Island 6, North Island, New Zealand - a bit of it biked on 27th April 2014

In Raglan, south west of Auckland, we did a bit of biking as we are on an island which is not a country - the North Island of New Zealand. This is a lovely town with some of the best surfing in New Zealand. I managed a body boarding session there - see my travel blog for that pic!

Thanks to the ever-helpful Information centre in the town, we found bikes to rent from Raglan Water Sports at Raglan Sunset Motel. There isn't much flat biking around here so they were mountain bikes which was a bit of overkill for our leisurely potter along the shore and over a lovely bridge which would have been a candidate for biking bridges last year, but this is the year of biking islands, so on with the task.

Finishing, by coincidence, at a great fish and chip shop

With my Kiwi one-woman support team (thanks Treasa), I pottered around, pausing and/or posing for photos in front of typical New Zealand flax and Pohutukawa trees. Treasa, who was also my support team for Waiheke island, had quickly grasped the drill. Get the bike, cycle a few yards, pose for a picture, cycle a few more yards, take another pic. Cycle over and back to get an action shot and so on. The lovely fish and chips at Raglan Wharf was more than we deserved for such a fun and undemanding biking trip!

That's all the New Zealand islands that I can bike for the moment. Next plan is the Scottish midsummer odyssey, starting on Arran on June 21st. Watch this space!