Motorcycle diary of the South Island: Our travel itinerary
There is nothing quite like the adventure of travelling, especially when you are embarking on a two week motorbike trip. Originally we had planned the trip for November but after been warned by numerous people that the best time to go is February, we postponed till the right season. This gave a us an extra couple of months to get our motorbikes ready as well as gather our required camping gear.
To get from the North to the South Island meant a ferry trip. The first time we did the ferry trip we were expecting the same type of services as on the ferries crossing the British Channel. Not so! The tie downs were old and rusty. They crew were quite happy for my bike to just rest on the side stand. I think I delayed departure because I wouldn’t budge until my bike had been properly secured. The second time we took our own tie downs – and if you are taking your bike on the ferry make sure you have at least three tie downs and cloths or old socks to protect your bike.
Our travel route:
- Picton travelling over Bullers Gorge to Greymouth – 353 km approximately 4 hours
- Greymouth to Fox Glacier – 195km approximately 2 hours
- Fox Glaciers to Wanaka via Haast Pass– 262km approximate 3 hours
- Wanaka to Te Anau – 227km approximate 3 hours
- Te Anau across the Catlin region to Balcutha – 249km approximate 3 hours
- Balcutha to Clyde – 149km approximately 2 hours
- Clyde to Geraldine – 306km approximate 4 hours
- Geraldine to Hamner Springs – 270km approximately 4 hours (more if you hit peak traffic)
- Hamner Springs to Picton – 286km approximately 4 hours
A total of 2297km travelled over 14 days. This excludes side trips or excursion we did. In the end our total mileage was well over 3500km. Though it is more fun to have few travel plans and have the freedom to go where you want to on the day, if you only have a limited time choose wisely and have a flexible but solid plan. That way you can make the most of your stay, see everything you want and not be disappointed.
A side note
You will note that our itinerary does not include touring the north of the south island such as Marlborough Sounds and Abel Tasman area. If you need to choose between Abel Tasman or Catlins then choose Abel Tasman!