Mokau to new Plymouth 85 km

Mokau to new Plymouth  85 km

As I was packing up my camp part of the tent ripped - most likely from uv damage from the heavy use it gets - time to start looking for a new tent : ( - tents tends to last me around 3-12 months of use before they need replacing

Leaving mokau I have some rolling hills to ride over be for the road heads inland to climb up to the Mt message tunnel - OK who's idea was it to put a tunnel on top of the hill instead of putting it at the bottom of the hill (so I don't have to climb the said hill : )

Some where just before the hill should be a small shop (never did find it) I take my time climbing up the big hill - most of the time I'm going the other way over this hill when I come this way  - at the top I stop for a few photos before enjoying the winding down hill on the other side of the road tunnel - I did see in the museum that they was looking as rebuilding the road to go around the hill the road climbs - seems to me it would be a high cost to - save 4 mins (as if 4? Mins is a big savings on a road that takes a few hours to go anywhere) as for accidents most seem to be caused by the drivers not so much the road so a new road may not be any safer any way - no matter how short a trip there will always be some one trying to get there faster (offer speeding /or driving too fast for the weather /state of the road) - but that's just my opinion : )

Heading out towards the coast I look out for the next few shops listed on my notes - it's not until I get to urenui (30 km north of new Plymouth) that I see a shop - not sure what happened to the other shops listed

After a look around town including seeing a bike covered in yarn (yarn bombing?)  I stop for some food before a older man on a bike (that I passed heading up the hill into town) comes up to chat to me - at first he's ok then he starts talking about some crazy idea about how people should be farming and some thing about cross's upsetting the world and how this need to change (in other words he soon lost me what he was saying as he pointed at so papers? ) after trying to give me the papers (what I in a nice way said no to the went off some where else  ( Diplomacy is the art of telling someone to go to Hell in such a way that they looks forward to the journey!")  why do I get the crazy ones when ever I'm trying to eat - maybe I need to ride faster  : )

Then it's time to get back on the bike as I still got 30 or so km to go today  - there's a few more rolling hills before I get to bell block  where I head of S.H.3 to get some food and head on to the coast pathway that will take me to the camp ground that I'm staying at tonight - it's a nice ride along the pathway as the sun sets  - getting to the camp ground I set up camp for the night