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Start Christchurch Only:
Your guide will collect you from a central Christchurch location around 8am (details will be advised closer to departure), before having a tour briefing and bike fitting. The bike trailer is then loaded with a departure soon after. You'll pick up lunch along the way in Geraldine before you start the cycle programme with a quiet ride alongside the Tekapo canal system with spectacular views of Mt Cook and the Southern Alps. Crossing over the Lindis Pass you descend down to Cromwell and travel alongside the scenic river gorge before arriving at the railhead at Clyde. The rest of the afternoon will be free to explore this old gold mining town or meander along some alternative cycle trails. Enjoy the first group dinner tonight. Cycling distance: 22kms/14 miles
Includes dinner.
Start Queenstown Only:
Your guide will collect you from a central Queenstown location around 8am (details will be advised closer to departure), before having a tour briefing and bike fitting. Then it's time to explore the newly establish Queenstown trails. You'll cycle from the historic township of Arrowtown through to the rugged Gibbston Valley, passing the famous Kawarau Gorge bungy bridge. You'll stop for lunch in Cromwell and travel alongside the scenic river gorge before arriving at the railhead at Clyde. The rest of the afternoon will be free to explore this old gold mining town or meander along some alternative cycle trails. In the evening you'll enjoy sampling some local boutique wines at a vineyard in Clyde before heading out to the first group dinner. Cycling distance: 35 kms/22 miles.
Includes dinner.
The Rail Trail riding starts today as you leave town across the flat rural countryside.
From Chatto Creek the trail starts to rise before leveling off to Omakau where you stop for lunch. You are then driven around the quaint township of Ophir and to the top of the Raggedy Range to get a bird’s eye view of the trail and the surrounding regions.
After lunch the remaining 9kms flow under the wheels until you arrive at Lauder. Late afternoon you will take a drive to the historic gold mining village, St. Bathans, for a walk around the beautiful Blue Lake. This evening it is time for a relaxing beer and a game of pool at the local pub before dinner.
Includes breakfast and dinner.
Today you ride through the first two tunnels and two rail bridges on the trip. With the willow tree-edged gorge below the trail and welcoming pools beckoning, you finally emerge into the scenic Idaburn valley. Here you stop for a visit to the Hayes Engineering works, where some of New Zealand's first industrial farm equipment was invented. The stop is also perfectly located to fuel up with a hearty lunch at their cafe before your afternoon ride.
One last short easy climb takes you to the highest point of the trail and the beginning of the downhill descent that takes you to the art deco township of Ranfurly. You’ll have some free time in the afternoon to relax, stroll around Ranfurly or catch up on some washing!
Around 4:30pm you are driven out to Naseby – a small foresting township, just off the trail. Here you have the option of trying your skills at curling: bowls on ice. This is a lot of fun and is the only dedicated curling rink in the Southern Hemisphere. If curling doesn't appeal, enjoying a relaxing pint at the iconic Royal Hotel, a walk around the village or in the forest plantation, are great alternatives. After the afternoon's activities you head back to Ranfurly for dinner and your night’s accommodation.
Includes breakfast and dinner.
It’s out of bed and back onto the bikes for your longest ride today, but it is some of the best riding on the trip.
From Waipiata the trail follows the edge of the old lake before entering the Taieri Gorge. The trail crosses through further tunnels and bridges before a fast downhill to the old hotel at Hyde. From here a final 27kms takes you past the scene of the famous Hyde rail disaster of 1943 and then out onto the rolling plains slowly descending into Middlemarch.
This is the end of the trail and time for a celebratory drink at a local cafe. However, the day is not yet finished - board the famous Taieri Express for a spectacular train ride through the gorge to Dunedin, the Edinburgh of New Zealand.
Your dinner tonight is a group celebration to acknowledge the 150kms of Rail Trail riding.
Includes breakfast and dinner.
The 58 kms of rail travel into Dunedin is rated as one of the world’s great rail trips, and is included in your trip cost. The 2 hour route traverses the Taieri Gorge travelling across high iron viaducts and tunnels.
All trains feature heritage carriages and you may have a viewing carriage on your trip. The train arrives at the historic Dunedin railway station at 6:30pm in time for a transfer to your accommodation.
You can ride some more today as we head north to Oamaru, leaving behind those who wish to finish in Dunedin. Before you depart Dunedin though, your first stop is Baldwin Street, reputedly the “steepest street in the world”, for a short but challenging early morning stroll!
Then you set off on the drive northwards, stopping enroute to visit the Moeraki Boulders.
From here you commence the final quiet 24km coastal ride, along the cliff tops and past farms, that takes you into Oamaru. You can wander around the old Victorian Precinct where the historic buildings have been restored creating a fascinating opportunity to explore the past and relax at local cafes.
After lunch you continue northwards and across the Canterbury Plains back to Christchurch, where your guide will drop you in the central city. The trip concludes on arrival at approx 6:00 pm.
Includes breakfast.
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