Banks Peninsula with the Subarus Offroad NZ Crew
On a recent visit to Christchurch, I managed to line up a morning trip with a few of the boys from Subarus Offroad New Zealand. The dress code for this event being black or gunmetal grey. Joining me was Tony in his SH Forester XT, Luke in his SH Forester, and Joe in his 99 SF Forester. We met up and headed off to the first destination of Birdlings Flat. This south facing beach can be a very exciting to witness the big southern swells rolling in, but on our trip it was beautifully calm.
Getting across the beach has its challenges, being a pebble beach a very soft, it dent take much to become stuck. After dropping down to about 20psi we hit it, with only one of us getting into a mild struggle. The upwards into the clouds along the Bossu Road. This is a part that apparently offers some of the best views, so we’ve marked this place to return to on a clear day. Following the winding gravel road along the tops of Banks Peninsula, we then dropped down int Akaroa harbour and the skies cleared.
Our final part of the trip was Old Le Bons Bay Track, a grade 3 track starting at Takamatua, and heading up to the eastern summit of the harbour. With the ruts being carved out from the summer, we all had to take some creative lines to get through. The Fozzies all did well, off camber sections and some good rock gardens. All finished off with an epic view.
