Day 12 – Mararoa River to Mararoa River

From my lovely nest in the broad tree, I set out again along the grass verge of the river, following the edge of a farm fence.  I only made decent progress for about an hour until the gorse started to close in on me.  After some debate, I hopped a fence and crossed an empty field to the nearby metalled (gravelled) Mavora Lakes road - an easier, if less scenic, way to get where I was going.

The road was hot and dusty, and I tried a couple times to get back on the river, but it was too frustrating.  Just when I would start making progress, the river would meander into a tall embankment, forcing me back onto the road.  I did meet a handful of cycle tourists on the road, which was nice.  Seems like most cycle touring here happens on the metalled roads, since the sealed (paved) roads generally have no shoulder and plenty of mad drivers.

Overall an uneventful day, walking among miles of sheep farms to another spot on the river where I made camp.