One summer, two wheels

Congratulations!

Today is your day.

You're off to Great Places!

You're off and away!

You have brains in your head.

You have feet in your shoes

You can steer yourself

any direction you choose.

You're on your own. And you know what you know.

And YOU are the guy who'll decide where to go.

Dr Seuss, Oh, the Places You’ll Go!

It’s summertime, the heat is stirring, and some of us have an acute case of wanderlust.  Which is why, at the end of January 2013, we’re going on an adventure.  (“We” = myself, my boyfriend Lee, and his friend Virginie, who is flying out from Montreal to join us.)

The plan is simple: we want to bike New Zealand, tip to toe (although we may end up at ankle-height), freedom camping on public land as we make our way down Aotearoa.  Basic conveniences and glamour are out the window.  We’ll have a tent, enough food and water to last us until the next town, and some serious chafing.

Reactions to this plan have certainly been mixed.  “You are mad,” some have said, and we have nodded and agreed.  Yes, we are.  Out of our many minds.  A frequent question is: why?  While my response has generally been “why not?” I do have a greater cause in mind.  

On 21 October 2012, my aunt Merle-Anne Braithwaite, departed this world for what she called her next adventure.  She spent her last days at Waipuna Hospice in Tauranga surrounded by sunlight, birdsong, and gentle people who meet death every day with grace and acceptance.  

Waipuna Hospice cares for terminally ill patients and their families. The Hospice has to raise $2m this year to meet the shortfall between government funding and its operating costs.  We’d like to help them reach that target however we can, and people have told us that they’d happily shell out a few coins if they get to watch us become more bedraggled the further south we get.

I will be posting about this more as we near our start date, but if you feel like harnessing your Christmas spirit and making a donation of whatever value, your generosity would be greatly appreciated.  You can do so here (the “donate” button is to the right of the screen).

Lee and I will be updating this blog over the next wee while with our pre-trip planning, and we intend to keep the posts coming while we’re on the trip itself. If you’d like to follow along, enter your details in the box on the right.

More to come.