Episode 085

Bikepacking as a Beginner and a Solo Trip from Christchurch to Queenstown with Katy Binchy

26 April 2024 37 min

Episode 085

0:00 / 37:03

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Katy is a listener of the show. She sent me a message on Instagram saying she had an awesome story to share, and it sounded pretty epic, so here we are. I love bringing listeners' stories to life on the podcast.

Katy is originally from the States, moved to Ireland for uni and never left, until she and her partner quit their jobs and came to New Zealand for a year to explore. She'd never been bikepacking before this year. Then she bought a bike off Facebook Marketplace and rode from Christchurch to Nelson with a friend, and followed it up with ten days riding solo from Christchurch to Queenstown.

And I've done very little cycling as an adult and no mountain biking at all (it's on the bucket list). So we go through both trips, her setup, the climb that had her asking why on earth they were doing it, the headwind that stole her celebration, and her tips for giving it a go yourself.

In this episode

From Dublin commutes to a year in New Zealand
What bikepacking is and Katy's setup
Planning a bikepacking trip from Christchurch to Nelson
Queen Charlotte Track and the Maungatapu Track
Riding solo from Christchurch to Queenstown
Geraldine to Lake Tekapo into a headwind
Lessons and tips for bikepacking beginners

From Dublin commutes to a year in New Zealand

Katy first visited New Zealand as a kid and remembers being fascinated by the really blue water and the mountains. It seemed to have it all, a bit like Ireland on steroids. After the pandemic, she and her partner wanted time to reconnect with nature and try new things.

Back in Ireland she worked in human resources, very much a desk corporate job, and after working from home through the pandemic, they needed a change. So they quit their jobs before leaving.

They arrived the August before we recorded and started house sitting. They'd never really done it before, and it was more successful than they expected, so it stretched their travels further. They moved between cities minding people's homes and pets, and filled the gaps with road trips, camping and hiking.

Katy grew up spending weekends at the beach, camping and on little bike rides, with what she calls indoor guilt: that feeling that you're wasting a beautiful day if you're inside. This year, she reckons they spent the majority of almost every day outside, with long sleeves and hats for the New Zealand sun.

I remember that feeling from my corporate job, sitting in a building as summer came in, looking at the sunshine and the blue sky and wanting to be out there.

What bikepacking is and Katy's setup

From commuter to bikepacker

At college in Dublin, Katy needed to get from A to B, so she bought a really cheap bike that was falling apart. It turned out to be way easier to get everywhere by bike, rain and wind included, and her rides got longer and longer. In her words:

"I realized I didn't really mind being on the bike that long I like it. … I find it peaceful get some headspace you know like gather your thoughts."

Katy's bikepacking setup

Katy calls herself no expert, but bikepacking is essentially carrying everything you need for a multi-day trip on your bike. Her setup:

A mountain bike with two dry bags on the fork.
A handlebar bag, also a dry bag.
A saddle bag off the back, another dry bag, for her sleeping bag.
Inside: sleeping bag, tent, stove, gas and food.

Food is the tricky one. With her setup she could only carry about two days' worth, so she planned her route around the places she knew she could restock.

Planning a bikepacking trip from Christchurch to Nelson

Bikes off Facebook Marketplace

With all that freedom, Katy didn't want to waste the chance. In Christchurch she met a friend through ultimate frisbee who was keen on a trip in the same time frame, and they were both heading to Nelson for an ultimate frisbee beach tournament. So they decided to buy bikes and ride there.

They found a couple on Facebook Marketplace selling bikes that were already set up, met them, bought them and figured they'd work it out. Neither had been bikepacking. Her friend was more of a mountain biker, and Katy was more of a road biker.

Staying off the main roads

Katy finds New Zealand's main roads pretty dangerous: the traffic is fast, the roads are narrow and there's not always a shoulder. So they pieced together a route that kept off main roads as much as possible.

For planning, the NZ Cycle Trails website has some routes with GPX files you can load into your topo maps. Katy found that if you know exactly what to look for, it's easier, but typing "Christchurch to Nelson by bike" into Google probably won't get you there. Blogs were more useful.

Christchurch to Kaikōura and the train to Picton

They started with a cruisy ride from Christchurch to Kaikōura on a lot of well-maintained gravel and paved roads, which already felt like off-roading to Katy. There are spots along the way where you can camp, some even free at lodges or hotels, and plenty of restaurants. They hadn't realised, so they carried loads of food for several hundred kilometres and didn't use it until the Queen Charlotte Track.

From Kaikōura, the choice was State Highway 1 northbound with no shoulder, so they took the scenic train to Picton instead, which Katy was very happy about.

Mixing bikes with trains, buses and ferries is something I'd talked about in a recent episode on low carbon adventures. A bike is so easy to take with you.

Queen Charlotte Track and the Maungatapu Track

Mountain biking for the first time

The Queen Charlotte Track was Katy's first real experience of mountain biking. She'd thought she'd done some before, then realised it had been more like trail biking. On the steeper descents, she told herself: okay, this is mountain biking, it'll be fine, trust it.

