Otago Harbour Cycleway 30 October 2023

With my sister in town, it seemed a shame to waste a calm, sunny day so the two of us hopped on a bike each to enjoy the recently opened 32km Te Aka Ōtākou/Otago Harbour shared cycle/walkway.  We started at the Otago Yacht Club and after checking the ferry times, we headed in an anti-clockwise direction.  We followed Magnet Street past the yacht club and across the lovely Water of Leith cycle bridge.  From here we followed the cycle trail behind the logging yards and out onto Fryatt Street.  This part of the track took us through the industrial part of the city before rejoining the cycle trail near the wharf and past the Molars

The day was warm and the harbour so calm it was almost like a mirror.  We took our time, enjoying the weather and sights as we cycled along between the road and harbour.  We saw only a handful of other cyclists and the occasional walker.  It really was a magical day to be on the bike.
 

Not wanting to rush the journey we enjoyed the ride beside the harbour, watching out for birds and the odd boat shed.  The cycle trail winds in and out of all the coves and making  for an interesting ride.  There are seats dotted along the cycle way and we took the opportunity to stop for a morning tea break at one of these seats.  As the tide was going out, we were able to watch birds walking and fishing in the shallows while chatting.  It was a wonderful place to sit and watch the world go by.  

Knowing we had a ferry to catch, we carried on along the cycleway towards Portobello.  We started to notice a slight head wind and were happy that we had enjoyed most of our ride during the calm weather.  Once at Portobello we stopped at a local cafe for lunch.  There was very little room to park our bikes as the cafe is very popular with cyclists and we managed to find a seat outside in the sun.  Once replenished with lunch, we rode our bikes to the ferry dock where we met up with a number of other cyclists waiting for the ferry to take us across the short distance to Port Chalmers.  The ferry arrived and we marveled at the skill the young lady operating the ferry displayed with getting all the bikes onto to ferry, especially all the heavy e-bikes. Our lighter pedal powered bikes were put onto a special frame on the back of the boat.

 

The ferry ride was only 5 minutes and we were treated to a commentary of the history of the harbour along with other interesting places we passed.  Once we reached Port Chalmers, our bikes were unloaded and off we went again.  The section from Port Chalmers to the yacht club follows the train line and cuts across all the coves so we had a fast, straight run for 30 minutes from Port Chalmers to the car, made even faster and more enjoyable with the slight tail wind.   We both thoroughly enjoyed our cycle ride and would highly recommend the loop circuit - on a windless day that is. 

 

 

Day Twenty One (part two) Middlemarch

 After walking through Hyde, I drove 27km down the road to Middlemarch where I walked 18 streets.

247. Snow Avenue
248. Conway Street
249. Mold Street
250. Olive Avenue
251. Garthmyl Road

252. Tawe Street

253. Cardigan Street
254. Clywd Street
255. Brecon Street
256. Milford Street
257. Swansea Street
258. Browns Road
259. Aberfon Street
260. Bank Street
261. Kirk Street
262. Nottage Street
263. South Road
264. West Street

I confess that there are some streets in Middlemarch that I did not walk all of the street because it was not safe.  I walked to the edge of the town and as far as the 100km speed sign and with no footpath, I felt it was not safe to continue further.  

I started my walk at the Middlemarch Railway Station.  The station was opened in 1891 and was part of the Otago Central Railway line.  In 1990, the station and rail line from Middlemarch to Dunedin was taken over by the Taieri Gorge Railway and used for sightseeing train trips up the Taieri Gorge.  Now the train no longer travels as far as Middlemarch and the station is not used anymore.  

At the Middlemarch Railway Station is this 133 year old steam engine which was withdrawn from service and dumped in the Clutha River in 1932 to protect the Roxburgh Branch line from erosion.  In 1992 the remains of the steam engine were discovered.  They were eventually recovered  it is slowly under going restoration. 

Where Olive Street joins Tawe Street is the start (or finish, depending on which way you cycle) of the Central Otago Rail Trail which is a 150km cycle track that follows the old railway line to Clyde.  Built in the 1990's after the railway line was closed the Rail Trail is popular with cyclists.  

 

 

While Middlemarch is part of Dunedin City it is 80km from Dunedin with a population of around 150 people and lies at the base of the Rock and Pillar Range.   It is good walking the streets of Middlemarch as the streets are flat.  One of the streets I walked, Brecon Street started as a normal sealed street and then soon turned into a dirt road then back into a sealed road.  The views of the Rock and Pillar Range from this (and most) streets  in Middlemarch are stunning. 

 

 

Walking the streets of Middlemarch, I saw a number of older churches and one of these is St Chad's Anglican Church, which is 'famous' for having the first church bell sound on the Strath Taieri in 1901.  It is also quite unique because surrounding the church is a beautiful old stone wall and incorporated in the wall is a comfortable stone seat which I took the opportunity to rest in the shade.

 
On my walk around Middlemarch I saw a couple of interesting things, one is these beautiful stone arches beside the railway line. The other is this mural on the side of a building that is a map of the Strath Taieri and Middlemarch area. 

 

Distance walked:  9.4 km  Walking time  1 hr 46 mins    

Total distance: 183.4 km       Total walking  33 hr 53 mins

 

Day Twenty One (part one) Hyde

 Dunedin is the world's fifth largest city in geographical size and the largest in New Zealand.  Dunedin might be big in land size but it is not the largest in population with around 120,000 people.  Dunedin is sparsely populated with a lot of farmland.  Today I decided to go as far from urban Dunedin as I could which meant I started my walk in Hyde, 107 km from the central business district of Dunedin. Today I walked 2 street in Hyde

245. Eton Street
246. Newtown Road

Hyde was originally called Eight Mile and was a gold rush town in the 1860's with up to 16 pubs, now it is a small town with a handful of residents and is the stopping place for cyclists on the Otago Central Rail Trail.  Hyde only has one main street and it was an interesting walk as this is the first gravel foot path I have walked on.  There are also some interesting things to see, things that I would not have seen had I driven through including this old horse drawn plough on the side of the gravel footpath 

There was, reputably, up to 16 pubs in Hyde and there must also have been a number of churches as well.  Today I could find only 2 remaining churches with both looking like are not used for services anymore. 

There is also the old Hyde school, complete with school bell.  Hyde School dates back to 1869 and was closed in 1999. The school buildings and land have been turned into accommodation for those cycling the rail trail. 

A prominent feature of Hyde is the war memorial with one of original hotels, the Otago Central Hotel behind it.  It is a good place to stop, rest and remember. 
 

 After walking the main road of Hyde, I followed part of the rail trail for 2 km to the old Hyde Railway Station.  It is a well maintained building, built in1894,  with old rail wagons and working points.  This is where I walked the second street in Hyde - Newtown Street which goes from the railway station to the highway.

Inside the station itself, there are information panels and part of the station has been refurbished to resemble what the inside of the station would have looked like when it was a working station in the early 1900's.  The station was once very busy transporting Hyde clay to the pottery works in Christchurch and Auckland. 

 

 After walking back along the Otago Rail Trail I drove 27 km's down the road to Middlemarch where I continued my goal of walking every street in Dunedin - including all the streets of Middlemarch as it is also part of Dunedin City.   

Distance walked: 6.2 km  Walking time  1 hr 8 mins    

Total distance: 174 km       Total walking  32 hr 07 mins