We tag along on the KTM New Zealand Adventure Rallye: Summit To Sea, but half the fun was getting there.
Words and photography by Simon Cudby
“Just lick the stamp and send it!” That was adventure legend Chris Birch advice for a particularly muddy uphill section that I was about to attempt on day nine of our 11-day adventure ride in New Zealand.
Our mission was to travel from Los Angeles to New Zealand and then ride for six days before linking up with the KTM New Zealand Adventure Rallye: Summit To Sea for five more long days in the saddle.
Following is a diary outlining our adventure ride from the North Island down to the South Island of New Zealand.
Day 1
After a long flight to Palmerston North, via Auckland, we met up with our hosts Liam Ellis and Charlie Brown (not that Charlie Brown). We installed some of our own parts on the KTM 690 machines and did an “easy” half-day shakedown ride into the beautiful velvet-green farmland about an hour from Liam’s AFC Motorcycle dealership.
Traction was hard to find on the grass-covered trails as we traversed side hills and single-track before heading to the coastline for a rip down the pristine beach.
Day 2
Our first real day of our trip south, we go an early start at the shop meeting up with Charlie and Liam before traversing across roads and farmland out to the east-coast town of Castle Point. We enjoyed more beach riding and photo stops along the way until we made it down to the big town of Wellington to take the 7 p.m. ferry to the South Island. We met up with Birch and now our group consisted of seven riders: myself, Randy Commans, Liam, Charlie, Chris and two other NZ buddies, Hadley Brown and Matt Truebridge.
It turns out our ferry was delayed until 3 a.m., and after a long day on the bikes already added to a healthy dose of jet lag, I was cooked. We took a nap before boarding the ship for the three-hour crossing, and tried to get some more shut eye on board.
Day 3
At 6:30 a.m. we disembarked the ferry at scenic Picton, had some breakfast and started off in the morning light on the Queen Charlotte Road through Nelson towards Lake Rotoroa. On the rocky trails I was happy to be on a lighter KTM 690 rather than a larger 890 Adventure R, but the NZ guys made it look easy on the big bikes. These guys can ride!
The skies opened up in the afternoon as we crossed over ridges toward our stop for the night in Westport. However, we had one big obstacle to cross—a wide river that was rising quickly due to the rainstorm. Chris said we should help each other walk our bikes across so we wouldn’t lose a bike, so it was into the almost waist-deep water we went. Luckily, we got all seven bike across safely. Soaked to the bone, we made a quick stop at the old fog-covered Denniston coal mine.
We were happy to find a laundry at our Westport stop and were able to get our gear dry for the next day.
Day 4
Day four became known as “The Longest Day.” Leaving Westport, we did some road miles on the Lower Buller Gorge Road that featured magnificent scenery. Winding up to Reefton, we took a 20-mile out-and-back detour to the old Big River gold mine. The trails were slippery and rocky through thick woodland, and with photo stops took us several hours to get back to where we had started.
A big highlight of our trip was a loop through the Napoleon Hill area, where it felt like you were riding through a jungle river, complete with man-made tunnels from the old gold-mining operations.
The temps dropped as we crossed Arthur’s Pass at speed into Springfield for gas. It was about 4 p.m. when I asked Liam how much further. His answer: “About 300km.” Yikes! That’s approximately 185 miles. Time to hustle.
We rolled into the 10,000-acre Glen Falloch Station Farm just past 9 p.m. I’d say we deserved cold beverages and good food after being on the bike for 13 hours.
Day 5
Leaving the station early we were straight into a rocky scree field as we made our way along the Rakaia River. Watching the NZ guys handle their 890s through the rock field was fun to watch as I struggled to keep up. Chris rides the big KTM like it’s a minibike!
Today’s main feature was fast, loose gravel roads taking us towards Queenstown via the great Blue Mountain Station trails.
After a quick stop off at the world famous Cadrona Pub, we rode a great downhill switchback road section into Queenstown, arriving this time before dark.
Day 6
We awoke to see snow-coved mountains across the lake. We layered up and hit the road to make the start of the KTM Rally staged at Dunedin.
We met up with KTM’s Rosie Lalonde who welcomed us with enthusiasm and made us feel at home. Our next destination: Christchurch.
Days 7-11
KTM New Zealand Adventure Rallye
With about 150 riders participating, the Summit to Sea KTM Adventure Rallye is a sizable event.
The first day of the rally was a day loop out of Dunedin. The ride featured a main trail with four or five “breakout” trails that were rated by 1-5 chilis, one chili being easy, five being hard. This chili rating was used throughout the ride and could be adjusted depending on weather.
The next day took us on a wide variety of terrain featuring grassy trails, gravel roads and rocky uphills.
I asked Chris what makes New Zealand such an ADV mecca. “We’re very fortunate here,” he answered. “There’re a lot of possibilities for off-road riding. The best thing about New Zealand riding is the diversity of terrain, it changes quickly. There’s a little bit of the whole world all smashed into one country.”
We headed on to Lake Tekapo for a night, with its picturesque snow-capped mountains the backdrop for our next day. Freezing temperatures overnight and an early start made for some frozen fingers at the first photo stop, and I had trouble turning the dials on my camera!
The last half of the rally was based out of the city of Christchurch, and day four started out with a downpour that quickly made some three-chili sections into muddy five chilis. I must have picked my bike up at least 10 times that day. I was exhausted at the end of the day.
Our adventure was capped off with lovely weather and only a few tough sections to navigate. It was a perfect way to end an amazing adventure.
Big thanks to Liam, Chris, Charlie, Randy, Hadley, Matt and, of course, the whole KTM New Zealand staff, especially Rosie Lalonde.
You can bet this won’t be our last adventure in New Zealand.
For more information on upcoming KTM Rally events, visit https://www.ktm.com/en-us/ktm-world/ktm-adventure-rally.html
Click here to read the New Zealand Adventure | Summit To Sea feature in the Cycle News Digital Edition Magazine.
