Ski fields closed? On yer bike!

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 14, Issue 643, 2 July 1996, Page 9 (Supplement)

Ski fields closed? On yer bike!

Bv

• Mark

Sedon

The alarm goes off and its still dark outside, rain pelts the window of your bedroom and the wind gusts around the house with such force you think the roof might lift off at any second. You can just hear the ski report over the raging storm outside, Turoa is closed, Whakapapa has Happy Valley open with gusty winds, 50m visibility and light snow. ( Or perhaps the ash reports say the ski fields are still in sight-seeing mode! ■— Ed) What do you do? Go back to sleep? Yes ! ! Definitely, but once you rise around 1 1am and see that the weather has brightened up a bit, how about a Mountain Bike ride? A lot of people come to the Ruapehu region for their winter ski holidays and are sometimes disappointed by bad weather. But unfortunately we need storms, they bring lots of that white stuff that's vital for skiing or snowboarding. Down here in New Zealand, unlike the northern hemisphere, our trees grow to an altitude of about 2000 feet lower, so when a storm hits our mountains the weather gets pretty bad, driving us down from the slopes. Qr* \i/hp»n i/mi Krincr vnnr mnnntQin Hilrp Hit nf

uv " Iivu j vu vv/tiiv 1^1 © J M L/ik enthusiasm and a sense of adventure. The Ruapehu Region has some of the best biking trails in New Zealand, from long adventurous and sometimes muddy rides to short easy, barely-get-your-feet-wet rides. First you need a local, a guide book or someone who knows where to go. The Department of Conservation puts out a good guide book "Volcanic Plateau Mountain Bike Rides' which describes a lot of the rides, their difficulty, duration and directions. The Rangataua Forest Loop is an interesting and often muddy but not too long a ride. Lakes Road is another good short ride plus it's not so muddy. Over near Turangi is the Tokaanu Pylon Track which has some testing uphills followed by some exhilarating and sometimes technical downhills. After the ride you can soak in the Tokaanu hot pools. For the more serious rider you can tackle the '42 Traverse' otherwise known as the Tongariro Forest Crossing. But you' 11 need to drag yourself out of bed a little earlier as it's a 44km ride (3-6 hours). It involves some brilliant biking on old logging tracks, through remote

native bush, descending a massive 570m. Another alternative is to call Ron Rutherford, 06-385-8257 and he'll rent you a bike if you need it and take you up the mountain road so that you can ride back down it. This is an exciting downhill speed run, or you can mix it with some slow coasts taking in the natural beauty of this most scenic road. If you're a bit tired, hung Over or just not that into fitness you can rent an Attitude Bike from the White House, 06-385-8413. These mountain bikes have a small motor on the back wheel which will assist you along at a pretty good speed. If you don't have a bike there are several shops that will help you out. Try Fully Turoa on 06 3858 910 or The Powderhorn on 06-385-8888 both located at the Ohakune Junction and are open year round. If you just don't want to ride a push bike maybe try the 4WD motorbike tours that Turoa Lodge offers, 06-385-8274. Mountain biking has a certain risk factor but that causes the adrenalin to surge through your veins, making you feel alive, just like skiing and snowboarding!