glacier and having one day rest there.

After cycling about 63km I was passing a lake a very beautiful lake and just I stopped by the lake for a few minutes and then began to cycle again. Just after one km I told myself, hey where are you going to? The lake was so nice and it is great staying there over the night and just being relax by the lake. I was struggling about that and finally I found that camping on the lake side is so nice and just I u-turned. It was still 3pm and I had plenty of time to sit on the sunshine and enjoy the warmth of sun having a tea. I slept there overnight and the following day I cycled to Frenz Josef glacier. I arrived there about 4pm and I found a lodge which had a place for tent for 10$. It was fine and I was happy to have a place to stay overnight.( specially with free soup in the evening).

I was thinking about visiting the glacier and I needed some stuff to walk on the ice like ice axe and crampon and I don’t have them. There is no place I could rent them and just I could make it by a guide and I had to pay 100$ for 4 hours walking on the ice and for sure I am not even thinking about that. in my country I climbed too many mountains and I was enough on the snow and ice and I walked a lot on the ice BUT I would like to visit that glacier which is just near the bush. In the morning I packed my bags and after I dried my tent just I left my bicycle and bags in front of the lodge and I left there for walk on the glacier. I met a guy from Holland and we decided to walk together. He already had walked that route a day before and he knew the way. There was plenty of sign boards to warn the danger to stop the individual trekkers for going farther. But we didn’t pay attention to all those signs and we continued walking.( however I am a mountain climber and I know my ability and I am aware about my skills and also aware about the danger of walking without crampon on the blue ice and I was not going to do any risk). The guides were trying to stop us but we didn’t care and we continued to the place that the blue ice was showing off. Before that was just melted ice and very easy to walk in that time of day and we did but we didn’t continued on the blue ice to keep from the danger away. We sat there on the big stone and had a sandwich and then began to come down through the same way we had climbed.

We came back and just we had lunch together and I left there about 3:40pm for Fox glacier.

I knew that there is a lake near Fox glacier that during the day the reflection of mount Cook is on the lake and it makes a very nice picture. So I decided to visit that. I had 35kmto ride but a very big hill ahead and that hill took me a long time and I faced with darkness and cold as well. Just when sun go away the temperature has a collapse and there is a big difference between day and night. I have a very cold nights here. It was dark and I still was cycling, I was so cold and my hands were not able to push the breaks. I had so much pain in my fingers and I had to continue to find a place to stay. Finally I arrived there and my body was just shaking. That night was such a bloody cold night and fortunately I found a roof just on the beginning the track to the lake. I pitched my tent and when I finished that I threw my bags inside and I went inside. Still was feeling so cold and my hands were getting worse after touching the Aluminum stuff of my tent and just I made a tea and sneaked inside the sleeping bag. I couldn’t come out even for washing my teeth and just I slept. In the morning when I woke up I felt much better and I made a Indian tea and began to pack the bags and tent to have enough time to visit the reflection of mount Cook on the lake.

I was there about 9am but still soon for having the shadow, so I waited one more hour and finally I left there by 10am for the south.

I had 120km to Haast and I knew I cant make in one day. Here the days are so short and I cant cycle as much as I used to do in south east Asia. Here I can cycle about 85km a day, however here is quit hilly and not easy as the roads in Indonesia were. Also there is another problem here which is having a wet tent every day in the morning. Due to frost the tent is wet everyday and it takes me a long time to dry it every morning. Also sun is coming out around 7:30 and till 9am is very cold. so usually I began to ride around 9:30am and some time even later.

In that day I cycled about 80km and I found a nice lake and just I stopped by the lake to sleep there. I was thinking if the lake is nice and if I had a sunny day I will stay one more day just relax by the lake but when I woke up in the morning my tent was completely wet and the weather was not very fine and cloudy. So I decided to leave there and drying the tent took my 2 hours and just I left around 12.

On the last day after having some hills and some beautiful look out for the beaches I arrived to Haast where I am right now there and I saw that after few days I need a shower and a warm and big meal to eat and give some energy to my muscles, so just I took a dorm and after a 7min warm shower( for each 7min having hot water you have to put a coin to the box to have the hot water) I made a very nice spaghetti and now I am writing my stories to update my website. Just I met another cyclist from Spain. She is traveling alone and now she is riding around the NZ for a couple of weeks. I am going to cycle on the roads she has already cycled and she got very nice advices for me. Thanks Marta for her advices.

