The Shaky Isles Challenge is a self-supported bikepacking route that crosses the length of the country. The route is gravel focussed, and takes in some of the countries most challenging and remote terrain. Stella recently took on the South Island portion of the route, and has captured the experience below:
Day 1
As all great adventures do, this one started out being hit by an overweight baggage fee at the airport. This did little to dampen the trip excitement but definitely made me question if packing an extra pair of socks was the right decision. Hearing a lot of chatter about high winds I was stoked to make it into Invercargill on the last flight that didnāt get hit with a cancellation for the day. Such strong winds made for a speedy blast down to Bluff, a quick and blustery stop at the lookout then a solid grind back north. Just before rolling into Gore night fell along with a bucketing of rain, so there was a fairly soggy dinner munching on some wraps on a bench outside the new world getting some bizarre looks from the locals.
Day 2
Trading the winds for the cold Southland weather everyone had warned me of I wrapped up and set off to explore some proper rural Aotearoa. The endless rolling gravel roads and waving at the farmers up towards Roxburgh really opened my eyes to the expanse of farming and backroads that make up so much of our country. With a good refuel and a quizzical podcast queued up, I started the beautiful climb out of the valley and into the misty tussock country. Near the top of the hill I passed a sign saying the road is closed to motor vehicles over winter and for another month, this both filled me with joy to be on my bike and fear for the condition of the road. Those fears were soon justified as I topped the hill and got great views across lake Onslow and a look ahead at the muddy tracks Iād be pushing through. Hoping to get over the range and drop off the hill to avoid sub zero temps overnight I kept alternating between walking and actually riding through the mud. There was an incredible moment as the sun was setting where I could see the silhouettes of deer running along the ridgeline, super special to be up in such awesome places! Once the sun was too low I went to turn on my bike light, only to discover it didnāt want to play ball. I could get it to work for about 5 seconds before it would turn itself off and have a fit. I decided to push on as best I could, following the faint outlines of a gravel road and blindly trusting my gps. After almost riding into a gate I called it a night and hunkered in for a cold sleep. It was a quick, coordinated process to get the tent up, curl up with my water and half working electronics before smashing back some wraps and dozing off.
Day 3
After a fairly restless sleep, waking up to try and pull my sleeping bag tighter all night I was ready to hit the road and see some sights I missed in the dark last night. I quickly discovered my socks which I hung on the tent had turned into popsicles (probably not tasty ones either) but thankfully the last minute decision to bring an extra pair of socks paid off! There were some more icy complications with the bike that required some de-icing but I was soon on my way. The muddy roads from last night had become significantly faster and more enjoyable to ride as they had frozen solid which made for a speedy run out to Ranfurly. With a good cafe stop to re-motivate myself and indulge in some avo on toast, I dried out and got a good resupply in. There was a quick ride across to Naseby before heading up over Danseys Pass. Honestly an incredibly beautiful area, just an awesome climb up through a tussock valley with a little creek trickling below. There was a touch of snow as I entered the mist right at the top of the pass which made for a little treat before a wet descent into the next valley over. The last ~30km for the day followed the A2O trail up the valley to Kurow, a lovely little gravel track that runs alongside the road, however it also has hundreds of mini cattlestops. I stupidly made the mistake of trying to turn through one as I was zipping along which ended up with the ground underneath me rather than my bike :/ Decided a hotel in Kurow would be a justifiable choice for the night to dry out and get a solid sleep.
Day 4
Bit of a slow start to the day with my mind still lying in the comfy bed and while my body started riding up the Hakataramea valley. I soon stopped for a roadside dance and a redbull to get myself amped for the day, this worked a treat as I was soon rolling along, all smiles in awe of the mountains on all sides. The morning continued with a climb that gently wound up towards the Tekapo Basin, with a good pinch at the end to pop over the saddle. It was a stunning descent seeing the area from an angle thatās not just the main highway and getting a bit more context about the geography of the area. My time in the basin was short lived as I was soon out over the Mackenzie Pass and trading the mountains for hills, then the hills for the flat as I wound out towards Geraldine.
