NZAU News & Updates

To read from the beginning, click here.

Update Day 36 1-5-2026 (3-4-2026 in the US)

Added posts for days 20 and 21. Currently in Yackandandah after three days of riding and two more great Warm Showers hosts in Seymour and Wangaratta. Actually, 3. Tonight we’re staying in a house of a women who lived in State College for 4 years in the late 80s/early 90s while her then husband worked on his PhD. Just a random request, but Kirsten saw our profile and sent a message that she wasn’t at home, but her neighbors would let us in. We talked to her on the phone about her time in SC and getting to the house, etc. So, here we are and heading to bed for a good rest.

Update Day 31 1-3-2026 (2-28-2026 in the US)

Added post for day 19. We’re on a train from Warrnambool to Melbourne after completing The Great Ocean Road. Nice stay in Warrnambool with Maggie, our WS host, and got to see the finishes of the annual men’s and women’s Melbourne to Warrnambool race. The race is 267km (165 miles) for the men and they finished in under 6 hours. The women’s race is 156 kilometers (100 miles) for the women, and they finished in 4 hours. Quite impressive and one of those chance moments we didn’t know anything about until we got there!

Update Day 29 27-2-2026 (2-26-2026 in the US)

Added posts for days 17 & 18. We’re in Princetown VIC, heading a few short miles to Port Campbell as I’m battling a cold and not up for a long day. Plan is to camp tonight, then ride to Warnambol on Saturday then catch the train to Melbourne while it’s raining on Sunday (91% chance they say).

Update Day 28, 26-2-2026 (2-25-2026 in the US)

Added posts for days 15 & 16. We are in Lorne, Victoria, after riding here on The Great Ocean Road (GOR), partially in the rain. We must be some kind of human dowsing rods, because we seem to bring rain to areas parched for weeks or months, including here and Devonport, Tasmania the other day (and good ol’ State College last year!).

Ended up in a hotel, dry and warm. Not sure what’s coming next — we were headed for the 12 Apostles on the GOR, but storms are forecast for our return day. And we got an invite from Steve, who we met in a rainstorm in Valentine, Nebraska last summer, for a personal tour of the Outback, just a little west of Sydney. Don’t know if that’s going to happen, but we’re trying to fit it in our plans. We were going to take a train or rental car from Melbourne to Sydney anyway, as even with a month left, there’s just not enough time to ride everywhere we want to go. Stay tuned.

Update Day 24, 22-2-2026 (2-21-2026 in the US)

Added posts for days 13 and 14. Currently in Devonport after a short ride from Sheffield to avoid what is supposed to be a rainy day — it is but not downpours. All good, though. I can use some time off the bike.

Update Day 23, 21-2-2026 (2-20-2026 in the US)

I’m going to keep this post at the top for progress reports about where we are and what’s going on since I’m so far behind on the blog. Currently we’re in Tasmania, heading to Sheffield and eventually Davenport l and then sailing back to Melbourne on Monday the 23rd. Still having a blast!

Update Day 20, 17-2-2026 (2-16 in the US)

Well, still massively behind on the blog. Some of you may have heard of the storms in NZ. We were camping one night with rain and 40 mph winds, but stayed dry in our tent and had a good place at the campground to cook and get everything packed for a wet and windy ride back to Christchurch.

Those winds pushed us up the one big climb twice for about 20-30 secs. Felt like we were on an e-bike for that little period. They also hit us around some curves and along the shore where they became crosswinds we had to fight to stay in the bike lane. All good though. We got to our hosts’ and they were so kind as to let us clean up, had picked up bike boxes for us and we packed the bikes and our bags in their dry garage. After showers, Sheralee warmed us with hot tea as we watched Jean’s videos of Paragliding all over the world. When the airport shuttle was unable to pick us up, they let us sleep, and got up at 3 AM to take us to the airport.

We’re all checked in at the gate and waiting to board the plane to Melbourne and more adventures! Stay tuned. I should be able to get a couple days done on the plane.

I did get one post done on the plane between naps. See Day 10 \/ \/ \/ \/ (below or “Previous Post”)

Update Day 13, 11-2-2026 (2-10 in the US)

Hi Everyone, very far behind on the blog so here’s a quick update. We’re in Christchurch and hanging around here until our flight leaves early Tuesday morning for Melbourne. We have been putting miles on and will be getting some hiking in today and tomorrow. So many pictures to go through, too, which I hope to do on our flight. In the meantime, here’s a link to our Photos Album for this trip: https://photos.app.goo.gl/xUwss5zA7MBJqy8G7