As soon as the gannet tour was over at around 12 noon (this varys depending on the departure time which is dependent on the tides), we headed straight over to Bike About Tours in Napier to collect our ponies (mountain bikes).
Having not been on a bike for over 20 years, meant this was to be an adventure for sure. It's true what they say - you never forget how to ride a bike, however as we were about to find out, the grace and style of our teenage riding years is nothing more than a distant memory.
We are greeted on arrival and taken out the back to be suited up to our bikes, have helmets fitted, plus to go over the map and receive tips on the best biking routes. As of March 2007, the price for free wheeling it from vineyard to vineyard is $40 per bike plus a bond of $50 (the credit card voucher is ripped up upon the safe return of the bike and accessories). Most vineyards close their cellar doors at around 5pm, so by the time we actually set out on our ride, we only had about 3 hours.
The closest vineyards are only a 5 minute ride away from our base, but we figured we had better do a little more riding than that - get back on the horse, so to speak. So we made our first stop at the Silky Chocolate Factory the furthest point on our chosen route. The only unfortunate thing about this decision was that it meant biking along an extremely busy main road. There is a cafe at the chocolate factory so we had coffee and lunch before heading for the chocolate shop. After picking out a few delicious looking chocolate treats, we set out again on our broncos for the vineyards - first Church Road then Mission Winery both with a lot of history in the Hawkes Bay region.
After sampling some mighty fine wines and making the necessary purchases we arranged for Bike About Tours to collect our goodies for us (since it was more than our bikes could carry). We stayed on at Mission Winery for about an hour after the cellar doors closed, just enjoying the ambiance of the garden setting and grand buildings before heading back to base to return the bikes, and pick up our wine purchases. Our host at Bike About Tours provided a complimentary transfer back to our accommodation in Napier, where we settled in for the night.
Bike About Tours were an excellent operator to deal with. Not only did they provide the bikes, helmets, and maps but also a complimentary pick up of all our goodies purchased during the day and a transfer back to our accommodation in Napier. Just one thing we can recommend is that you keep to the less busy roads and this will ensure you have a stress free biking wine tour experience.
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