Distance: 144.25 km
Ridetime: 7:15:36
Average: 19.9 km/h
Max speed: 53.5 km/h
Total distance: 18824 km
From the moment I woke up at my wild camp spot at the shore of Lake Hawea the stunning landscapes continued all day.
I must say that New Zealand has surprised me. The other countries I have cycled through also had their beautiful stretches, but then after half a day on a scenic road I would be back in more “normal” places. In New Zealand the amazing views just seem to go and and on without end 
Half way through the day I was riding over the Haast Pass leading to the West Coast. The climb was manageable as some of it was following a river on a gentle slope uphill. Near the top I met Joe, a cyclistfrom the States on his first bike tour. Joe had worked as a programmer in the States as well as in Buenos Aires and Hong Kong. His next job was in Madrid. Nice to know my profession allows for travelling as well, even though I’m not planning on getting a full time programming job any time soon.
At my camp site for the night I experienced the famous sand flies for the first time. Until now I have only seen a few of them, but at the lake shore were I was camping there seemed to be millions! The problem with sand flies is that they bite, just like mosquitoes! My strategy was to get into my tent as soon as possible, but as I opened the zipper and quickly put the stuff I needed inside, what seemed like 50 sand flies had already made it inside as well.
I’m now in a very isolated part of the country. My phone haven’t had coverage for the last 150 km, and I only passed one super market. It almost feels like being back in the outback.
