By PHIL JARRATT
THE week started with us trying to cycle through a pitch black, freezing cold, one-kilometre railway tunnel, and ended with a cruisy ride down a stony track to a beachside winery for cheese platters and the best Hawkes Bay pinot gris you could imagine.
So, as cycling goes, I suppose you could say it had its ups and downs.
New Zealand does tend to have wind and weather in extremis, especially in spring, so we can’t really complain that we’ve had four seasons in one day, as Neil Finn might put it.
And if our ride along the Hauraki Rail Trail at the start of the week was a wee bit damp, bleak and windy, it was enjoyably challenging nonetheless. And the Landscapes Ride along the Hawke’s Bay coast and wetlands in warm sunshine last Friday was nothing short of superb.
A decade or more ago, when we lived in France, we used to do a lot of pleasurable cycling along coastal tracks and river flats, stopping here for a coffee and croissant, there for a wine and cheese, but to be honest, we’re a bit rusty now.
After the 50-kilometre rail run, we had to vacate the saddle for a couple of days while our butts recovered, but last Friday’s wineries run was totally painless, particularly after a few tastings at the Clearview and Elephant Hill Estates.
All of the Hawke’s Bay wineries I’ve managed to sample in two visits have been great, but the distinct contrast between the Elephant Hill and Clearview properties, almost next door to each other along the Cape Kidnappers road, was as intriguing as it was appealing.
Elephant Hill is modern, chic and just a little daunting, although the view to the coast across the infinity pool, while you sample the signature blend Le Phant Blanc, is just about unbeatable.
Established by German winemakers Reydan and Roger Weiss about a dozen years ago, Elephant Hill now has vineyards across the Bay area, but their holdings on the Te Awanga coast make their statement about quality, with the main building, housing restaurant and tasting rooms, reflecting the natural colours of the coastline.
Clearview, on the other hand, is old school cool, a refreshingly humble jumble of buildings set in a beautifully wild garden, with table-tops set on wine barrels and the restaurant’s fare simple and flexible all day long.
Where they get serious however, is with their wines. As I write this, I’m sipping on a Black Reef Blush rose, which is seriously good, but no better than the Haumoana Pinot Gris I had for lunch.
Ah, but enough about the wine, time to consider the ride 25 kilometres back into town.
I’ve yet to see a booze bus on a cycle path, but you never know.
And since this is theoretically a surf column, I should point out that just along from the wineries, Te Awanga Point offers huge potential as a rock and sand right-hander, but was fortuitously flat this glowing Friday afternoon.
Our base for these recent Hawke’s Bay adventures has been the pleasant town of Napier, much of which was flattened by an earthquake in 1931, but rebuilt in the art deco style over the next few years.
The result is a charming city centre, if a little try-hard around the edges, with a few good restaurants and cafes.
These past couple of evenings, we’ve enjoyed our apres-bike sunset cocktails at the street tables of the Churchill Champagne Bar at the County Hotel, one of the few major buildings downtown that pre-dates the earthquake.
And if you happen to find yourself in Napier, a cool cafe called Groove Kitchen Espresso, on Tennyson Street, has the best coffee and breakfast menu I’ve encountered in a long while.
After getting the tip from the friendly barman at the Churchill, we ate there every morning and found it hard to leave to get on with the day.
Now it’s back to the surf, with a swell on the way and the Mahia Peninsula beckoning.
Is that a parrot on your shoulder?
There’s been some distinctly piratey behaviour happening in Noosa in our absence (and a happy 40th, Jay!), but thanks to a sharp-eyed young man named Ty, one parrot of our acquaintance has found its way home to its owner.
Our dear friend, the artist Rachel Newling, had barely arrived at her new home in Noosaville, and was making a temporary aviary for her two Eclectus parrots, Calypso and Sonny, when Calypso was frightened by something and flew off. Five days later, when despite a poster and social media campaign, it seemed all hope was lost, Ty’s mum phoned with good news.
Quick-thinking Ty, who had seen the poster of Calypso, spotted the bird in his backyard, threw a laundry basket over it and fed it some apple to keep it occupied while mum rang the number on the poster. Well done, Ty! Everyone loves a happy ending.
