Wairarapa, 2010
Lake Ferry to Cape Palliser
and back
18 February, 2010
We had two nights at Lake Ferry, so we could leave our panniers behind for the
trip out to Cape Palliser and back.It was not long before we came across this obstacle.
A glorious view out towards Ngawi and the Cape (which is out of sight - way, way in
the distance) and a glorious steep descent - which we had to get back up later in the day!!!
Hmmmmm ....... we shouldn't upset it too much.
This part of the coast was very unstable.
And the unstability made for some interesting carving of the cliffs.
Riding along the shore of Palliser Bay, approaching Ngawi.
Ngawi - one of NZ's more distinctive fishing villages.
On a recent programme on National Radio a local said that Ngawi had three categories of people.
They were BH, BW or BT. This was translated to Born Here, Bloody Weekenders & Bloody Tourists.
We gave them another category : BCs.
Ngawi is famous for its bulldozers on the foreshore used for getting the fishing boats out of the water.
The dozer between Keith and JB was worth about $200k, and had an enormous trailer behind it.
View from the Cape Palliser lighthouse, looking back to the west.
There are about 250 steps to get you up to the light.
It does not look quite as steep from this angle.
The seals here were quite laid back - some more so than others - but the guy in the foreground
did not like JB getting too close..
The most southerly cyclists in the North Island - apart from the one taking the photo.
We asked a fisherman working on his boat if there was a coffee shop in Ngawi. He said there wasn't
but we would be very welcome at his home on our way back from the Cape.
So here we are with our hosts Bill and Pam who really spoiled us with tea and some great donuts.Much better than a coffee shop and far, far better than we could do ourselves.
Thank you for making our visit to Ngawi a memorable one.
Photos: John McK
Wairarapa Tour Photo Index Page
