The Ultimate New Zealand South Island Adventure

Adventure Moto’s very own Max and Jackson headed out on an epic back-country tour of New Zealand’s South Island with our mates at Ultimate Adventure Moto NZ and it did not disappoint! Starting and finishing in Christchurch, they packed in ten days of epic riding through majestic mountain passes, on sweeping gravel roads and winding highways and even tackled the odd stream crossing. A big thanks to UAMNZ for putting on another fantastic adventure!

 

Day 1 - Christchurch to Blenheim

We met up at Ultimate Adventure Moto HQ bright and early for a quick briefing from the crew about the 10 days ahead and what laid ahead for the day. After the briefing we loaded up the KTM 690, 790 and 890's and we were on our way up the highway towards Culverden for a quick break and a cracking pie at the bakery. Bodies refuelled and we headed for the hills winding our way through some beautiful farmlands before ending up on the beautiful coastline for some photos then into Cheviot for coffee and cake! After Cheviot we worked our way up the highway which was racetrack smooth and twisty all the way into Kaikoura for lunch at the King Tide Eatery. Lunch gone, chased by a refreshing ginger beer we were into the thick of it again. A quick splash of petrol we were on our way to Blenheim along a mixture of dirt and tar seal with the most stunning backdrops and before we knew it we were in Blenheim. Cracking start to the trip I'd say!

 

Day 2 - Blenheim to Hanmer Springs

We woke to clear blue skies and were ready to go again! With breakfast in our bellies, we set off towards Hanmer Springs - with a small detour to the Marlborough Sounds and the beach. Today’s scenery was somehow even better than yesterday’s as we climbed up into the hills to get a proper look at the Pacific. It was a great day for scenic coastal twisties and gravel blasting before coming to a stop in Hanmer.

 

Day 3 - Hanmer Springs to Westport, West Coast

This morning we took on the famous Rainbow Road, 112kms of epic wilderness driving from Hanmer to St Arnaud. Beautiful but definitely hairy in parts, especially as the clouds rolled in and the proverbial heavens opened. A proper Alpine route, we experienced windy weather, cold spells and epic scenery, not to mention some soggy axles as we passed through the creek crossings. We warmed up in St Arnaud, then took in some lovely countryside into Murchison for a coffee break, before getting back in the saddle and battling the rain to Westport. This is the point when we realised they weren’t lying when they said NZ’s West Coast is notoriously wet!

 

Day 4 - Westport to Franz Josef

A real mixed bag of weather today on our transit to Franz Josef, but nothing could dampen the epic views of the Great Coastal Road. We couldn’t drive through Ross without a stop at the Historic Empire Hotel and it did disappoint, a proper traditional roadhouse with memorabilia everywhere, even the ceiling! Lunch was a top-notch Kiwi pie - we had to try out the competition of course.

 

Day 5 - Franz Josef to Queenstown

The day started with a hearty breakfast, before a quick trip out to the Franz Josef Glacier - Mungindi was represented well! We had gloomy conditions for the first part of the ride, but a bit of blue made its way through when we had a quick stop at the picturesque Thunder Creek Falls. After plenty of pics, we set off for Wānaka on some stunningly twisty roads and a bite to eat. Bodies and bikes refuelled, we made our way towards Skippers Canyon - naturally stopping at a certain fence at Cardona for a few laughs. A quick rip through the canyon with some breathtaking views and overcooked rear brakes, before meeting the Ultimate team in Queenstown who were ready with the snacks. How good!

 

Day 6 - Queenstown to Alexandra

Today was a shorter day by distance, but certainly an action-packed one! Out of Queenstown, we had a short run around Lake Wakatipu before getting stuck into the beautiful Nevis Track. Luckily, we’d left the wet weather back on the coast so our climb was spectacular, before descending into the valley to follow the river. River crossing after river crossing followed, before reaching a pretty deep one we had to skirt, which resulted in a few roosts through the mud to get around it. Great fun! After a quick break, we continued on some of the most flowing roads you could imagine, with plenty of skids before arriving in windy Cromwell for a bike and body refuel. Then we made our way through Thomson Gorge to Omakau for a quick rest, before a spirited sideways run into Alexandra for the night.

 

Day 7 - Alexandra to Otemata

Big day in the saddle for the boys today, just over 400kms for most of us, and for one particular rider an extra 100 in the wrong direction…He was convinced he was following the pink line on the GPS. We took a quick trip up to the Obelisk to take in the views, then hit an awesome twin track which caught a couple of riders out, before a well-earned coffee and cake in Roxburgh. Next up, a lovely run into Runfurly before another spirited ride over Danseys Pass into Otemata for a much-needed Guinness.

 

Day 8 - Otemata to Methven

We started the day with a special access run out through the private Black Forest Station - now this is why Ultimate Adventure Moto NZ are the best tour guides, it was unreal! After some epic photos and a quick stop, we headed along some lovely sweeping gravel roads past Lake Benmore and leading to the Tekapo river bed, littered with rocks the size of bowling balls for lots of loose fun.

This led us to Lake Pukaki, which is a must-stop for adventure riders in NZ. Big, blue and long gravel roads - everything you’d want. After taking in Lake Tekapo, we stopped for lunch at the famous bakehouse in Fairlie. Make sure to grab a pie while you’re there, they’re famous for a reason! More gravel roads took us through the Canterbury Plains to our motel in Methven.

 

Day 9 - Methven to Christchurch

Our last big ride would not be a disappointment! The day started with some banter from the locals. No one was safe, not even our fearless leader Rob who was gifted a Wombat from the Wombat Adventure Riders for an unplanned trip into a rocky river bed.
After breakfast, we headed for the hills across the Rakaia River, around Lakes Coleridge and Lyndon on some of the loosest gravel roads we’ve ever seen. Quick run over the Porters Pass and Sheffield through a river bed that put some riders to the test, before another cracking pie at the Oxford Bakery.

Next up was a fateful trip to Lees Valley, with more loose gravel that caught two riders out having a slight nap on a couple of corners and an unlucky road closure meaning we had to turn back and do it all again. An easy run up the highway to Christchurch for some much-needed laundry ahead of our last day.

 

Day 10 - Christchurch - Christchurch

The final day was an awesome loop day out of Christchurch through some epic backcountry roads, winding around Lakes Ellesmere and Lake Forsyth. After a short break, we ventured towards Birdlings Flat littered with ‘deep shingle’ as the locals called it - the only way through was to “just give it to it” according to Ken!

Then we made the 20-minute drive to Akaroa take over 2 hours before stopping for lunch overlooking the ocean. After this, we made the short run back to the Ultimate Adventure Moto HQ to clean up and make our way for a final dinner with the riders and crew.
We can’t thank Steve and the team at Ultimate Adventure Moto New Zealand enough for having us along on this epic 10-day adventure ride through the South Island, and a big thanks to all the riders who came along too.

Take a look at the tours available for 2024 on the Ultimate Adventure Moto NZ website.