5 June 2008

هوكي تيكا به هاست

هوكي تيكا رو با احساس خيلي خوبي ترك كردم٬ در مسير با خودم آواز مي خوندم و خيلي خوشحال بودم كه چيزهاي بسيارخوبي دارم تا بهشون فكر كنم. حدود 120 كيلومتر تا يخچال طبيعي فرنز جوزف مونده بود ومن داشتم در مورد ديدن اونجا فكر مي كردم. اين يكي از صدها نقطه زيبا در نيوزلند زيباست كه ارزش ديدن رو دارند. داشتم برنامه ريزي مي كردم كه 85 كيلومتر ركاب بزنم و به يخچال نزديك بشم و روز بعد تا خود اونجا برم و روز بعدش ازيخچال بازديد كنم و استراحتي هم داشته باشم. بعد از حدود 63 كيلومتراز يك درياچه گذشتم٬ يك درياچه خيلي زيبا و براي دقايقي اونجا ايستادم و بعد دوباره شروع كردم به ركاب زدن. بعد از 1 كيلومتر با خودم گفتم هي كجا داري مي ري؟ درياچه خيلي قشنگ بود و عالي مي شه كه شب رو اونجا بموني و كنارش آرامش بگيري. با خودم كشمكش داشتم تا بالاخره به اين نتيجه رسيدم كه چادر زدن كنار درياچه عاليه و دور زدم. هنوز 3 ظهر بود و كلي وقت داشتم تا زير نور آفتاب بشينم و در حالي كه چاي مي خورم از گرماي آفتاب لذت ببرم.

شب اونجا خوابيدم و روز بعد به سمت يخچال فرنز جوزف راه افتادم. حدود 4 بعد از ظهر اونجا رسيدم و مهمانسرايي ديدم كه محلي براي چادر زدن در ازاي 10 دلار داشت. خوب بود و من خوشحال بودم كه جايي براي موندن طي شب دارم. ( مخصوصا با سوپ رايگان درعصر). داشتم فكر مي كردم برم و يخچال رو ببينم٬ يك مقدار وسايل براي راه رفتن روي يخ لازم داشتم مثل تبر و قلاب مخصوص يخ نوردي و اونها رو نداشتم. جايي نيست تا بتونم اينها رو اجاره بگيرم و فقط مي تونستم با پرداخت 100 دلار براي 4 ساعت يك راهنما بگيرم و مطمئنا حتي در موردش فكر هم نمي كنم. در كشورم از كوههاي زيادي بالا رفته ام و به اندازه كافي دربرف و يخ بوده ام و خيلي روي يخ راه رفته ام ولي دوست داشتم اون يخچال رو كه دقيقا نزديك بته ها و گياهان بود رو ببينم. صبح كيف هام رو جمع كردم و بعد از اينكه چادرم رو خشك كردم كوله ها و دوچرخه ام رو رو به روي كلبه گذاشتم و اونجا رو براي قدم زدن روي يخچال ترك كردم. بعد يك نفر هلندي رو ديدم و تصميم گرفتيم با هم بريم. او روز قبل اون مسير رو رفته بود و راه رو بلد بود. اونجا تعداد زيادي تابلوي اخطار دهنده نصب شده بود تا خطر رو هشدار بدهند و مسافران انفرادي رو از دورتر رفتن منصرف كنند اما ما بدون توجه به اون همه تابلو به راه خودمون ادامه داديم. ( به هر صورت من يك كوهنوردم و توانايي هاي خودم رو مي شناسم و از مهارت خودم خبر دارم و همين طور مي دونم كه راه رفتن بر يخ آبي بدون قلاب خطرناكه و تصميم نداشتم ريسك كنم. ) راهنماها مي خواستند ما رو ازرفتن منصرف كنند اما ما توجه نكرديم و ادامه داديم تا به جايي رسيديم كه يخ آبي نمايان شد. قبل از اون فقط يخ آب شده بود و در اون موقع روز خيلي آسون بود كه راه بري و ما هم رفتيم اما ديگه روي يخ آبي نرفتيم تا از خطر دور بمونيم. ما اونجا روي يك سنگ بزرگ نشستيم و ساندويچ خورديم و بعد شروع كرديم به پايين اومدن از همون راهي كه بالا رفته بوديم. ما برگشتيم و با همديگه ناهار خورديم و من اونجا رو حدود 3.40 بعد از ظهربه سمت يخچال فاكس ترك كردم. مي دونستم كه نزديك يخچال فاكس رودخونه اي هست كه انعكاس كوه ماونت كوك در طول روز برآن تصويرخيلي زيبايي مي سازه. پس تصميم گرفتم اونجا رو ببينم. 35 كيلومتر براي ركاب زدن داشتم اما تپه خيلي بزرگي سر راهم بود و كلي وقتم رو گرفت ومن به تاريكي و سرما خوردم. زماني كه خورشيد ناپديد شد٬ دماي هوا افت  پيدا كرد اونجا فرق زيادي بين شب و روز هست. من شبهاي بسيار سردي رو اينجا داشتم. هوا تاريك شده بود و من همچنان ركاب مي زدم٬ خيلي سردم بود و دستانم قادر نبودند ترمزها روبگيرند. درد خيلي زيادي در انگشتانم داشتم و مجبور بودم ادامه بدم تا جايي براي موندن پيدا كنم. بالاخره درحالي كه بدنم مي لرزيد به اونجا رسيدم. اون شب ٬ شب بسيار سخت و سردي بود و خوشبختانه سرپناهي در ابتداي مسير درياچه پيدا كردم. چادرم رو برپا كردم و بعد ازاينكه تموم شد كيف هام رو پرت كردم داخلش و خودم هم رفتم تو. همچنان احساس سرماي شديدي مي كردم و دستانم بعد از لمس قسمت هاي آلومينيومي چادر٬ بدتر شده بودند و من تنها چاي درست كردم و خزيدم تو كيسه خوابم. حتي نتونستم براي مسواك زدن بيرون بيام و خوابيدم. صبح وقتي از خواب بيدار شدم احساس كردم خيلي بهترم و چاي هندي درست كردم و شروع كردم به بستن كيف ها و چادر تا وقت كافي براي تماشاي انعكاس تصوير ماونت كوك روي درياچه داشته باشم.

