Bike the North Island
7 Days

Bike the North

Day 1 - Woodhill Forest West Auckland
Located approximately 45 minutes northwest of Auckland City, Woodhill Forest boasts some of the best trails in New Zealand and is a mountain biking Mecca, accommodating hundreds of riders in a typical week. The park offers something specifically suited for everybody and offers a host of facilities to complement your riding - this includes an onsite mechanic and service area complete with tools and spare parts, bike rentals, clean toilets, cold drinks, snacks, free up-to-date maps, changing rooms, an on site coffee shop along with riding clinics and regular races.

New tracks and tricks are constantly created at Woodhill. There is now close to 60km of mountain biking mania to immerse yourself in, with tracks all over the place, excellent signage and route markings make it very difficult to get lost here. The terrain is 90% single custom-built tracks serving up a delightful selection of goodies for all abilities, from easy flat tracks through to competition and insane event trails. It's not hard to see why it's one of the most popular mountain biking spots in the country, and why so many riders flock here.

Woodhill has Forest has over 50 named trails/courses which provide over 100 kilometers of single track riding and over 100 purpose-built, jumps and stunts including our huge and pretty scary “North Shore” stunts. Grades 1 – 5

Day 2 & 3 CastleRock Adventure Resort
Lying largely undiscovered amongst spectacular Waikato farmland in the middle of New Zealand’s North Island between the boiling mud pools of Rotorua and the glowworm caves of Waitomo, CastleRock offers great mountainbiking trails from Grades 2 – 5 catering for all levels of riders. Discover the scenery of the Easyrider trail, the thrills of the Freeride trail or try the spectacular BSX track. Castle Rock has Heated outdoor pool, spa, full kitchen, lounge, Sky, DVD, internet, BBQ, tennis. And for those that want to have a go they have some of the countries rock climbing - All equipment, professionally guided rock climbing, abseiling on site.

EASYRIDER –
Grade 2 – 45 mins – 1 hr rolling terrain, trail minimum 1 metre wide, circumnavigate the farm taking in the beautiful Puniu River gorge.

FREERIDE TRAIL –
Grade 4 to 5 – 45 mins – 1 hr challenging terrain, short steep ascents and technical descents with optional obstacles, shutes, drops, ladders, narrow bridges; your’e doing well to ride everything 100% first time. This is the trail to build your skills to the next level.

BSX/4X TRACK –
Grade 3 to 5 - 50 sec of downhill fun. Table topped jumps, massive bermed corners, hip jumps. A fast and flowing track which has been recently upgraded.

DIRT JUMP PARK –
Located at the bottom of the BSX/4X track is a sequence of variable sized table top jumps, user friendly and very popular. Good for MTB or BMX.

Day 4 & 5 - The Geothermal Wonderland Rotorua
Rotorua, the heartland of New Zealand is the host to some of the world’s most incredible earth forces. Surrounded by the unmistakable smell of bubbling sulphuric geysers, clouds of steam magically appear around the city giving it an incredible 'other worldly' feel. Here lives wonders like the Pohutu geyser, which erupts 20 times a day and can spout up to 100 feet. All around this geothermal hotspot there are spouting geysers boiling mud pools that bubble and belch, and warm geothermal pools and ponds and hot spring bath’s that create a kaleidoscope of colour. With a deep-rooted Maori cultural heritage spanning from the 14th century, Rotorua is still considered Maori cultural centre of New Zealand.

Enjoy Two Days of Riding doing one or more of three very distinctive rides:

1) Whakarewarewa Forest - Grade: 1-4+
The Whakarewarewa Forest is a place where you can escape and unwind . . . or escape and energize!, This Giant Redwood Forests has trails that weave their way under towering forest canopies of redwood, radiata, douglas fir, eucalyptus, and larch. Riders are rewarded with stunning views through gaps in the forest of lakes, thermal activity and the looming bulk of Mt Tarawera. Take off deep into the forest, feel dwarfed by nature or just perhaps find quiet…. relax, there are a myriad of trails to choose. Alternatively with a high performance mountain bike, take speed through the trees on a on the undulating network of purpose built trails some are suitable for first timers but there are many suitable for advanced riders looking for extreme action with cross country or downhill.

2) Night Ride- Whakarewarewa Forest Night Ride - Grade: 1-4+
Night Ride - Discover another world in Whakarewarewa Forest, an amazing wildlife and single track experience. Cycle home on the thermal lake trail - surreal and spooky!

3) Lake Loop - Grade: 2+
"Out the back trails" near the magnificent Blue and Green Lakes - The 30km loop track around the lakes is very beautiful. One of the most amazing sights on this lengthy loop is seeing the popular Blue Lake then the undisturbed peacefulness of the Green Lake. After the days ride visit geysers and bubbling mud, and sooth the body in the relaxing geothermal hot pools.

Day 6 - Ride the 42nd Traverse (AKA) Tongariro Forest Crossing (National Park)
Location: Tongariro Forest, National Park
Grade 3+, Distance 44km
Rating: Hard, a good level of fitness required, ride includes 20km of hill climbs, 2km of technical downhill, 5-7 hours
This is one of the best mountain bike rides in New Zealand. The 42nd traverse is a 44km ride through the Tongariro forest with amazing views of the mountains and some awesome riding. The ride follows a four wheel drive track and crosses several streams and one river.There are some really awesome long downhill sections along the way with some picturesque river crossings, but also be prepared for the many unrelenting, muscle-wrenching, hill climbs en-route, that not only test you physically, but mentally as well. For the not so fit, some will eventually reduce you to walking. The scenery through the park is simply amazing, offering views on a clear day of the many volcanoes in the region. The 42nd Traverse is an exhilarating, rewarding experience and well worth the effort.

Day 7 Hawkes Bay - Wine Country
A leisurely cycle through New Zealand’s premier wine producing region.

The Hawkes Bay is one of New Zealand’s premier wine producing regions. It is a veritable treasure trove of vineyards, offering wines of superlative quality, many of which have won both national and international acclaim. This region is synonymous with the noble varieties of Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Both Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling also command high recognition.
Your tour is educational and fun you will Visit four or five local wineries tasting some of the best wines in New Zealand.

This unique one-day, cycling experience gives you the opportunity to enjoy tasting some of Hawkes Bay's finest foods and wines, while at the same time, taking in the superb scenery. Glide past vineyards, olive groves, ostrich farms, orchards, horse studs, and farmland-all on flat terrain with wonderful vistas.

There are three routes available to cater for all levels of fitness. Up to six wineries can be visited and all offer the opportunity to taste the wines and have outside seating where you can enjoy the superb settings before moving on. You can leave your bike and take a fifteen minute walk through farmland to the top of Roy's Hill to enjoy a spectacular 360 degree view of Hawkes Bay rivers, vineyards, farmland and orchards.

The longest ride is 28km and the shortest is 15km. The mobile phone supplied ensures that you are always in range of back-up and support just in case you need us to collect the odd bottle or two you may have purchased along the way.

Please enquire for further details and trip pricing.