Most people start the A2O trail at Mount Cook and take a helicopter across the river to the head of the trail. A fellow cyclist recommended that instead we start at a side branch of the main trail on Lake Tekapo. Boy are we glad we did. We took the intercity bus from Christchurch to Lake Tekapo.
Below is a map of the trail:
- starting point (A): Lake Tekapo
- end point (B): Oamaru
- Trail grades: 2-3 (easy to intermediate)
Lake Tekapo – Oamaru
Lake Tekapo is a shimmering soft turquoise silvery blue lake and drop dead gorgeous. I actually could not figure out its colour and the above is my best description. This area is also a Night Sky Reserve, but unfortunately it was cloudy and we missed the spectacular views of the milky way. That being said, we kept stopping and staring at the lake and its surroundings. Not only is the lake itself beautiful, there were literally stands of lupines in every hue around it. The combination was so pretty. We now know it is wild rose and lupine blooming time.
The trail left Lake Tekapo on a gravel road, down hill to a hydro power plant and then on the canal dikes leading away from the hills. The dike was paved and just for cyclists/walkers or maintenance vehicles. On and on it went following the canal’s turquoise ribbon through huge open areas with only hawks, sea gulls and cattle for company. At the end of the canal the trail dropped steeply down following the dam’s pen stalks to the transformer station on Lake Pukaki. We camped beside the lake and were absolutely hammered by rain that night. So glad the tent floor rolls up a good 15cm or so as the bottom became a water bed and a tiny bit managed to seep into one corner. Woke up, rain stopped and we had a dry day of cycling.
From there we went down to and then around Lake Ohau and on to Lake Ohau Lodge. Here we tented and dried out for 2 days. The lodge provides a full course menu each night and it was fun to have someone else cook us lamb and Mt Cook salmon. Sat at communal tables and met the nicest people from Holland, Hamburg, Scotland and NZ of course.
The next part of the trail really tested us and our bikes. So stoked that we could do the hill and rocky trail up to 900 meters. Absolutely grandiose and all to ourselves.
We are now in Omarama for Christmas and it is so quiet. Found the one place open, a gas station and enjoyed some local ice cream. Tomorrow we head along more hydro ways until we arrive on the the East Coast of the South Island at Oamaru.
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