Havelock North is a charming small (10,000) town.....sculptures, flowers and upscale shops. We rented bikes for the day, excited to ride some 20 miles along the coast....pretty much toward the same area that we visited yesterday, but with some different wine stops along the way and a cafe about halfway. The young man at the bike shop gave us a map of the bike trails and sent us on our way, cautioning that they did not have a means of picking us up if something goes wrong.....but that they have a great hospital system.....a great place to be injured. .....no worries!
After approximately 45 minutes of total confusion, finding no route and completely lost, we (I) stop at this convenience store to ask directions...off again!
I am NOT kidding!!! Tom couldn't believe I would stop for THIS picture, as stressed as we were over losing our way.....quite funny, hysterical, in fact...I think dehydration is setting in.
This is as close as we came to a "bike path"....but we know now that this is not what the map means because most of the "path" is limestone and "off road".
Saw corn in the grocery few days ago at a cost of "4 for $4"
Tomatoes, but not staked!
Fresh fruit stand...check out the strawberries behind us! We got frozen raspberry ice cream....delicious! We are making the most of the day....still no "path"!
"Lost" is an understatement....we have been to the Splash Planet once already where, supposedly, we are to find the "path"......it is now 1.5 hours! Tom is convinced he knows where we are going....I follow....for another hour....He gets way ahead of me at one point and when I catch up, he looks like he is going to cry! "What's wrong?" He points to a road sign which read: Napier 10 kms......Napier is where our return cruise ship is gonna stop!!! We know for a FACT that it is 20 miles from Havelock North and we had no intention of going there! It is, in fact, the total opposite direction from our intended route! We start to backtrack....we are now 3 hours or more....
While Tom is getting directions from Vanessa, I take a few pictures of her gorgeous garden supply store.....she felt so sorry for us....even offered to load up our bikes and drive us back. It is nearly 80 degrees, the hottest day here in 6 weeks! We are sweating, but smiling....she refills our water bottles and sends us on our way with her phone number in Tom's phone.....just in case.
After yet another hour or so, we finally find the "path".....at one point, I send Tom on ahead to "scout" the next turn because I doubt his memory on Vanessa's directions....turns out, we WOULD have taken another wrong turn.....anyhow, once discovered, after nearly 5 hours of searching, the path was great. However, it ended all too quickly....perhaps only a few meters....and no more limestone path....and no directional signs.....just like the FIRST 4.5 hours!!! No more water, no food....and no more patience! I ask this stranger who pulled up beside us "Do you know the way to Havelock North?" Not only did he know, he lives near there, bought his bike from the same shop and took us directly to the door!!!! We guarantee that we could not have had the bikes back by the 5 pm deadline without him. His name is David, lives with his Mum, both from the UK and becoming NZ citizens next month. He was our angel of mercy.....and we were the first Americans he had ever met!
