Lauren started this week with a couple rest days in Tirohanga, then heading down to Maraehako Bay where she witnessed the eruption of White Island.  The next day proved an extremely hard day, with long stretches of road and a wind storm strong enough to force her to walk her bike some of the way, this same wind also forcing her to stay an extra night in Hicks Bay. The rest of the week was far nicer, making her way down to Gisborne experiencing some decent climbs and beautiful scenery. Looking ahead to next week, she starts with a drive to Napier before making her way down to Camden.

This week started with a drive from Gisborne to Napier, giving Lauren a chance to rest her legs and cover a decent amount of ground. After a great nights sleep in Napier she undertook one of the hardest days, with a length of 111km and an elevation of 974m she made her way down to Blackhead beach. She then made her way to Herbertville where she spent the night before catching a lift to Featherston to get the train to Wellington. After a night exploring, it was time to bid farewell to the North Island and jump onboard the Ferry heading to Picton. As the week comes to a close, Lauren looks to head south, still yet to determine whether or not to head to the West Coast after the flooding and road closure, but that will be a decision to be made after Christmas spent in Kaikoura.  

After catching a ferry to Picton, Lauren continued to Blairich Reserve via Blenheim. Through gravel, hills and a headwind, she made it unscathed. Blairich to Hamner over 3 nights was an amazing experience - hard but worth it - and she met some truly wonderful and helpful people who offered free rides up nasty hill climbs to the next camping sights. Lauren enjoyed a catch-up and coffee with James and his family before wolfing down a massive salad after days of nuts and dried fruit then a short peddle to the small town of Waiau to rest before tracking back the inland road to Kaikōura.  

After some long but great days over the inland road, from Waiau to Kaikōura, Lauren was quickly whisked away by a friend for some well-deserved rest days in Kaikōura. She took the train from Kaikōura to Christchurch and drank champagne before a smooth ride to Abby's family home on Christchurch's abundant cycleways. It was then on to Darfiled, Methven and Geraldine via some lovely flat - 'SO FLAT' - and straight roads. An eventful 'detoured' ride to avoid the traffic from Geraldine to Fairlie was to follow before the winds appeared again and Lauren opted to catch the bus to Twizel.