Remembering Our Percy Pass, Fiordland, NZ Adventure.

​Fiordland National Park, NZ, Percy Pass
 
New Zealand’s South Island is known for adventure. From cycling, mountaineering, trekking, jet boat river surfing,...and on and on.  Not only can you find your adventure, you can take a helicopter to start your adventure. It was the attraction of singletrack and backcountry bikepacking adventures that appealed to my wife, Niki, and I.
 
Niki was celebrating her 40th birthday and New Zealand had been a bucket list vacation for over 20 years. As we planned and plotted our bike adventures from St. James Trail to Old Ghost Road (both I highly recommend), It ‘s the ones you never planned for that becomes memorable adventures. One such adventure ride is Percy Pass in Fiordland National Park.
 
Fiordland NP is not known for bike adventures. In fact, Percy Pass is possibly the only place you can ride a bike on dirt in Fiordland. However, it is not an easy ride. First, in order to start the ride, you have to ferry across Lake Manapouri. Once off the Ferry it’s a short ride to Percy Pass Trail Head. The only reason you can ride dirt in Fiordland is because the dirt you are on is a Power line service road (but don’t let that discourage you, the ride is amazing!). The climbing begins once you see the power lines and we learn what NZ means by “Grade 5 Expert”. 

​From previous rides, we learned Eagle gearing is a must for bikepacking NZ. As we climbed steep hill after steep hill, our mantra was, “Eagle don’t care. Eagle don’t give a sh*t.” And this proved most essential for Percy Pass. Our 30T oval/50 mullet gearing allowed us to creep up the steepest and continually longest vertical rise we had yet to ride in NZ. As we climbed, the views got better and we witnessed the destruction of tree avalanches (check out YouTube videos of Fiordland, NZ tree avalanches). 

​Tree avalanches are a common hazard in Fiordland.  An avalanche you cannot hope to pull your airbag and float down, or out run, or swim your way to safety. You’re simply pummeled to nothing. Basically, you have a very steep slope with a forest that grows on a shallow soil surface and is triggered by a wind event or just simply a tree that grows too big for its britches. And then the domino effect happens and they all come tumbling down. What we didn’t know is we soon would have an in depth view of the carnage.
 
As we climbed higher, the view of Lake Manapouri, got better and better. We ascended above treeline into the high tundra in the saddle. There we really hoped to see some NZ stags or elk, but it would not be. Another great YouTube rabbit hole to go down is search "NZ Deer Lift". You’ll have an education of the steep terrain and how crazy Kiwi’s are. But, back to our story. 

​As we topped out our expected reward of a fun downhill was shattered as we looked over the edge and saw we had not only a hike-a-bike ahead but also a no fall zone. We cradled our bikes and picked our way to the forest edge in hopes of some singletrack. Again, we were denied. Now what presented itself was a maze of tree avalanche debris. Lifting, pulling, lowering, crawling, squirming, and contortioning our bodies and bikes through a mile of tree and rock debris put our time schedule behind in order to meet our shuttle. 

​We finally made it out to an equally steep decent as our ascent. However, the road condition had what the Kiwi’s call "Elephant Gravel", bigger than baby heads, with baby heads in between. We definitely couldn’t open it up. In fact, some stretches were so steep and gnarly that walking the bike down the road was the best choice. 

​As we reached the South Arm gravel road, the hardest part was behind us, but the majority of mileage was ahead of us. We were behind schedule and needed to bust out the miles in order to meet our shuttle. No time for a casual lunch on the shore. We had two valleys and two more mountain pass to cover. So on we rode, eating and drinking while peddling and peddling and peddling. With windows of big views and tunnel forests it was easy to lay down the hammer and enjoy the ride. This is true with every ride in New Zealand. 

​Our final push was in sight. A few hard miles of up and a half dozen steep switchbacks put us on top of the saddle. From there our reward would be a well-earned downhill. With speeds above 40 mph and a downhill run lasting miles, it was all smiles. Our shuttle was due to meet us at Borland Lodge at 5pm. We made it with two minutes to spare.

New Zealand is truly an amazing and epic country to ride a bike. Percy Pass was a true bike adventure, not easy. If you’re looking for a tamer ride NZ has plenty of choices from flowing singletrack to pathways that connect pubs to Air B&Bs to Vineyard’s. No matter what kind of ride you’re looking for, NZ will deliver and then some. If you’re buried in snow and having a difficult time finding the love, it’s summer shorts and shirts weather in NZ. Take your bike in to your local Fitzgerald’s and get it prepped. I recommend going Eagle. Besides your Bike (FYI- bikes under 50lbs fly free westbound over seas to NZ), you’ll want to take an extra pair of brake pads and a good camera.
 
 
Our Bikes and Gear:
 
Bike: Trek Top Fuel with Eagle drivetrain and dropper.
Bags: Revelate Designs Sweet Roll and Seat bag. FBJ custom frame bag and down tube bag.
Misc gear: Normal light camp gear, extra clothes and tools.
 
Riding Info: For Percy Pass, See Trail Forks app for a great description that will talk you out of going. And to schedule a shuttle, see Wild Rides in Te Anau. For other great bikepacking adventures in NZ, download “Great Rides” app and see www.nzcycletrail.com