Day 5
This is where I departed the Shaky Isles route to head into Christchurch to see some friends and family. The day started off rather disappointingly as my headphones wouldnāt play my music or podcasts as the port on my phone was gunked up. It could be a pretty slow day across the famously interesting Canterbury plains with nothing to entertain me. I did the first section to Ashburton entertaining myself by checking out the farms and dodging the swooping magpies. I can finally empathise with my mum who claimed to be swooped everyday on her ātrekā to school, it's pretty damn scary having a magpie divebomb you again and again! I stopped at the first phone store in Ashburton and spent too much money to have my phone port cleaned out and the adapter replaced but I regained my podcasts so I didnāt have a care in the world. The second part of the day was relatively uneventful apart from more magpies and a scary ride across the Rakaia bridge. My pretty sore legs eventually got me into Christchurch to crash at my Brotherās place and get a couple days of good rest in.
Day 6
I restarted the journey slightly later in the day than intended, feeling mildly tired and dusty but I was back on the road and thatās the important part. Thankfully the ride across the plains was relatively speedy and I was in the legendary Darfield Bakery in no time scoffing down some pies. From there I found the Shaky Isles route again at the turn off to Lake Coleridge and I was soon on some awesome gravel roads heading into the mountains again. I absolutely loved the ride round the back before popping out on the main road at Lake Lyndon. Iād always wondered what was down that way, so to peep behind the curtain was quite exciting! The ride up past Caste Hill was pretty stunning as the sunset on the mountains turned the snow pink and the sky orange. I ended up at Lake Pearson for the night leaving the last chunk over Arthurs Pass for the morning.
Day 7
Getting up early to dodge the traffic was definitely the move, even if a cold one. Before long I was enjoying a pie in Athurās Pass village then biking up the last section to the saddle. The polarising change in both climate and environment as I dropped off the saddle was even more intense than I expected. Within minutes of starting the descent I had left the sun behind and was amongst the misty drizzly weather. The forests just towered over each side of the valley with the mist wrapping around the trees very elegantly. The trucks quickly caught up to me as I hit the flatter sections down in the west coast, thankfully they mostly gave polite honks as soon as they saw me so I could pull off the narrow roads. Soon in fashion with the rest of the route I turned off to some awesome gravel backroads winding through the wops. The wet gravel roads made for a perfect blend to grind into my derailleur, I gave up attempting to wipe it down pretty quickly and just gave it a proper spruce up when I met the sealed roads again. From there I made my way up to Reefton, a surprisingly big town in the middle of nowhere. Went to the fish and chip shop for dinner but they were somehow out of fish so ended up with a burger.
Day 8
Started off by packing down a pretty wet tent after a lot of rain overnight. The rain continued through the morning until the inverse of Athurās Pass happened and I popped out at a sunny Springs Junction. I never fully understood why everyone said the West Coast was so wet but Iām now convinced without a doubt and wondering if they ever actually get to see the sun over there? Big shoutout to the Springs Junction gas station for providing an unreal coffee and pie to give me a re-up while I dried out and warmed up. The ride up to Murchison was a good one, mostly staying off the main road with some gravel backroads that had the right amount of up and down to give them a bit of flow. Leaving Murchison I knew I had two ridges to climb over and should be all good to make it to St Arnaud before the shops closed. The first road over the ridge (the Braeburn track) was actually closed but the construction workers said I could sneak through on a bike. There mustāve been a pretty major storm through there recently, theyāre doing some pretty major repairs to some crazy storm damage. The second ridge came to be more of an adventure than expected, on the map it just looks like a solid 500m slog up the hill, something where you just get into a rhythm and grind your way up. Turns out itās slightly more intense than that and itās a pretty solid walk most of the way up. After popping out on the main road to St Arnaud I realised Iād made slightly slower time than expected and I was gonna have to haul it up the road to make the fish and chip shop on time for closing. I was pushing pretty hard into some reserves I didnāt know I had with such sore legs but managed to pull through and make it 10 minutes before closing for a wonderful hot dinner!
Day 9
Unfortunately I had run out of time and needed to make my ferry. I left the route behind and opted to go down the valley to Blenheim and Picton. The gravel back road was closed so it was straight down the main road for me. This may genuinely be the most boring road in the country, I donāt know how it's so long and so repetitive. I was blessed with a tailwind and when combined with the gentle slope of the valley it makes for a super speedy run, still kinda boring though. Feeling pretty knackered with an extended lunch stop in Renwick before pushing on up this cool new trail to keep me off the main roads through to Picton. Unbelievably stoked with the trip it was incredible to get out to see some new corners of the country that I didnāt even know existed!