Post No. 63 - Scary Drive!

Manawatu Lookout

So we had another go at finding the windfarm today. Still haven't found it! We saw a lot of turbines and sometimes we seemed really close but still haven't worked out how you get into the Wind Farm carpark to get your picture taken right underneath one! Our mission continues....

We did find a sign that said Wind Farm so headed down that road. It was a single dirt track that wound its way around mountains and gorges and I was hyperventalating at certain points. We ended up finding a safe place to turn and heading back. We probably should have realised what we had let ourselves in for when a sign at the start of the road said EXTREME CAUTION and another said 25kmph for next 11 km! Thats like 10mph or something. And you really did have to drive at that speed.

Scary stuff - let me tell you - thank goodness there were no other cars on this road because there were hardly any passing places and I would have turned blue from lack of oxygen had Graeme had to reverse back to a passing place!

The roads are scary here! Manawatu Gorge is 5 minutes out of town. I can appreciate the amazing view but the signs at the beginning of the Gorge say its an Accident area for 8km....yet the speed limit if still 100km - the national speed limit. How daft is that? There is no way you can do 100 round most of the gorge - you would have to be on a death wish!

And views like the one above are all around you as you drive these roads. It must be so hard to keep your eyes on the road with all these rivers/streams/hills/mountains/gorges/lambs all about you. And the best bit - chickens! - on the side of the road! I kid you not!

We did find a horse riding place and quad biking place so will be heading back there soon in the near future. I get Graeme on a horse and he gets me on a Quad bike - should be fun! And we also found a beautiful little cafe place where they do the best potato wedges and instead of being given a number when you order food you get an ornament. We got a big rubber goldfish to put on our table!

Sweet as!