The weather has been gorgeous here lately and that calls for adventures galore! We drove 2 hours south of us to the Coromandel area for a fun day of biking. Once our personal bike mechanic made sure our bikes were all up to speed and we were all settled on our bikes, our camelbacks packed with water, food, sunscreen, bugspray, and hats, we were on our way! Our plan was to bike the Hauraki Rail Trail starting from Paeroa, catch a small train along the way to our final destination, where Cody was either going to take a shuttle or bus back to our car and then pick us up. It was a planned 14k ride. But, plans don't always work out how we think =) We were in for a really really adventurous day!
We started off enjoying the gorgeous scenery. We were biking through lush green fields with bright blue skies, speckled with small white puffy clouds. There was a light breeze that filled the air with the scent of the blossoms blooming on the trees surrounding us. It was dreamy. We took a few brief stops along the way to enjoy the area or to stop for a snack. We biked the first 7k pretty smoothly. We stopped at an old mine for lunch. We ate on the old concrete steps and enjoyed the rest after a good ride. Cody & I put lights on our helmets for our next step of the adventure. We would be riding through a 1k old train tunnel. Ethan was petrified of the possibility of riding next to wetas (think massively huge crickets) and other gross bugs. But luckily we didn't see any. At the end of the tunnel was a bridge that we crossed. We parked and locked up our bikes and headed down to the river for some good ol rock throwing and digging in the sand. We continued onward and took a brief side tour to a small waterfall. We hopped back on our bikes and kept right on going, thinking that we were getting close to our destination. We came across an old battery where they mined gold and silver. It looked like ancient Mayan ruins. We knew we were really close now to our destination. By this point I was getting close to being at my limit. So we pressed onward knowing we only had a little further to go. Or so we thought. Just after the battery, we misread a very small sign that pointed us to the train. But we continued on the Hauraki Trail by accident. It was hot and we were tired. We should have been there by now…right? We stopped for a snack & rest in some shade. Cody took out his phone to check our status on Strava. We had gone 21k!! What?! Where did we go wrong?! We were all so tired. The boys were such troopers and were so tough! I was riding a 40 lb bike with a 40 lb Reese in a seat behind me. My bum hurt. My legs hurt. I didn't think I could go much further. But we had to. We all put our on brave faces and carried onward.
Finally, 5k later, we made it to the train station we were originally supposed to have ended our journey at. So we ended up biking the entire way, without the help of the train. We missed the last train back. We rode into town trying to see about buses or shuttles back for Cody. We missed the last shuttle back. And the last bus was 3 hours away. We just wanted food and rest at this point. So we looked up a yummy looking restaurant that was 1k away so we hopped on our bikes again. Actually, I didn't. I was too sore to get back on the saddle so I walked my bike. We approached the carpark of the restaurant to find it….closed! Oh. My. Goodness. We stood there motionless. Thankfully, the kind owner of the restaurant saw us gathered in the carpark and came to ask us if we needed anything. He was willing to make us anything from his menu. What an angel. Cody decided instead of waiting for the bus, he was going to ride the 28k back to our car. He is amazing. So I stayed outside of the restaurant with the kids while we ate fries and ice cream cones. The sun was hiding behind clouds and it was getting cold. We decided to bike to nearby park and stay warm by playing. My phone was close to dead. An hour and a half later, Cody came back to pick us up. Just as he pulled up with the car, it started pouring rain! The kids ran to the car while Cody loaded the bikes onto the bike rack and I loaded everything else in. We were drenched. We just sat and laughed! We ended our crazy day with eating pizza and then driving the 2 hours home to get home much later than anticipated. What an adventurous day! Nothing went as planned but it was memorable and we all survived to tell the tale.
Finally, 5k later, we made it to the train station we were originally supposed to have ended our journey at. So we ended up biking the entire way, without the help of the train. We missed the last train back. We rode into town trying to see about buses or shuttles back for Cody. We missed the last shuttle back. And the last bus was 3 hours away. We just wanted food and rest at this point. So we looked up a yummy looking restaurant that was 1k away so we hopped on our bikes again. Actually, I didn't. I was too sore to get back on the saddle so I walked my bike. We approached the carpark of the restaurant to find it….closed! Oh. My. Goodness. We stood there motionless. Thankfully, the kind owner of the restaurant saw us gathered in the carpark and came to ask us if we needed anything. He was willing to make us anything from his menu. What an angel. Cody decided instead of waiting for the bus, he was going to ride the 28k back to our car. He is amazing. So I stayed outside of the restaurant with the kids while we ate fries and ice cream cones. The sun was hiding behind clouds and it was getting cold. We decided to bike to nearby park and stay warm by playing. My phone was close to dead. An hour and a half later, Cody came back to pick us up. Just as he pulled up with the car, it started pouring rain! The kids ran to the car while Cody loaded the bikes onto the bike rack and I loaded everything else in. We were drenched. We just sat and laughed! We ended our crazy day with eating pizza and then driving the 2 hours home to get home much later than anticipated. What an adventurous day! Nothing went as planned but it was memorable and we all survived to tell the tale.
I almost had tears in my eyes when I got to the part of you standing in front of the restaurant!! I think I would have in reality! Go Cody in being your family's Superman! Loves.
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