Today’s ride up the East Coast on Highway 1 passes through the heart of the powerful 2016 earthquake. The roadway was extensively damaged and was opened to traffic only a short time before our trip. t was a demanding ride, but we were impressed with how well organized the repair effort was and, although we were halted several time for one-lane sections, it was never for long. An almost constant drizzle added to the adventure.
The further north we rode the more both the weather and the road improved. At Blenheim we turned west into New Zealand’s beautiful wine country.
Havlock NZ
Downtown Nelson
Beer sampler
On the road to Punakaiki
Punakaiki Resort
One of our rooms overlooking the ocean
The Pancake Rocks are an area along the Punakaiki shoreline of heavily eroded limestone with dramatic surge pools and blowholes.
A Punakaiki blowhole at high tide
Dinner at the Punakaiki Resport
Panorama of the beach in front of the resort.
Twilight campfire on the beach