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Link to PHOTOS and VIDEOS Album
A few videos specific to this summary that you might like. VIDEOS - SUMMARY
It's been a while since I wrote a summary. Sorry, I've been busy.
Anyone that has been following my travels knows that last year I made contact with another rider, Special Agent Nancy (SAN), on ADVRider.com and we met up for a month long ride around Scandinavia. ADVRider.com is a great place for adventure riders to get information on traveling and bikes and to find fellow travelers.
When I mentioned to SAN that I was going to New Zealand in the spring, she told me she was going to be there with a group of riders that she met through ADVRider and she invited me to ride along.
The first 17 riding days I rode solo on a BMW GS1250, although I was loaned a Honda 230 for the first day just to run errands around town. During that time I rode a total of 2,774 miles, basically making a loop around the south Island of New Zealand, almost entirely on paved roads.
The second half of my trip was with the group. There were 6 of us on 5 bikes. One guy from New Zealand, another from California, then a couple from Dubai riding two-up, SAN from California and myself. Another Kiwi joined us for a couple of days riding. This portion was 11 days, and we road 2,335 miles, a large portion of this was on dirt or gravel roads. There were water crossings, mud, loose gravel, large stones, with tons of great scenery and more. For the second portion I rode a Honda Africa Twin 1,000 CC enduro motorcycle. Until the fork seal failed. The failure was probably due to dried mud on the forks. I swapped the bike for a Suzuki V-Strom 650 (affectionately called a Wee-Strom).
The total trip was 5,109 miles, basically two loops of the South Island.
The SOLO POrtion
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The Group Ride 
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Both Routes combined in one map. 
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In Extreme Detail:
Honda 230 
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BMW GS 
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Honda Africa Twin 
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Suzuki Wee-Strom 
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THIS is how a Motorcycle Dashboard should look. This is a budget Suzuki, a V-Strom 650. BIG Digital speed indication. Big Fuel gauge. Big odo and other readings. Able to read in ANY light. One of my pet peaves about both the Honda and the BMW is that it is hard to read the gauges. Frankly, I would buy an Africa Twin if it was not for the absurd display. And BMW, these things are crazy expensive so only people with money, usually older, buy these. SO they make all the numbers small and hard to read, except the gear indicator. Don't even get me started on the foolish lack of info on the Honda, and the weird things that were included. Who designs these things? 
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In my last summary I was in some Bloke's Shed fixing Triumph Motorcycles. Since then I have been a lot of places, have taken a bunch of pics an posted a few stories. I have posted a bunch of pics in my albums so you can go there to see more if you did not get enough from my other posts on my web site. WhereIsBobL.com
In Wanaka I stopped at the Warbirds Museum. Not a large museum, but they have some very interesting aircraft and cars. warbirdsandwheels.com
I had considered going to the Toys and Transportation Museum, but was thinking I did not have time. I met a guy outside the Warbirds museum who said I REALLY had to go there. So I did. This was one of the coolest museums I have been to. It was a collection of, err, collections. Cars, toys, motorcycles, tanks, airplanes, straight razors, tools, well, everything. nttmuseumwanaka.co.nz
Muscle cars next to Barbie Dolls and tanks and police bikes and baby buggies, and, well you get the picture. 
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See the post on my site for more 
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There was a Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy experience, also on my site.
I Swapped the BMW for the Honda Africa Twin as I was going to be doing mostly dirt roads from now on.
Then to Milford Sound for a quick SCUBA trip in Fresh Water. And Salt Water. All on the same dive, a new experience for me.
I survived a Red Shirt experience as part of a landing party during the SCUBA trip. See my site pages for more info.
Great diving and a great dive master. 
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Then I met up with the group. The first days riding was on gravel roads and water crossings. Granted, these were mostly practice water crossings, nothing too serious. There was one hill climb that looked impossible to me from the bottom, but the two Kiwi's with us showed us the line that made it possible and we all made it up, even the big BMW GS.
A great group of riders.
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A stop at Hayes Engineering was pretty cool, seeing how an historic factory made things. LOTS of patents came out of this place.