Havelock and Pelorus Bridge

After the track, they rode into Havelock and on to Pelorus Bridge, where they had a beautiful campsite and a swim in the river.

Over the saddle to Nelson

Over dinner, they looked at the next day. Her friend had been saying all trip that it was a gravel road up and over a mountain saddle. It turned out to be the Maungatapu Track, the old road to Nelson.

It's a really steep climb, and with heavy bikes they often had to push. The tread on their tyres was worn, so every fourth or fifth pedal stroke the back wheel slipped, in a really low gear where it's already hard to keep your balance. As Katy remembers it:

"I just remember being so frustrated and being like why are we doing this There's a paved road all the way to Nelson"

Her friend crushed it. At the top, Katy looked down at what came next: really loose, bigger rocks, very steep, with not many fences. There was some pushing on the way down too. But the track brings you right into Nelson, and they made it in time for the tournament.

Riding solo from Christchurch to Queenstown

Ten days between house sits

They finished the first trip around the end of February. Katy thought she should probably sell the bike before summer ended, then wondered whether she could get more use out of it with another trip.

They had a ten-day gap between house sits, moving from Christchurch to Queenstown, and no bike rack. So she decided to ride. She'd seen lots of people online doing it, but struggled to find detailed information on the route they took.

Stitching the trails together

She ended up on what she calls the Sounds to Sounds route, which a lot of people follow. It stitches together parts of the Inland Scenic Route, the Alps 2 Ocean, the Otago Central Rail Trail and the Queenstown Trails.

She'd seen people online do it in about a week, so she pictured herself hanging out by the lake in Queenstown for three days. It took the full ten days, and at points she doubted she'd make it to Queenstown at all. She hadn't done much research before setting out, so every night she was setting up camp, cooking and working out the next day's route. And by mid-March the days were getting a lot shorter and colder.

First time camping alone

Katy had never done a multi-day hike or slept in a tent by herself. She went in with an "it should be fine" mentality, and with everything else to do each night, she barely thought about being alone in the tent. This year she wanted to push herself in different ways, and without any work stress, she had the capacity to.

Solo, you do 100% of the jobs: the route, the weather, where to stay, cooking, packing. With two or more of you, you can share the load. And I don't think there's any other way to ease into solo travel. You have to do it.

Geraldine to Lake Tekapo into a headwind

Katy's favourite moment came on a long, hard day from Geraldine to Lake Tekapo, up and over two smaller saddles. She had friends arriving in Tekapo the next day, so she really really wanted to get there, and she was already feeling rough after camping in the rain two nights before.

The climb was tough but fine. Coming down the last stretch, she could see the mountains and the plains, and she was having a moment: she'd made it.

Then she turned a corner into some of the strongest headwinds of the whole trip. She had 20 kilometres left, mostly downhill, and expected to be there in about an hour. It took two hours, with her picturing a hot meal and setting up camp the whole way. The celebration was a little short-lived, but she was still so happy.

Getting into Tekapo was really beautiful. She camped near the lake and saw her friends in the morning. That afternoon she'd also passed another bikepacker for the first time, and hoped they'd stop for a chat. When you've been on your own for days, it's so nice to see people.

That long day was also exactly what she needed to make it to Queenstown in time.

Lessons and tips for bikepacking beginners

Fuel and daylight

Katy underestimated how fatigue would affect her. On your own, there's no one to remind you to drink water, eat some sugar or take a break because you're cranky and hungry, and she paid for it later. She'd also wanted longer days than on the first trip, but hadn't realised how quickly the sun would go down that late in the season. Next time, she'd be more disciplined.

That's true of any adventure, whether you're hiking, biking, mountaineering or kayaking: listen to what your body needs.

Katy's tips

Go and do it. The bike setup held Katy back for a long time, because getting the perfect bags in the right spots seemed intimidating.
Buy second-hand. People in New Zealand sell bikes all the time as they finish big trips, and there are lots of Facebook pages for second-hand bikes and bags.
Start with an overnighter.
Keep the plan loose, but do a bit more research than she did.
Look for GPX files, the Great Rides information and app, and the Tour Aotearoa segments. Katy hadn't realised that Sounds to Sounds covered the section she was looking at until it clicked.
Find people to ride with in Facebook groups, where people post looking for travel mates, or talk about your plans with friends and give them a push to try something new. And if nobody else wants to go, you can always go on your own.

For Katy, it's about feeling self-sufficient:

"there is something really nice just about being able to kind of feel really self-sufficient and having everything that you need just on a bike"

What's next

When Katy rode into Queenstown, the New Zealand Great Rides sign at the end literally asked what's next. She was not ready to think about it. Down by the waterfront, another bikepacker asked where she was off to tomorrow, and she told him she was done.

When we recorded, she'd moved to Queenstown for a more settled winter, with ski passes sorted and the bike in the garage needing some maintenance. She's seen lots of people doing overnighters from Queenstown to huts close enough for one night, and maybe in spring she'll get out on the bike again.