من ساعت 9 صبح اونجا بودم اما هنوز براي افتادن سايه زود بود٬ بنا براين يك ساعت ديگه صبر كردم و بالاخره ساعت 10 اونجا رو به سمت جنوب ترك كردم.

120 كيلومتر تا هاست مونده بود و مي دونستم نمي تونم يك روزه اينكار رو بكنم. روزهاي اينجا خيلي كوتاه هستند و من نمي تونم همون قدر كه در جنوب شرق آسيا ركاب مي زدم٬ ركاب بزنم. اينجا حدود 85 كبلومتر در روز مي تونم ركاب بزنم٬ همين طور اينجا تپه هاي زيادي داره و به آسوني جاده هاي اندونزي نيست. همچنين مشكل ديگه اي هست و اون اينه كه چادرم هر روز صبح خيسه. به خاطر مه صبحگاهي چادرهر روزخيس مي شه و هر روز صبح كلي وقت منو مي گيره تا خشكش كنم.  خورشيد هم نزديك 7.30 بيرون مياد و تا 9 صبح هوا خيلي سرده. بنابراين من معمولا حدود 9.30 يا حتي ديرتر شروع مي كنم به ركاب زدن.

اون روز حدود 80 كيلومتر ركاب زدم و يك درياچه زيبا پيدا كردم و توقف كردم تا همون جا بخوابم. داشتم فكر مي كردم اگه درياچه زيبا باشه و هوا هم آفتابي بشه٬ يك روز ديگه اونجا مي مونم و استراحت مي كنم اما صبح كه از خواب بيدار شدم چادرم كاملا خيس شده بود و هوا هم خيلي خوب نبود و ابري شده بود. براي همين تصميم گرفتم ازاونجا برم و چون خشك كردن چادر 2 ساعت از وقتم رو گرفت حدود 12 راه افتادم.

روز آخر بعد از اينكه چند تا تپه رو رد كردم و چند تا چشم انداز زيبا از سواحل رو هم ديدم٬ وارد هاست شدم جايي كه همين الان هستم و ديدم كه بعد از چند روز احتياج به حمام و يك وعده غذاي زياد و گرم براي خوردن و انرژي دادن به عضلاتم دارم٬ براي همين اتاقي گرفتم و بعد از يك حمام 7 دقيقه اي ( براي هر7 دقيقه آب داغ شما بايد سكه اي در صندوق بياندازيد ) ماكاروني خيلي خوبي درست كردم و حالا دارم ماجراهام رو مي نويسم تا سايتم رو به روز كنم.فقط اينكه يك دوچرخه سوار ديگه رو هم ديدم كه اهل اسپانيا بود و تنها سفر مي كرد و الان يكي دو هفته است كه در نيوزلند ركاب مي زنه. من قراره كه در همون جاده هايي كه او رفته ركاب بزنم و او نكات مفيدي در اين رابطه براي من داشت. ممنونم از مارتا براي توصيه هاش