Hayes Engineering. One of the many, many patents were for tensioners for barbed wire fences. These things were everywhere in New Zealand 
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Nancy with Hokey Pokey Ice Cream. It was not REAL Hokey Pokey, as it was on a stick, but we ate a LOT of the real stuff on this trip. I think we had it every day of the group ride. Nancy rather likes this stuff. 
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Danseys Pass was fun. The Historic Hotel was great, with Fantastic Lamb. Then Lamb Dreams at night. One of our crew met the local ghost. 
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A lot of the roads we were on were on private land. They allow people to use them, but you have to make sure you don't let any animals out, or in.
If a gate is open, leave it open. If it is shut, close it when you go through. 
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Dusty roads. Better than mud. 
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Apparently some movie about jewelry was filmed in New Zealand.
Jewelry Movie 
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Not sure what this area has to do with jewelry, but who am I to judge. 
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They said there was an Elfin Castle here. I don't see it and I don't understand what elves have to do with Jewelry. Cookies sure, but not Jewelry. 
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Still no Elfin Castle. 
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A Vampire can find Shade anywhere. 
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Still no Elves, just one Vampire. 
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A lot of the roads we were on were "Not suitable for regular vehicles. That's good, less traffic. 
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Cows with Fuzzy Ears 
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More Fuzzy Ear Cows 
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Yet another Traffic Jam. See my albums to see videos of these critters. 
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A practice mud hole, not the worst one by any means. 
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Me crossing one of the more mellow water crossings. Everyone packed their cameras and phones away for all the bigger crossings. 
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The Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre in Blenheim. A very good selection of aircraft in an interesting setting. See my post about this. 
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In New Zealand they have slides. These are most frequent on the west coast. The steep sided mountains don't have any real soil, but moss grows, then ferns grow on the moss, then small plants, and eventually trees. All this is held together by luck and magic. Sometimes when it rains, a section of this will slide down the mountain onto the road in a jumble of trunks, branches and mud. A real mess that can keep a major road closed for weeks. This slide was north of the Franz Josef Glacier, a major tourist destination. It took at least 12 hours to drive around the slide to the other side.
This slide on the West Coast had closed the road the week before. 
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Even the Clouds are different here. Really differnet. Yes, that is me. 
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One famous road we went down was the Nevis Crossing Road. I had been warned about how bad it was, especially the final crossing. I was told that when we got there we would have to make the decision whether to cross or go back. It was a slippery mess getting there, with many water crossings. Some of the water crossings were muddy. Some were big rocks that you could not see. I that I had an advantage, my boots were leaky. When the water poured over the top of my boots, it would leak back out. Other riders were not so lucky.
If your boots don't leak, you will have to pour the water out at the end of the Nevis. The water crossings were that deep. 
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Then, after a while, they begin to, errr, SMELL. 
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There are a lot of places that sell Possum Fur clothing. Note, the possums here are not the ugly rat like creatures that we have in the states. Their fur is very much like mink.
But how do they Taste? 
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This 2' x 4' blanket was very nice. 
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At $7,600 maybe too nice. 
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I found these womens shoes in my hotel room one morning. I was really wondering what happened the previous night. I was worried about what was in those extra special Gins at the Zanzibar Gin Joint the night before. https://www.facebook.com/ZanzibarDunedin/ 
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An interesting historic hotel. Haunted. We stayed there. No one saw ghosts at this hotel. Not THIS hotel. Can't say the same about other hotels we stayed at. 
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There was a Tesla Charging Station. A few cobwebs on it, that might say something. 
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So we all filled up our bikes. 
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Sorry, got lazy so just putting a bunch here. Look at my albums for more photos.
Sitting and planning. I lined the inside of my helmet with tinfoil to keep out the mind control rays. Either that, or I was setting up the communication device in my helmet. 
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Bob out in the wilds. 
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This is what happens when you put a container of talcum powder in a trunk and shake it. Fortunately not mine. 
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Dogs ready to go to Work. 
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THIS was a New Hampshire Water Crossing. Also known as the bridge to where I live. 
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Probably the worst mud of my trip, deep muddy ruts, frozen in the morning. Almost impassible. And this was in New Hampshire, after I got home. 
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WATER CROSSING - 1
WATER CROSSING - 2
TRAFFIC JAM - 1
TRAFFIC JAM - 2
