I recently had the misfortune to take a 2 stop ride on the London Underground. The price for my five minutes in a Victorian cattle truck in a hole in the ground worked out at about £2 per mile. In contrast my whole day spent getting to NZ in the best technology the 21st century can muster cost a miserly 5p per mile. There is something terribly wrong with this!

Yes, I made it and I can confirm that it really is a terribly long way. My fourth and final plane delivered me to Kerikeri at about 5pm local time after almost 30 hours of flying. On this last brief flight I was befriended by a brit who now has a home in Kerikeri and he very kindly gave me a lift to my motel. This was fortunate because Kerikeri airport is not the sort of place to have a fleet of taxis waiting out front. The runway is paved…….other than that it was basically a small hut at the side of a field – apparently there isn’t even a control tower, the pilot just broadcasts loud and clear that he is coming in and hopes that anyone in the way is listening.

I managed to hold out until 8pm before crashing, having had 4 hours sleep in the previous 48. I slept like a baby – yes, I woke up with a pooey nappy. It is now 7am and I will shortly go in search of the tour bus that will take me to Cape Reinga and save myself the 120 bike ride that is the alternative. I am excited but nervous and can’t wait to get some miles done and re-establish the routine of life on the road.

The picture shows me loaded for bear and ready to go outside McDonalds – coffee and free wifi!
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