Heli-Heaven!
Heli bike day dawns with a bluebird sky and some serious anticipation on my part as it was going to be my first time (in a Helicopter)! Aussie Dan and me got dropped off at Wanaka’s airport and met our pilot. Once sat in the Heli we were all amped and ready to go after the pilot spent 2 min’s hitting the oil gauge on the control panel to get it to register we were off. It’s a unforgettable feeling leaving off terre-ferma vertically but funnily enough I found it far less unnerving than flying in a plane. Flying above the ridge we would soon be riding was a very different experience; you could see the various single track sheep track which would make up our route along the ridge.
how is the serenity?!
As we stood straddling our respective two wheeled steads a top the 1600m plus mountain looking over jagged mountain ranges and down to Lake Wanaka it was a pure moment as we began this epic ride! It took the first decent to get used to the exposure on the ridgeline. When Dan said he had chosen a very special trail for us, I now realise he wasn’t actually joking! …A wicked trail that suited all our riding styles and abilities.
After a couple of minutes riding we began to really let loose, all choosing different lines along the mountain. Just as we settled into the flow we were hit by what seemed to be a mountain on top of a mountain so it was bikes on shoulders time ready for a bit of a Hike-A-Biking. We had to negotiate exposed goat paths, steep rocky faces and a good bout of vertigo but we made it too the top and it was as they say all downhill from there. So begun an hour long decent consisting of virgin single track, open freeriding and high speed 4 wheel drive track to finish.
It was one of the most amazing days of riding so far and was followed by one of the best night’s sleep of my life. I guess I deserved it!
Over and out Cal..
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