The return of anticipation…

So……it’s been a long time since we wrote a blog piece for you all. Last time we connected it was a year since the start of our big Black Sea adventure, it’s now another 6 months on from that – wow, time flies when you’re having fun! We’d all returned home and back into the routine of daily life, everything returning to normal, but also a bit different as well. The warm glow of pride in achieving what we did and the memories we have linger on.

We have, of course, all had our own lives and little adventures going on, here’s a nice little selection to whet the appetite:

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Sam is in Austria, Steve stayed in Germany for almost another year and Amand returned to New Zealand. This has meant there has been limited chances for connection, although we have had a few Skypes to catch up and discuss our feelings on the shared adventure only we can really understand fully. And of course, some discussions have emerged around what might happen next….we’ve vaguely discussed some ideas for 2020, but haven’t got anywhere yet….but watch this space.

Sam and Steve did manage to connect briefly for a three-day jaunt in the Austrian mountains. Here’s a story about it from Steve:

I left home in Southern Germany and blitzed down the Autobahn for 444km to our pre-planned meeting point in Kaprun, Austria. Riding from the other side of Austria Sam arrived at the pub just 15 minutes after me. Lyubov’ and Vera (our two bikes) reunited after exactly one year apart! We celebrated the occasion with a beer, then hit the road to find a random camping site.

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The next day was truly epic! The “better than sex” ride to the Großglockner, Austria’s highest mountain. So many twists and turns and huge open country and stunning views… It was so good, we turned around and did it again. Along the way we peeled off the road for a spot of lunch at an old wooden hut, bumping into two old Austrian fellas who invited us to lunch with them. They were out hunting for Marmot and were pretty stoked when we spied one for them!

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With plenty of the day remaining we ummed and arred about where to next, deciding to head back through Kaprun to Uttendorf and then south to the Taurnmoossee for another wilderness camping mish. It was quite the adventure getting up there, and it was well dark when we pitched our tents in the middle of nowhere. What a day!

The next morning we saw how truly epic the views were – massive mountains all around us, glaciers, a huge lake. Just wow! We meandered back down the valley and had an early lunch in Mittersill, where we parted ways. It was short and sweet, but it was great to catch up, reminisce, share some riding, and drink a wee dram or two.

With all day ahead of me and the sense of adventure pulsing in my veins I mapped out a journey home, riding from Mittersill to Innsbruck, and from there southwest towards Switzerland through Ischgl, Bludenz, then north again via Damüls towards the German border, stopping somewhere for a schnitzel and apfel strüdel, before smashing out the kms back home. All up that day – 704km (almost 200km more than our biggest day on the Black Sea adventure). I walked in the door at midnight and promptly fell asleep on the couch, satisfied that I’d definitely made the most of these three days!

So now Steve has returned to New Zealand he and I have been scheming. Making the most of a catch up with a couple of mates in Turangi (the middle of the North Island) the planning for another small adventure has emerged, because….well….why not!

What is the coolest about the planning and preparation for this new adventure is the return of anticipation. I heard someone say recently that sometimes it seems like the anticipation of something is actually better than the real thing. I’m not sure I’d go that far when it comes to having amazing adventures and experiences like we did around the Black Sea, but that is not to diminish the feeling that anticipation brings. It is a cool feeling to have.

Anticipation has returned with all the strength of what we’ve had before, and sure, this mini adventure in no way lives up to the Black Sea craziness, but it has reinforced something I think we know but often overlook. You know how when you book a holiday you get filled with that excitement, and how some people book their next holiday immediately on returning from the last one, just to have that feeling of anticipation.

I think this is all a good reminder of the importance of having something to look forward to, and something that fills you with a bit of excitement – or if you want to quote the current social queen Marie Kondo, something that sparks joy!! The extra step for me is adding in a bit of challenge and adventure, then the joy is well and truly sparked!!

So what we’re actually up to is a week where Steve will come up from Dunedin to Wellington. We’ll head up to Turangi, walk the Tongariro Crossing with our mates – apparently the best day walk in NZ. We’ll then head off to Taumarunui and down the Forgotten World Highway to Stratford in Taranaki – I see plenty of bikers with a Whangamamona Pub t-shirt so it seems it’s a must do and given we’re in the area….

Then back down to Wellington, across the strait and off up into the Molesworth which is in the mountains behind Kaikoura. We haven’t been into the Molesworth before, but Dad, who has, said it’s a must, and it should be a fun playground out on the high country stations in the mountains.

What’s just occurred to me right now as I sit at my work desk is that I’m looking out onto Molesworth St in Wellington…

…it’s not quite the Molesworth of our dreams, but a good reminder of the mini adventure coming over the horizon!!!

It’s now under 2 weeks away and that joy/excitement/anticipation is really getting under my skin. Bring it on!!