Day 3: 9 cyclists + 2 guides + 2 crashes = 7 cyclists + 1 guide

For Day 3 we rode from Arthur's Pass to Hokitika. The day started out with a steady drizzle (as usual). Rita, Janet, Peter and I did a hike up to see a really pretty waterfall prior to starting the ride. The drizzle had turned into a full out rain by the time we finished the hike, so Janet and I opted to start the ride on the other side of Arthur's pass. Arthur's pass didn't have a terribly difficult climb, but the opposite side had a 5k very steep decent with grades in excess of 16%. These are kind of descents where there are danger signs all over and steep cliffs with no shoulders. Add rain to that. Not my idea of fun. We picked up a couple riders coming down the mountain - it wasn't their idea of fun either. (Well, and they were cold and soaking wet, which didn't help either.)

Although the conditions were the best, the scenery going down Arthur's pass was beautiful I hopped out of the van when Bill and Peter were loading up the riders. Big ravines and gully's, covered in lush green rainforests.

At any rate, my ride was good, despite the rain and then headwind that picked up just before Jackson's where we had lunch. At lunch the day took a different turn because of 2 bike crashes.

Both Bill and Wayne crashed on the railroad tracks - the tracks can get slippery in the rain, and these particular tracks were at a big slant so you couldn't cross them head on. Bill's ok, just bruises and scrapes, and he can't cycle or do any heavy lifting for a week or so, but Wayne's crash was quite a bit worse. His bike is trashed and he got a big pretty big gash on his elbow and broke a rib. He thought he could stay for the rest of the trip, but the next morning he was having trouble breathing so he and Michelle decided it was best to end their trip. We were all sad to see them go, but you could tell Wayne was just not doing well. He could hardly get in and out of the van because of the pain. They were going to stop in Sidney to get medical attention but we haven't heard anything yet - hopefully no news is good news.

While Bill and Wayne were recuperating that afternoon/evening, I did a bunch of exploring. Hokitika is a cute little town. Several of us went to a little cafe for a snack and got supplies at a bike shop. I went to the West Coast museum and went for a walk on the beach (Hokitika is on the coast). The beach is pretty - black sand with lots of pretty stones and driftwood.