26/10/2014 Palmerston North - Masterston

Garmin Connect Route 52

26/10/2014 Palmerston North to Masterton

Another death by Kiwi !

Bad weather with strong winds forecast for a day through standard farming countryside . A stiff and sweaty 400m climb to a wind swept mountain pass where it was too windy and cold to stop. All day the wind was the predominant feature with 60 km gusts blowing us off the tarmac and into the grass at times [ fortunately not blowing us into the middle of the road ]. A midday fuel stop in Eketahuna allowed us to check the maps and realise that we had missed the intended route and were on the relatively busier State Highway 2. This would in fact shave 15 or so kms off the days trip which would have been a mission so we carried on thankful for small mercies. The final section into Masterton was predominantly downhill and with a change in direction we had the wind on our backs with good weather. Bliss. We had expected to arrive late but finally got into the Isite office 5 minutes before it closed. A good end to a day that could have been awful.